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Devil's Well: Is located south of the
Hole in the ground parking place bridge between Bonnie Lake and Rock Lake. It is
on the west side of the canyon. See GPS reading and
directions below. According to geological studies in the Northwest room's ice cave folder
the Devil's Well name is due to misunderstanding. The way this 7 foot diameter cylinder
occurred underground was that a flooding was pushed around a giant Sequoia or Redwood due
to a lava flow so that up to around a hundred feet of the tree was wet when the lava hit
it. The higher part of the tree that was not wet was burnt by the lava creating the
ceiling of the cave. The wet part of the tree withstood the lava's heat just long enough
for the nearest lava to cool into the shape of the bark of the tree. This hole was about
one hundred feet deep originally, but children fell into it causing locals to fill it to
its ten foot height today. Rocks have fallen out of place over the years, but in many
places you can see the bark of the ancient tree. The cave is very cylindrical. Luckily
there is a crack in the lava wall or we might not know about this at all. For
another interesting cast made of a prehistoric Rhino, see
Blue Lake Rhino.
From a distance see the old wagon trail coming down the cliffside.
See the cave entrance now
Inside there is a ten foot high perfect cylinder shape where a giant Sequoia or Redwood
was surrounded by lava flow.
The cylinder was 100 feet deep until filled in because children were falling in. The lava
flow caused a flood which wetted the tree so that the lava flowing around the tree did not
burn the large tree up. The lava cooled around the tree filling its liquidity into the
shape of the bark. Then the tree slowly rotted out. Now in the cylinder we can see the
bark of the ancient tree. (See above picture taken inside the cylinder) You can read more
about this in the Spokane main library Northwest room where I first heard about it in a
geologist's description of interesting geological events in the Palouse area. It is mixed
in with the ice cave folders.
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