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The Life and Travels of an Omar

Submitted Photo A quarter on the surface for scale for this unique rock created at the Omarolluk Formation.

Friluftsliv

To loosely translate from Norwegian to English:

fri = free, lufts = air’s, liv = life

The English equivalent= Outdoor Life

It’s hard to get too excited about a rock. Hard, that is, until you learn a little about its travels to North Dakota and its unique, characteristic circular cavities.

Rocks like these don’t usually come up in casual conversation. I was introduced to this strange rock by my friend and former sate geologist, John Bluemle. Dr. Bluemle referred to the rock as an Omar.

At first, I thought that was just his pet name for this dark gray, otherwise unassuming rock with the distinctive holes on its surface. It wasn’t until he explained the formation and travels of the Omar that I became really interested.

Omar is the shortened form of the geologic formation where they are found, the Omarolluk Formation. They are created in a similar manner to the cannonball concretions you can find right outside the doors of the North Dakota Heritage Center and State Museum in Bismarck. A somewhat similar process forms a hailstone.

The omars were formed in sand on an ancient sea-floor. A soft material began to harden and increase in size and was eventually encased in a much harder sandstone. As time went on (lots of time), the original soft material eroded out of the much harder sandstone, leaving the distinctive cavities on the surface of the rock.

The formation of the omar is unique enough. What makes this rock even more unique is how it made its way to North Dakota.

The birthplace of the omar (if rocks have a birthplace) is, as I mentioned above, in a geologic formation termed the Omarolluk Formation. Rocks in this formation have been dated to 1.76 billion (with a “b”) years old. They come from a very specific place, the Belcher Islands in the southeast part of Hudson Bay in Canada.

After Dr. Bluemle introduced me to this unique rock, I decided I wanted one for my very own. What better place to start looking than in my own backyard. I thought I had seen similar looking rocks before so I headed out to our family pasture southwest of Minot. The pasture had been broken up for farming years ago. It didn’t take long to find the omar pictured. Actually, not one but several had been deposited in the glacial till where I was searching. They were transported to our pasture from the Belcher Islands by a succession of glaciers; moved and moved until they found their new home 1,128 miles (according to an internet mapping program) from where they were formed.

I’ve often thought of giving Omars as Christmas gifts. I’m pretty sure no one else will give a gift that is 1.76 billion years old and delivered by a glacier. I’m sure it would be a hit.

Doug Wurtz grew up near Ryder and graduated from Minot State University. His retirement activities include nature photography as well as serving as a Certified Interpretive Guide for the State Historical Society of North Dakota. He is past president of the North Dakota Archaeological Association. Doug and his wife, Linda, live in Bismarck.

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