The landscape of Christ Serve Ranch and the entire state of Minnesota was dramatically impacted by the glaciers that once covered the state. The ice age that produced these enormous sheets of ice was a direct consequence of the global flood of Noah’s day and closely followed this event. Two conditions needed to be met for the ice age to occur. These conditions were an increase in precipitation and cooler temperatures, especially in the summer. In general, it is difficult for these two conditions to occur at the same time because cooler air contains less moisture. During the flood, however, the ocean temperature increased due to volcanic activity on the ocean floor. Warmer oceans increase the rate of evaporation, increasing precipitation. The same volcanoes would also eject ash into the atmosphere, scattering the solar radiation, resulting in an overall global cooling. With both conditions met, glaciers would advance into Minnesota to sculpt the topography we see.
The ranch sits in the Henning till plain. Glacial till is a mixture of rock and sediment of all shapes and sizes. This till was depostied directly by the glacial ice as it was left behind as the glaciers retreated from the area. Looking into farm field reveals the number of larger rocks that the glacier dropped that farmers would later need to remove from fields before farming. Some farmers would use these rocks to build rock walls between fields. Very large boulders carried and dropped by the glaciers are known as glacial erratics and are often used in landscaping.
The many visible lakes, including Mason Lake, are kettle lakes. Kettle lakes formed when a chunck of ice broke off of the glacier. As the ice melted, the meltwater filled the depression left behind creating the kettle lake. Most of Minnesota’s “10,000” lakes are also formed this way.