Grandad Bluff
Grandad Bluff (also Granddad Bluff) is a mesa on the east side of La Crosse, Wisconsin. Grandad Bluff is approximately 590 feet above the surrounding land and 1183 feet (361 m) above sea level.
Bliss Road provides access to the bluff. The road was closed due to the floods of August 2007.[1] However, after major repairs, Bliss Road was reopened to traffic on November 20, 2008. Trucks and buses are still prohibited from using Bliss Road, because of weight limits.[2][3] There is a park shelter at the top where visitors are able to view La Crosse from a fenced-off area atop the bluff. Included at the park is a panorama of La Crosse taken in 2004, with annotations of famous La Crosse landmarks below. Notable locations visible from the bluff include the University of Wisconsin–La Crosse, the Mississippi River, bluffs in Minnesota, and Interstate 90.[4]
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[edit] Geology
The landscape has a geomorphically young appearance because of its Pleistocene history. The Mississippi River probably did not occupy this course before the Pleistocene. The bluffs along this portion of the Mississippi River are Prairie du Chien dolostone capping Cambrian sandstone. Grandad Bluff is a classic mesa, as are all the bluffs along the river.[5] In 1928 there was a movement to change the name to Granddad Mountain, and to change all the Bluffs along the Mississippi to The Mississippi Mountain Range.[6]
[edit] History
On June 23, 1850, Father James Lloyd Breck of the Episcopal Church said the first Christian liturgy (Episcopalian liturgy) in La Crosse on top of Grandad Bluff.[7][8]
Grandad Bluff was mentioned in Life on the Mississippi by Mark Twain.[9]
[edit] References
- ^ La Crosse Tribune - 7.0 : FEMA inspects Bliss Road
- ^ http://www.lacrossetribune.com/articles/2008/11/21/news/00lead.txt
- ^ http://www.lacrossetribune.com/articles/2008/11/20/news/01lead.txt
- ^ City of La Crosse, WI - Official Website - Grandad Park
- ^ Granddad Bluff; Steven Dutch, Natural and Applied Sciences, University of Wisconsin - Green Bay; September 9, 2005; Retrieved October 26, 2007
- ^ 'La Crosse Tribune,' July 10, 1928, "Bluff or Mountain?" by William L. Doudna
- ^ The Life of the Reverend James Lloyd Breck, D.D
- ^ City of La Crosse, WI - Official Website - History
- ^ 59 - Life on the Mississippi - Mark Twain (1835-1910)
[edit] External links
- City of Lacrosse Parks Department page on Grandad Park
- Articles about Grandad Bluff, La Crosse Public Library, La Crosse, Wisconsin
- Photos of Grandad Bluff
- Topographical Map of Grandad Bluff
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Coordinates: 43°48′51″N 091°12′32″W / 43.81417°N 91.20889°W
