Assessment of outcrops in Shenandoah National Park Background: The cliff and outcrop areas of Shenandoah National Park (SHEN) are some of the largest in the region and contain myriad significant vegetation communities and rare plant and animal populations. Intense use of these areas by hiking, climbing and camping enthusiasts has led to severe degradation of vegetation and soil at some cliff sites, including impacts to rare species and communities. The Park must protect cliff resources while still providing opportunities for visitor enjoyment of those resources. This project will gather information on factors such as cliff location, resource composition and visitor use impacts necessary to make decisions about cliff management. As a first step in this process, we have mapped selected outcrop areas in the park so that field assessments can be planned and conducted. We used a combination of color-infrared leaf on and leaf off photography, digital landform interpretations, and topographic maps to interpret outcrops. Additional analysis of hyperspectral imagery is underway to investigate the use of spectral signatures for mapping specific rock types. We have created a directory of outcrop areas under study. This directory consists of GIS images of 1) leaf-off aerial photography, 2) leaf-on aerial photography, 3) a perspective view of leaf-off aerial photography and terrain, and 4) a USGS topo map view, color coded by landform steepness. A generalized outline of the outcrop site (revised by Va. DCR-DNH) is overlaid on all images. Also available (as they are completed) are Eric Butler's site geology reports. These reports are in PDF format and are linked to each site. Note that these reports are provisional and may be updated as time and new information allow. This directory was updated 8/18/2005. Login to view the SNP Outcrop Directory Site is password protected. Contact John Young (jyoung@usgs.gov) for more information. -j. young