Frost weathering is the occurrence of water freezing and expanding within joints(cracks) in rocks.
This chemical process exerts a force from within the rock, which causes it to fracture over time. The image below displays a prime example of frost weather (1).
http://www.uccs.edu/Images/geomorph/CPM/CPM04.jpg
The link above will take you to an image displaying basal weather, which is another dominant feature. Basal weathering is a process of salt build up around the base of rocks which erodes over time due to the lack of sufficient alluvial wasting (1).
Mass wasting, which is the downward sloping of angular material, occurs all throughout the park (2).
Mass wasting floods through the Paint Mines on both a small and a large scale depending on the permeable and impermeable areas of the landscape. Debris slides, flows, rock slides, falls, and slumping of land masses and rocks are the main forms of mass wasting, which occur periodically (2).
The image below portrays a mudslide flowing through the river bed of the mines. This river bed is actually part of the trail and could potentially overflow during intense storms.
http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6111/6228042574_266d8f6826_b.jpg
1. Allen, Casey. "Decay of Earth's Rocks." Reading
2. Allen, Casey. "Mass Wasting." Reading
