Johnson Shut-ins
(Part Two: Geology, Taum Sauk Reservoir Breach,
Interpretive Center)
One of nature’s masterpieces, Johnson Shut-ins contains
rhyolite formations that are over a billion years old.
into the fractured joints
of hoodoos
the fence lizard’s retreat
While the shut-ins are still there, most of the landscape
was altered on Wednesday, December 14, 2005.
Around 5 am, the Taum Sauk reservoir collapsed. The dam was
breached sending over a billion gallons of water tumbling down Proffit
Mountain.
In the direct path of the water was the park superintendent’s
house. It was a miracle that he and his family survived. Fortunately, the
campground was empty.
what we remember
our broken sleep
and the thunder of water
Today, several boulders from Proffit Mountain sit outside
the new interpretive center. They were pushed here by the same wall of water
that swept away the superintendent and his family.
granite sentinels
their shadows
become my shadows
