Potholes and Plunge Pools

Grandma Nature’s Blender

What tool did humans use to make a hole like this, if humans made it at all? Can you imagine a perfectly smooth, round hole in the middle of a stream? I bet you’re wondering “Who made this?” Mother Nature! Yup! Mother nature made a perfect hole.

There are different ways to make a pothole. One way is waterfalls. Water falls down and hits the shale in the creek or river eroding a shallow pit. Over time, the pit is turned into a hole. But not just any old hole! A plunge pool! Waterfalls don’t stay in the same spot, but potholes do. After a long time, waterfalls erode back and leave a pothole in the stream.

Another way potholes can be formed is from rocks. Small rocks fall into a dent or crack in the stream. Rocks and sand swirl in the dent to erode a circular pit.