Sailing stones, sliding rocks, and moving rocks all refer to a geological phenomenon where rocks move in long tracks along a smooth valley floor without human or animal intervention. They have been recorded and studied in a number of places around Racetrack Playa, Death Valley, where the number and length of travel grooves are notable. The force behind their movement is not understood and is the subject of research.
True story: During my lunchbreak today, as I was walking down the road, a bird flew overhead and I swear it was singing the first line to Nellie the Elephant. When I heard it, I sang the next line (“and said goodbye to the circus…”) quietly to myself and then ended up with the song stuck in my head for the rest of the day.
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