Friday, May 12, 2006

A Comparison of Two RI Propped Boulders

While exploring a newly-opened conservation area near Usquepaug, RI, I followed a stone wall off-trail to an outcropping. On top of the outcropping I noticed a boulder. It was the shape that caught my eye. After bush-whacking a bit through the briars and up the hill, I realized that the boulder had been propped. Also, you can see some quartz bulging from the top.


A few months later a gentleman named William Ladd sent me a photograph of a propped boulder he found in North Kingstown, RI. I immediately recalled the Usquepaug boulder upon seeing his photograph.


The two propped boulders share some striking similarities. They both share the same basic shape -- what I would call an eagle head. They are both of similar size. They both appear at the top of outcroppings, but on a slight downslope. They are both propped in the same way at almost the same point below.

The alignments of the boulders are unknown and both certainly deserve more investigation. But I would be willing to make a wager that there are more such boulders of similar shape and propped in a similar way out there in the woods of New England. So please keep your eye out for the eagle head propped boulder.

-Jim Porter

2 comments :

  1. Welcome Jim, and thanks for the observations. There might be a couple of examples like this in the article on Townsend State Forest.

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  2. Anonymous9:28 PM

    both of these rocks look exactly like on in the woods in the woody hill management area in westerly r.i. i at first thought i was looking at this very rock.

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