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The Caprock Escarpment is a geographical transition point in Texas
Texas

Texas is a U.S. state located in the South Central United States, nicknamed the Lone Star State. Texas is the second largest U.S. state in both area and population, spanning , and with a growing population of 24.3 million residents....
 between the High Plains
High Plains (United States)

The High Plains are a subregion of the Great Plains in the central United States, generally encompassing the western part of the Great Plains before the region reaches the Rocky Mountains....
/Llano Estacado
Llano Estacado

Llano Estacado is a region in the southwestern United States that encompasses parts of eastern New Mexico and northwestern Texas, including the South Plains and parts of the Texas Panhandle....
 to the west and the North Central Plains to the east. The escarpment stretches around 320 km (200 mi) south-southwest from the northeast corner of the Texas Panhandle
Texas Panhandle

The Texas Panhandle is a region of the U.S. state of Texas consisting of the northernmost 26 List of Texas counties in the state. The panhandle is a rectangular area bordered by the state of New Mexico to the west and the state of Oklahoma to the north and east....
 near the Oklahoma
Oklahoma

Oklahoma is a U.S. state and a sovereignty located in the South Central United States and Southern United States of the United States of America ....
 border. The escarpment is especially notable in Borden
Borden County, Texas

Borden County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. In 2000, its population was 729. Its county seat is Gail, Texas. Gail and Borden County are named for Gail Borden, Jr., businessman, publisher, surveyor, and inventor of condensed milk....
, Briscoe
Briscoe County, Texas

Briscoe County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of 2000, the population is 1,790. Its county seat is Silverton, Texas. Briscoe is named for Andrew Briscoe, a soldier during the Texas Revolution....
, Crosby
Crosby County, Texas

Crosby County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. In 2000, its population was 7,072. The county seat of the county is Crosbyton, Texas....
, Dickens
Dickens County, Texas

Dickens County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. In 2000, its population was 2,762. Its county seat is Dickens, Texas. The county and city are both named for J....
, Floyd
Floyd County, Texas

Floyd County is a county in the U.S. state of Texas. In 2000, its population was 7,771. It is named for Dolphin Floyd, who died on his 32nd birthday, March 6, 1836, defending the Alamo Mission in San Antonio....
, and Motley
Motley County, Texas

Motley County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. In 2000, its population was 1,426. It is named for Junius William Mottley, who signed the Texas Declaration of Independence, who died in the Battle of San Jacinto; its name is spelled differently than his because the bill establishing the county misspelled Mottley's name....
 counties.


escarpment is made of Caliche
Caliche (Mineral)

Caliche is a sedimentary rock, a hardened deposit of calcium carbonate. This calcium carbonate cements together other materials, including gravel, sand, clay, and silt....
 — a layer of calcium carbonate
Calcium carbonate

Calcium carbonate is a chemical compound with the chemical formula CalciumCarbonOxygen3. It is a common substance found as Rock in all parts of the world, and is the main component of seashells, snails, and eggshells....
 that resists erosion very well.






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Encyclopedia


The Caprock Escarpment is a geographical transition point in Texas
Texas

Texas is a U.S. state located in the South Central United States, nicknamed the Lone Star State. Texas is the second largest U.S. state in both area and population, spanning , and with a growing population of 24.3 million residents....
 between the High Plains
High Plains (United States)

The High Plains are a subregion of the Great Plains in the central United States, generally encompassing the western part of the Great Plains before the region reaches the Rocky Mountains....
/Llano Estacado
Llano Estacado

Llano Estacado is a region in the southwestern United States that encompasses parts of eastern New Mexico and northwestern Texas, including the South Plains and parts of the Texas Panhandle....
 to the west and the North Central Plains to the east. The escarpment stretches around 320 km (200 mi) south-southwest from the northeast corner of the Texas Panhandle
Texas Panhandle

The Texas Panhandle is a region of the U.S. state of Texas consisting of the northernmost 26 List of Texas counties in the state. The panhandle is a rectangular area bordered by the state of New Mexico to the west and the state of Oklahoma to the north and east....
 near the Oklahoma
Oklahoma

Oklahoma is a U.S. state and a sovereignty located in the South Central United States and Southern United States of the United States of America ....
 border. The escarpment is especially notable in Borden
Borden County, Texas

Borden County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. In 2000, its population was 729. Its county seat is Gail, Texas. Gail and Borden County are named for Gail Borden, Jr., businessman, publisher, surveyor, and inventor of condensed milk....
, Briscoe
Briscoe County, Texas

Briscoe County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of 2000, the population is 1,790. Its county seat is Silverton, Texas. Briscoe is named for Andrew Briscoe, a soldier during the Texas Revolution....
, Crosby
Crosby County, Texas

Crosby County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. In 2000, its population was 7,072. The county seat of the county is Crosbyton, Texas....
, Dickens
Dickens County, Texas

Dickens County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. In 2000, its population was 2,762. Its county seat is Dickens, Texas. The county and city are both named for J....
, Floyd
Floyd County, Texas

Floyd County is a county in the U.S. state of Texas. In 2000, its population was 7,771. It is named for Dolphin Floyd, who died on his 32nd birthday, March 6, 1836, defending the Alamo Mission in San Antonio....
, and Motley
Motley County, Texas

Motley County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. In 2000, its population was 1,426. It is named for Junius William Mottley, who signed the Texas Declaration of Independence, who died in the Battle of San Jacinto; its name is spelled differently than his because the bill establishing the county misspelled Mottley's name....
 counties.

Caprock Escarpment

Description

The escarpment is made of Caliche
Caliche (Mineral)

Caliche is a sedimentary rock, a hardened deposit of calcium carbonate. This calcium carbonate cements together other materials, including gravel, sand, clay, and silt....
 — a layer of calcium carbonate
Calcium carbonate

Calcium carbonate is a chemical compound with the chemical formula CalciumCarbonOxygen3. It is a common substance found as Rock in all parts of the world, and is the main component of seashells, snails, and eggshells....
 that resists erosion very well. In some places, the escarpment rises around 305 m (1,000 ft) above the plains to the east. The escarpment's features formed by erosion from rivers and streams, creating arroyos
Arroyo (creek)

An arroyo , also called a wash or draw, is a usually dry stream bed or gulch that temporarily fills with water after a heavy rain, or seasonally....
 and highly diverse terrain, including the large Palo Duro Canyon
Palo Duro Canyon

Palo Duro Canyon is a canyon system of the Caprock Escarpment in the Texas Panhandle of Texas . As the second largest canyon in the United States, it is roughly 120 miles long and has an average width of 6 miles, but reaches a width of 20 miles at places....
 outside Amarillo
Amarillo, Texas

Amarillo is the 14th-largest city in the U.S. state of Texas, the largest in the Texas Panhandle, and the county seat of Potter County, Texas. A portion of the city extends into Randall County, Texas....
, Texas.

Parks


The Caprock Canyons State Park and Trailway
Caprock Canyons State Park and Trailway

Caprock Canyons State Park and Trailway is a Texas state park on the Caprock Escarpment in Briscoe County, Texas, Texas, United States, approximately 100 miles  southeast of Amarillo, Texas....
 is located near Quitaque
Quitaque, Texas

Quitaque is a city in Briscoe County, Texas, Texas, United States. The population was 432 at the 2000 United States Census....
 and opened in 1982. A large, 105 km (65 mi) trail was developed within the park in 1992. Along the trail is Clarity Tunnel, home to a massive colony of Free-tailed Bat
Free-tailed bat

Molossidae, or Free-tailed bats, are a family of bats within the Chiroptera order. They are generally quite robust, and consist of many strong flying forms with relatively long and narrow wings....
s.

See also


  • List of geographical regions in Texas
    List of geographical regions in Texas

    Texas is the second largest US state with an area of and a population of 23.5 million in 254 counties. This covers an area wide by long. Due to its location and size, it is a part of a large number of unique geological regions....
  • Geology of Texas
    Geology of Texas

    Texas contains a great variety of geologic settings. The state's stratigraphy has been largely influenced by marine Transgression cycles during the Phanerozoic, with a lesser but still significant contribution from late Cenozoic Plate tectonic, as well as the remnants of a Paleozoic mountain range....
  • Llano Estacado
    Llano Estacado

    Llano Estacado is a region in the southwestern United States that encompasses parts of eastern New Mexico and northwestern Texas, including the South Plains and parts of the Texas Panhandle....
  • Mescalero Escarpment
    Mescalero Escarpment

    The Mescalero Escarpment forms the western edge of the great Llano Estacado, a vast plateau or tableland in the south-western United States....
  • Palo Duro Canyon
    Palo Duro Canyon

    Palo Duro Canyon is a canyon system of the Caprock Escarpment in the Texas Panhandle of Texas . As the second largest canyon in the United States, it is roughly 120 miles long and has an average width of 6 miles, but reaches a width of 20 miles at places....
  • Caprock Canyons
    Caprock Canyons State Park and Trailway

    Caprock Canyons State Park and Trailway is a Texas state park on the Caprock Escarpment in Briscoe County, Texas, Texas, United States, approximately 100 miles  southeast of Amarillo, Texas....
  • Mount Blanco
    Mount Blanco

    Mount Blanco is a small white mesa ? an erosional remnant ? located on the eastern border of the Llano Estacado within Blanco Canyon in Crosby County, Texas....