Red Rock Canyon State Park

Red Rock Canyon State Park. Hagen Canyon Nature Preserve. , History: , Hagen canyon was named by German immigrant Rudolph Hagen. He acquired the land you see by buying mining claims in the area. He eventually had a small outpost in the Ricardo Campground area where he built a diner with a bar, primitive lodging and a post office. He operated Red Rock Canyon as his own private park, offering maps of the rock formations, most of them he named. Mr. Hagen really started the tourist movement to Red Rock. After his death, the land transferred ownership within his family until it became a State Park in 1969. , How Was it Formed? , All of what you see now used to be under water. The entire area was at the bottom of a massive lake ten million years ago. Sediment washed down from the Old Sierra Mountains and was deposited in layers. Time and pressure turned the layers of sand and mud into the huge rock beds. Due to the constant changing of Earth by plate tectonic movement, the valley floor was uplifted and the lake dried up. When two plates came together at the Garlock Fault (1 mile south from here) one of the plates was driven upwards, revealing all of the layers that were deposited millions of years ago. Wind and water erosion of these layers created the spectacular formations throughout Red Rock Canyon State Park that we see today. The layers are currently at a 17 degree angle. The formations were created because the harder red sandstone layers protect the softer layers underneath from being eroded by rainfall. The bright red coloration is due to the high iron content in some sediment layers. The iron oxidizes (rusts) turning red. In heavy rainfall, this rust colored sediments trickles down the formation and collects in small streams making it appear that the cliffs are "bleeding". , photo captions: , You Are Here! Below is the map of the trail for Hagen Canyon. Please watch your step and carry extra water with you. , Formations to See: , Turk's Turban. , Window Rock. , Camel Rock.