Gorges and Glaciation. 33 
small and have only formed narrow gorges. Opposite Napa- 
noch is a small creek which has cut a deep gorge into the shales, 
and in the higher part of the slope has bared the grit from an 
area of considerable size, which is surrounded by high cliffs. 
The stream opposite Wawarsing has cut a gorge and removed 
an area of the grit on the upper slopes of the mountain, but does 
not cut through to the shale. The head of this depression ex- 
tends into the head of the depression opposite Napanoch, and 
both are surmounted on the east by a continuous line of high 
cliffs. The stream which flows out of the mountain at Port 
Hixon is larger than the others and has cut a deep, wide gorge ; 
but owing to the lower dip of the grit it does not appear to have 
cut through to the shales to any great extent. No shales were 
observed in place in the depression, but a small amount of shale 
débris was noticed at one point. Everywhere along the steep 
slopes there are clefts in the grit, some of which appear to extend 
down to the shales. One of these is the “ Ice cave,” a locality 
which is widely famous in the region. It is high in the slope, 
about two miles east-northeast of Ellenville. Ice and snow re- 
main in it in greater or less amount, and in some seasons they 
are preserved entirely through the summer and autumn. In the 
vicinity there is also an old copper mine from which large sup- 
plies of fine quartz crystals were obtained some years ago. The 
top of the mountain southwest of Wawarsing is a wide plateau 
which is traversed by the valley of Stony creek. Its surface is 
very irregular and low cliffs of the bare grit abound. 
The grit in the higher portion of Shawagunk mountain 
nearly everywhere presents a basined surface. These basins are 
depressed an inch or two below the general level and are of 
various sizes and shapes. They usually contain pools of water 
and some sand and pebble detritus. They are mostly smooth 
and even polished and are distributed all over the motintain, 
but particularly on the western slope. With the polishing are 
associated lines of glacial scorings and striation which are con- 
spicuous at nearly every locality. Julien* has recorded the direc- 
tion of some of these strive and scorings. The general direction 
is southwestward and the average depth is between one-sixteenth 
and one-eighth of an inch. In the vicinity of Sams point the 
most abundant scratches trend south 46° west and south 29° west. 
* New York Academy of Sciences, Trans., vol. ili, pp. 22-29. 
