Let’s Talk Trash! 6
©2017 The Keenan Group, Inc
Geyser noun: geyser; plural noun: geysers - a hot spring in which water intermittently boils, sending a tall column of water and steam into the air. gīz r FLY
This alien looking geyser on the edge of Black Rock Desert (NV) is actually man made. Man made by accident, that is. There are actually two geysers on the property. The first was created nearly 100 years ago as part of an effort to make a part of the desert usable for farming. A well was drilled and geothermal boiling water (200 degrees) was hit. Obviously not suitable for irrigation water, this geyser was left alone and a 10 to 12 foot calcium carbonate cone formed. In 1964 a geothermic energy company drilled a test well at the same site. The water they struck was that same 200 degrees. Hot, but not hot enough for their purposes. The well was supposedly re-sealed, but apparently it did not hold. The new geyser, a few hundred feet north of the original, robbed the first of its water pressure and the cone now lays dry. This second geyser, known as Fly Geyser, also known as Fly Ranch Geyser, has grown substantially in the last 40 years as minerals from the geothermal water pocket deposit on the desert surface. Because there are multiple geyser spouts, this geyser has not created a cone as large as the first, but an ever growing alien looking mound. The geyser is covered with thermophilic algae, which flourishes in moist, hot environments, resulting in the multiple hues of green and red that add to its out-of- this-world appearance. Fly Geyser is a man-made small geothermal geyser located in Washoe County, Nevada approximately 20 miles (32 km) north of Gerlach. Fly Geyser is located near the edge of Fly Reservoir in the Hualapai Geothermal Flats and is approximately 5 feet (1.5 m) high, by 12 feet (3.7 m) wide, counting the mound on which it sits. The source of the Fly Geyser field’s heat is attributed to a very deep pool of hot rock where tectonic
rifting and faulting are common. Water is constantly released, reaching 5 feet (1.5 m) in the air. The geyser contains several terraces discharging water into 30 to 40 pools over an area of 74 acres (30 ha). Most impressively, the geyser created an ecosystem , bringing in plants, birds and fish to this desert oasis. And the gorgeous geyser continues growing and evolving every day. The land where the geyser is located was privately owned with the owner having no intentions of opening it up for a tourist attraction. The owner built a fence to make sure that hoards of interested visitors didn’t accidentally trample this natural phenomenon. However, In June 2016, the Burning Man Project (burningman.org) purchased the Fly Ranch property, 3,800 acres of land for 6.5 million dollars. Buying the property was the first step on a long journey. As stewards of this unique piece of land, their foremost responsibility is to ensure it will be maintained for generations to come. The property will eventually become a year-round experimental arts haven where the art-centric culture of Burning Man will thrive via to-be-determined outlets. Immediate access to the property is not possible (lots of scoping and planning must be completed first), but the intention is for it to be accessible in the future in an ongoing and sustainable way. Eventually they will be able to create more opportunities spread out throughout the year.
It’s just crazy to see something so huge and strange sprout up from the ground in just 51 short years
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