The Quechee Gorge is located in
Quechee, Vermont along
U.S. Route 4. The gorge is 165 feet deep and is the deepest gorge in Vermont. It serves as a popular tourist attraction in
Quechee State Park and can be viewed from the
U.S. Route 4 bridge and from trails on both sides of the gorge. Many people from around New England flock to the gorge for the views. The
Ottauquechee River flows through the bottom of the gorge and is a popular whitewater kayak run.
Geology
The gorge was carved approximately 13,000 years ago as the
Laurentide Ice Sheet retreated across the region. The carving is thought to be a result of rapid downcutting of the Ottauquechee River after the drainage of glacial
Lake Hitchcock. The gorge cuts through bedrock of the Devonian Gile Mountain Formation and Mesozoic mafic dikes can be seen on the west wall.
[McHone, Gregory, 1981, The origin of the Quechee Gorge: Green Mountain Geologist, Vt Geological Society, Fall 1981, Vol. 8, #3.]
References
The National Geological Society, Vol. 12 2009.
External links
*
Geology of Vermont Quechee Gorge, Hartford, VT (VGS)
Canyons and gorges of Vermont
Landforms of Windsor County, Vermont
U.S. Route 4
{{Vermont-geo-stub