McConnells Mill State Park
McConnells Mill State Park is a 2,546 acres Pennsylvania state park in the United States. The park features a deep scenic gorge accessible by a roadway that winds between large, room-sized boulders on the hillside. McConnells Mill State Park is along the Slippery Rock Creek.
McConnells Mill State Park was chosen by the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) and its Bureau of Parks as one of "25 Must-See Pennsylvania State Parks".
Flowing north or south?
Depends on whether you were here in the
Ice Age or Today.
Hemlock Trees (the PA state tree) abound
in this area.
Geology
The geology of the park was also
heavily influenced by the glacial effects of the ice age: a
large glacial lake (water that was held in place by a
glacier), broke about 140,000 years ago. This break in the glacial dam caused a
dramatic change in the flow of the water. The lake that had previously drained
in a northward direction was now draining to the south. The drastic change in
direction and very high volume of water flow created Slippery Rock Creek Gorge.
The bedrock was formed over 300,000,000 years ago as layers of peat, mud and sand
were compressed. This part of Pennsylvania was a coastal area at the time.
The
layers of bedrock were built into mountains as the continental
plates shifted. The layers of bedrock had different strengths. Some of
the layers eroded quickly and others eroded at a much slower pace. The various
erosion rates account for the variety of geologic features at McConnells Mill
State Park
