Enchanted Rock is a pink

granite Granite () is a coarse-grained ( phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies under ...

mountain located in the Llano Uplift about north of

Fredericksburg, Texas Fredericksburg (german: Friedrichsberg) is the seat of Gillespie County, in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2010 Census, this city had a population of 10,530. Fredericksburg was founded in 1846 and named after Prince Frederick of Prussia. ...

and south of

Llano, Texas Llano ( ) is a city in Llano County, Texas, United States. As of 2010, the city population was 3,232. It is the county seat of Llano County. Geography Llano is located at (30.750953, –98.680038). It is on the Llano River, northwest of Aus ...

, United States. Enchanted Rock State Natural Area, which includes Enchanted Rock and surrounding land, spans the border between Gillespie and Llano counties, south of the

Llano River The Llano River ( ) is a tributary of the Colorado River, about long, in Texas in the United States. It drains part of the Edwards Plateau in Texas Hill Country northwest of Austin. Two spring-fed tributaries, the North and South Llano, stre ...

. Enchanted Rock covers roughly and rises around above the surrounding terrain to an elevation of above sea level. It is the largest pink granite monadnock in the United States. Enchanted Rock State Natural Area, a part of the Texas state park system, includes . In 1936, the area was designated a

Recorded Texas Historic Landmark Recorded Texas Historic Landmark (RTHL) is a designation awarded by the Texas Historical Commission for historically and architecturally significant properties in the U.S. state of Texas. RTHL is a legal designation and the highest honor the st ...

. In 1971, Enchanted Rock was designated as a National Natural Landmark by the National Park Service. Enchanted Rock was rated in 2017 as the best campsite in Texas in a 50-state survey.

Geology

The prominent

granite dome Granite domes are domical hills composed of granite with bare rock exposed over most of the surface. Generally, domical features such as these are known as bornhardts. Bornhardts can form in any type of plutonic rock but are typically composed o ...

is visible for many miles in the surrounding basin of the Llano Uplift. The weathered dome, standing above the surrounding plain, is known to geologists as a monadnock. The rock is actually the visible above-ground part of a segmented ridge, the surface expression of a large

igneous Igneous rock (derived from the Latin word ''ignis'' meaning fire), or magmatic rock, is one of the three main rock types, the others being sedimentary and metamorphic. Igneous rock is formed through the cooling and solidification of magma or ...

batholith, called the Town Mountain GraniteUniversity of Texas at Austin, Bureau of Economic Geology, Barnes, V.E., Hartmann, Barbara and Scranton, D.F., 1992, Geologic map of Texas: University of Texas at Austin, Bureau of Economic Geology, scale 1:500000

/ref> of middle Precambrian ()Walker, Nicholas, ''Middle Proterozoic geologic evolution of Llano uplift, Texas: Evidence from U-Pb zircon geochronometry,'' Geological Society of America Bulletin 1992;104;494–504 material that intruded into earlier

metamorphic Metamorphic rocks arise from the transformation of existing rock to new types of rock in a process called metamorphism. The original rock (protolith) is subjected to temperatures greater than and, often, elevated pressure of or more, causi ...

schist Schist ( ) is a medium-grained metamorphic rock showing pronounced schistosity. This means that the rock is composed of mineral grains easily seen with a low-power hand lens, oriented in such a way that the rock is easily split into thin flakes ...

, called the Packsaddle Schist. The intrusive granite of the rock mass, or pluton, was exposed by extensive

erosion Erosion is the action of surface processes (such as water flow or wind) that removes soil, rock, or dissolved material from one location on the Earth's crust, and then transports it to another location where it is deposited. Erosion is dis ...

of the surrounding

sedimentary rock Sedimentary rocks are types of rock that are formed by the accumulation or deposition of mineral or organic particles at Earth's surface, followed by cementation. Sedimentation is the collective name for processes that cause these particles ...

, primarily the

Cretaceous The Cretaceous ( ) is a geological period that lasted from about 145 to 66 million years ago (Mya). It is the third and final period of the Mesozoic Era, as well as the longest. At around 79 million years, it is the longest geological period of ...

Edwards

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

, which is exposed a few miles to the south of Enchanted Rock.

Enchanted Rock State Natural Area and Conservation

Park activities include

caving Caving – also known as spelunking in the United States and Canada and potholing in the United Kingdom and Ireland – is the recreational pastime of exploring wild cave systems (as distinguished from show caves). In contrast, speleology i ...

hiking Hiking is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century.AMATO, JOSEPH A. "Mind over Foot: Romantic Walking and Rambling." In ''On Foot: A Histor ...

, primitive

backpack A backpack—also called knapsack, schoolbag, rucksack, rucksac, pack, sackpack, booksack, bookbag or backsack—is, in its simplest frameless form, a fabric sack carried on one's back and secured with two straps that go over the shoulders ...

camping Camping is an outdoor activity involving overnight stays away from home, either without shelter or using basic shelter such as a tent, or a recreational vehicle. Typically, participants leave developed areas to spend time outdoors in more na ...

, rock climbing and picnicking. The Summit Trail is the most popular hiking path. The

Granite Gripper Granite () is a coarse-grained ( phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies undergr ...

is an annual rock climbing competition that acts as a fundraiser for park conservation through the

Friends of Enchanted Rock ''Friends'' is an American television sitcom created by David Crane and Marta Kauffman, which aired on NBC from September 22, 1994, to May 6, 2004, lasting ten seasons. With an ensemble cast starring Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa ...

. Emphasis is placed on activity safety and ecological preservation. Visitors are asked to keep human incursion at a minimum by not disturbing plants, animals, or artifacts. Federal and state statutes, regulations, and rules governing archeological and historic sites apply. The state Game Warden as a commissioned peace officer is authorized to inspect natural resources and take any necessary action for the preservation of the resources. As of March 1, 2016, dogs are not allowed on the summit trail anymore.

Texas Parks and Wildlife Department The Texas Parks & Wildlife Department (TPWD) is a Texas state agency that oversees and protects wildlife and their habitats. In addition, the agency is responsible for managing the state's parks and historical areas. Its mission is to manage ...

partners with Friends of Enchanted Rock, a volunteer-based nonprofit organization that works for the improvement and preservation of Enchanted Rock State Natural Area. Scheduled Summit Trail tours are the third Saturday of the month starting April, May, September, October, November, and December. Private tours are available for groups at other times.

Flora and fauna

More than 500 species of plants, from four chief

plant communities A plant community is a collection or association of plant species within a designated geographical unit, which forms a relatively uniform patch, distinguishable from neighboring patches of different vegetation types. The components of each plant ...

— open oak woodland, mesquite grassland,

floodplain A floodplain or flood plain or bottomlands is an area of land adjacent to a river which stretches from the banks of its channel to the base of the enclosing valley walls, and which experiences flooding during periods of high discharge.Goudi ...

, and granite rock community — inhabit the rock. Vernal pools, ecologically threatened depressions of flora and fauna adapted to harsh environments, contain fragile invertebrate

fairy shrimp Anostraca is one of the four orders of crustaceans in the class Branchiopoda; its members are referred to as fairy shrimp. They live in vernal pools and hypersaline lakes across the world, and they have even been found in deserts, ice-covered mo ...

. Other wildlife includes bats, ringtails, squirrels, and foxes. A wide variety of lizards, including the

Texas horned lizard The Texas horned lizard (''Phrynosoma cornutum'') is one of about 14 North American species of spikey-bodied reptiles called horned lizards, all belonging the genus '' Phrynosoma''. It occurs in south-central regions of the US and northeastern M ...

, also makes the Enchanted Rock area their home. Designated a key bird watching site, bird enthusiasts can observe

wild turkey The wild turkey (''Meleagris gallopavo'') is an upland ground bird native to North America, one of two extant species of turkey and the heaviest member of the order Galliformes. It is the ancestor to the domestic turkey, which was originally d ...

greater roadrunner The greater roadrunner (''Geococcyx californianus'') is a long-legged bird in the cuckoo family, Cuculidae, from the Aridoamerica region in the Southwestern United States and Mexico. The scientific name means "Californian earth-cuckoo". Along w ...

, golden-fronted woodpecker, Woodhouse's scrub jay, canyon towhee, rufous-crowned sparrow, black-throated sparrow,

lesser goldfinch The lesser goldfinch (''Spinus psaltria'') is a very small songbird of the Americas. Together with its relatives the American goldfinch and Lawrence's goldfinch, it forms the New World goldfinch clade in the genus '' Spinus''. As is the case f ...

common poorwill The common poorwill (''Phalaenoptilus nuttallii'') is a nocturnal bird of the family Caprimulgidae, the nightjars. It is found from British Columbia and southeastern Alberta, through the western United States to northern Mexico. The bird's habi ...

chuck-will's-widow The chuck-will's-widow (''Antrostomus carolinensis'') is a nocturnal bird of the nightjar family Caprimulgidae. It is mostly found in the southeastern United States (with disjunct populations in Long Island, New York, Ontario, Canada and Cape C ...

black-chinned hummingbird The black-chinned hummingbird (''Archilochus alexandri'') is a small hummingbird occupying a broad range of habitats. It is migratory, spending winter as far south as Mexico. Taxonomy A hybrid between this species and Anna's hummingbird was ca ...

vermilion flycatcher The vermilion flycatcher (''Pyrocephalus obscurus'') is a small passerine bird in the tyrant flycatcher family found throughout South America and southern North America. It is a striking exception among the generally drab Tyrannidae due to its v ...

scissor-tailed flycatcher The scissor-tailed flycatcher (''Tyrannus forficatus''), also known as the Texas bird-of-paradise and swallow-tailed flycatcher, is a long-tailed bird of the genus ''Tyrannus'', whose members are collectively referred to as kingbirds. The kingbi ...

Bell's vireo Bell's vireo (''Vireo bellii'') is a songbird that migrates between a breeding range in Western North America and a winter range in Central America. It is dull olive-gray above and whitish below. It has a faint white eye ring and faint wing bar ...

yellow-throated vireo The yellow-throated vireo (''Vireo flavifrons'') is a small American songbird. Etymology "Vireo" is a Latin word referring to a green migratory bird, perhaps the female golden oriole, possibly the European greenfinch. The specific ''flavifron ...

, blue grosbeak, painted bunting, orchard oriole,

vesper sparrow The vesper sparrow (''Pooecetes gramineus'') is a medium-sized New World sparrow. It is the only member of the genus ''Pooecetes''. Taxonomy The Vesper Sparrow is believed to be most closely related to the Lark sparrow. It is the only species ...

, fox sparrow, Harris's sparrow, and

lark sparrow The lark sparrow (''Chondestes grammacus'') is a fairly large New World sparrow. It is the only member of the genus ''Chondestes''. Distribution and habitat It breeds in southern Canada, much of the United States, and northern Mexico. It is much ...

History

Archaeological evidence indicates human visitation at the rock going back at least 11,000 years. According to the book ''The Enchanted Rock'' published in 1999 by Ira Kennedy

These hunter-gatherers had flint-tipped spears, fire, and stories. With these resources, some 12,000 years ago, the first Texans became the wellspring of
Plains Indian Plains Indians or Indigenous peoples of the Great Plains and Canadian Prairies are the Native American tribes and First Nation band governments who have historically lived on the Interior Plains (the Great Plains and Canadian Prairies) of ...
culture. On the basis of archaeological evidence, human habitation at Enchanted Rock can be traced back at least 10,000 years. Paleo-Indian projectile points, or arrowheads, 11–12,000 years old, have been found in the area upstream and downstream from the rock. The oldest authenticated projectile point found within the present-day park is a Plainview point type, dating back 10,000 years.

The rock has been the subject of numerous geological surveys and paintings.

Vandalism

In 2016, two citizens of San Marcos, Texas, were arrested for vandalizing the "south face of the summit at Enchanted Rock State Park". The summit was vandalized with graffiti again in 2018 and no arrests have been made in that case. The vandalism is a state felony in Texas, carrying "a penalty of up to two years in state jail and a $10,000 fine if convicted".

Legends

Folklore Folklore is shared by a particular group of people; it encompasses the traditions common to that culture, subculture or group. This includes oral traditions such as tales, legends, proverbs and jokes. They include material culture, ranging ...

of local

Tonkawa The Tonkawa are a Native American tribe indigenous to present-day Oklahoma. Their Tonkawa language, now extinct, is a linguistic isolate. Today, Tonkawa people are enrolled in the federally recognized Tonkawa Tribe of Indians of Oklahoma. ...

, Apache and Comanche tribes ascribes magical and spiritual powers to the rock (hence the name Enchanted Rock). While attempting to hide from Anglo settlers in the area, the natives would hide on the top two tiers of the rock, where they were invisible from the ground below. The first European to visit the area was probably

Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca (; 1488/90/92"Cabeza de Vaca, Alvar Núñez (1492?-1559?)." American Eras. Vol. 1: Early American Civilizations and Exploration to 1600. Detroit: Gale, 1997. 50-51. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 10 Decembe ...

in 1536. The Tonkawa, who inhabited the area in the 16th century, believed that ghost fires flickered at the top of the dome. In particular, they heard unexplained creaking and groaning, which

geologist A geologist is a scientist who studies the solid, liquid, and gaseous matter that constitutes Earth and other terrestrial planets, as well as the processes that shape them. Geologists usually study geology, earth science, or geophysics, althoug ...

s attribute to night-time contraction of the rock after being heated by the sun during the day. The name "Enchanted Rock" derives from Spanish and Anglo-Texan interpretations of such legends and related folklore; the name "Crying Rock" has also been given to the formation. A plaque formerly embedded in Enchanted Rock near the top, but now removed to a kiosk below, reads: Other legends Texas Tourism Press associated with Enchanted Rock are: *Named "Spirit Song Rock" for native legends *Revered by native tribes as a holy portal to other worlds *Anyone spending the night on the rock becomes invisible *Spanish priest fled to the rock pursued by native tribes, disappeared, and returned to tell a mystic tale of falling into a cavern and being swallowed by the rock, encountering many spirits in the tunnels, eventually to be spit out two days later *Haunted by spirits of warriors of a now-extinct Native American tribe who were slaughtered at Enchanted Rock by a rival tribe *Haunted by a Native American princess who threw herself off the rock after witnessing the slaughter of her people *Alleged sacrifices at the rock by both Comanche and Tonkawa tribes *Believed to be a lost silver mine, or the lost El Dorado gold *Bad fortune and death will befall anyone who climbs the rock with bad intent *Footprint indentations on the rock of Native American chief who sacrificed his daughter, condemned to walk Enchanted Rock forever *Woman's screams at night are of a white woman who took refuge on Enchanted Rock after escaping a kidnapping by Native Americans *Spanish soldier Don Jesús Navarro's Enchanted Rock rescue of native maiden Rosa, daughter of Chief Tehuan, after her kidnap by Comanches intent on sacrificing her on the rock

References

External links

Enchanted Rock State Natural Area

Texas Parks official web page
*
Technical rock climbing at Enchanted RockHome movie of Enchanted Rock, The Steve Gomez Collection, no. 1 - Hiking Enchanted Rock

Texas Archive of the Moving Image The Texas Archive of the Moving Image (TAMI) is an independent 501(c)(3) organization founded in 2002 by film archivist and University of Texas at Austin professor Caroline Frick, PhD. TAMI's mission is to preserve, study, and exhibit Texas film h ...

{{authority control Granite domes Rock formations of Texas Landforms of Gillespie County, Texas Landforms of Llano County, Texas State parks of Texas National Natural Landmarks in Texas Native American history of Texas Religious places of the indigenous peoples of North America Igneous petrology of Texas Monoliths of the United States Batholiths of North America Inselbergs of North America National Register of Historic Places in Gillespie County, Texas Protected areas of Gillespie County, Texas Protected areas of Llano County, Texas Texas Hill Country Archaeological sites on the National Register of Historic Places in Texas Mesoproterozoic magmatism