County: Gove

Date: October 2008

Photographer: John Charlton/KGS

Place Name: Castle Rock

Short description: Niobrara Chalk formation below Ogallala outcrop near Castle Rock in Gove County. Chalk formations in Gove County are part of the Smoky Hill Chalk Member of the Niobrara Chalk. The massive layers of chalk formed from sediments deposited on the bottom of a great inland sea that covered much of western North America during the later part of the Cretaceous Period, about 80 million years ago.

Hi-Resolution Version

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