slickrock

English

Etymology

slick +‎ rock

Noun

slickrock (countable and uncountable, plural slickrocks)

1. A rock or a rock formation made smooth by weathering.
   • 1941, Writer’s Program of the Works Progress Administration, Utah: A Guide to the State‎^[1], page xx:

     Rubber or cord soles are best for climbing over “slickrocks.” Well-advised tenderfeet keep shirt collars buttoned and sleeves rolled down, for the desert and high mountain sun burns mercilessly.

   • 1971, Edward Abbey, Slickrock: Endangered Canyons of the Southwest, →ISBN, page 11:

     Breaking camp the next morning, I asked Kent Frost about the origin of the term slickrock. “It isn’t necessarily limited to any particular geological formation?” I asked. ¶ “No, it isn’t,” Kent said. “It’s more like the whole country is slickrock, even where it’s crumbling away.”