Igneous shut-ins are a classic geologic feature of the eastern Missouri Ozarks, including one of the state's most popular state parks at Johnson's Shut-ins. But how do these isolated, narrow gorges full of whitewater and waterfalls form, why are they only found in one small part of the state, and why are they so irregular even within that area? Here we explore the story of Missouri's igneous shut-ins and give you a deeper answer than you'll typically find in public interpretive materials: these are strongly influenced by an ancient buried landscape dating back to the Precambrian!

This is the first video in a series we're launching called Ozark Wonderings, intended as an FAQ-style approach to briefly answering common and interesting questions about Ozark geology and more.

Chapters:
00:00 Introduction
01:16 Location and basic explanation
02:28 Geologic setting and deeper explanation
05:18 Effect of jointing on shut-in formation
06:09 Summary and wrapup

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