120 NAUTICAL CHART MANUAL 



Cliff {AS) A high and very steep declivity; a high steep face of rock; a 



precipice. 



Coast The seashore or the land near it. 



Coastal plain Any plain which has its margin on the shore of a large body of 



water, particularly the sea, aad generally represents a strip of 

 recently emerged sea bottom. 



Continental borderland A Province adjacent to a continent, normally occupied by or 



bordering a Continental Shelf, that is highly irregular with 

 depths well in excess of those typical of a continental shelf. 



Continental rise . A gentle slope with a generally smooth surface found at the 



base of a continental slope. 



Continental shelj A zone adjacent to a continent and extending from the low 



water line to a depth at which there is a marked increase of 

 slope to a greater depth. 



Continental slope. A declivity from the outer edge of a continental shelf or con- 

 tinental borderland into greater depths. 



Coral Reej A reef made up of coral, fragments of coral and other organ- 

 isms, and the limestone resulting from their consolidation. 



Cordillera An entire mountain province, including aU the subordinate 



mountain ranges and groups and the interior plateaus and 

 basins. 



Coulee A steep-walled, trenchlike valley, a wash, gulch, or arroyo 



through which water flows intermittently. (Western U.S.) 



Cove A small sheltered recess in a shore or coast generally inside a 



larger embayment. 



Crag A steep, rugged rock; a rough, broken cliff of a projecting 



point of rock; also a detached fragment of rock. 



Crater The bowl-shaped depression around the vent or a volcano or a 



geyser; also hole formed by the impact of a meteorite, the 

 detonation of a mine, or the like. 



Creek {C-JS, 1^) A stream of less volume than a river. A small tidal channel 



through a coastal marsh. 



Crest The summit land of any eminence; the highest natural projec- 

 tion which crowns a hill or mountain, from which the surface 

 dips downward in opposite directions. 



Crevasse . A deep crevice, or fissure, especially in a glacier. A break in a 



levee or other stream embankment. 



Current ( T-18-20-Td) The horizontal movement or flow of water. 



Cut-ojff A new and relatively short channel formed when a stream cuts 



through the neck of an oxbow or horseshoe bend; an arti- 

 ficial straightening or shortcut in a channel. 



Dale- A vale or small valley. 



Dalles The nearly vertical walls of a canyon or gorge, usually con- 

 taining a rapid. Local in Northwest. 



Deep A relatively small area of exceptional depth found in a depres- 

 sion. The term is generally restricted to depths greater 

 than 3000 fathoms. 



Defile A deep and narrow mountain pass. 



