The Curious Cliff Of Tilted Sandstone and Siltstone

 

It’s not exactly a total secret, but getting to the “Curious Cliff” is a mission…whether you’re trying to scramble to the summit or just reach the base. It’s a curious formation because it stands out as a massive, jagged rib of rock that looks like it’s been punched out of the earth.

The whole thing is basically a giant, exposed stack of sandstone and siltstone, all tilted and shoved upward by some serious tectonic grunt. The sedimentary layers were originally laid down flat on an ancient sea floor roughly 20 to 40 million years ago. Because siltstone is relatively soft compared to the surrounding stone, it erodes into sharp ridges and unstable faces, making the summit a crumbling, precarious mess and the base a constantly shifting pile of debris.