Frogs!

Frogs in the desert...

Is there a prince in her future?

Megan Crocker -- coolest GeoCorps participant ever -- takes her chances with a frog at Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry. "A frog in the desert?", you ask!? It began and will end its life entirely in the area below the cattle guard that crosses the road at the quarry entrance. There were 100's of tadpoles when we arrived at CLDQ in June. They finally turned to frogs the week before we left.

Camping Adventures in Capitol Reef

Last weekend PDP and I got to do some camping and hiking in Capitol Reef National Park!  This has been one of my favorites for years.  As a geology student at Indiana University (a long, long, long time ago), I took a regional geology field class where one of our stops was Capitol Reef.  I will always remember it as the prettiest hike I've ever been on.

The "reef" itself is not a traditional reef in the same sense as a coral reef formed offshore.  This is a monoclinal fold (for you geology fans!) that stretches for over 100 miles.  It was called a reef by the pioneers because it looked just like a barrier that they would not be able to get around.  In fact, the Waterpocket Fold that makes up this part of southern Utah was one of the last places mapped in the U.S.!

Here is a view of the rock units exposed at Capital Reef.  At the top, the "white" or "buff" color knobs are the Navajo Sandstone.  Below them, a cliff forming unit called the Wingate Sandstone.  (Both of these sands were deposited by wind in ancient deserts).  Lower on the hill are the Chinle Formation (known for petrified wood and uranium) and the bright red at the bottom of the stack is the Moenkopi -- old river deposits. 

PDP is in the foreground studying the rock units for a test later. Ha!

We also hiked out to Hickman Bridge, a natural arch in the Navajo Sandstone.  It was hot, hot, hot that day -- sometimes over 100 degrees F.  This makes hiking difficult and sweaty.  The evaporation rate is so high though, you don't stay wet or sticky for long.

Meanwhile --  back in my field area at Cleveland-Lloyd -- I continue to work on my project for GeoCorps.  Here I am searching out and identifying the different types of "cryptobiotic" crusts that form in this desert environment.  The crusts that form in the dry soils are made of lichens, algae, or moss and are important for protecting and storing water for desert plants, so it is important not to trample them!

That's all for now!

Dinosaur Bones and Outlaws!

I've had a bit of a chance to hike around the Morrison Formation near Cleveland-Lloyd.  The exposure is very widespread.  It is amazing to see dinosaur bones popping out of the rocks!  I think I am beginning to recognize what they look like.  Here is a picture of a sauropod rib bone in a Morrison sandstone layer. 

The Morrison Formation, deposited about 147 million years ago, during the Jurassic is known for two things: dinosaurs and uranium deposits.  Sometimes the two are simultaneous -- the dinosaur bones are the uranium deposit!!  This is because during the process of fossilization, the bones get replaced by uranium in the groundwater fluxing through.  About two months ago, not far from here, a dinosaur skeleton was found.  They found it by using a Geiger counter!  Wild stuff.

PDP and I took a trip to Canyonlands National Park last weekend.  On the way there, we passed a Utah State Park called "Dead Horse State Park".  This park has a horrendous background story where several dozens of horses, corralled out on a point in the park and forgotten, jumped several thousand feet to their death.  The drop-off provided the only source of water --- the Colorado River -- at the bottom of the canyon.  Yikes!  But this park is famous for another reason -- Thelma and Louise was filmed here!!  For those of us old enough to remember the scene where they drive off the rim of the canyon, here is a picture of Shafer Road where the scene was filmed.  Of course in taking the picture, I am standing on a cliff about 2000 feet above the road.  The road is also on a cliff several hundred feet above the river.  The scale is hard to imagine in the picture.

That's all for now!   I'm off to the quarry!

The Long and (Un)Winding Road.......

My day here at the "Swell", begins with the drive out to Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry.  The CLDQ is located approximately 20-25 miles south of Price, UT and there is about 15 miles or so of dirt road.  As evidenced in the picture, the road is often straight and uneventful, except for the occasional washboard patches.

For the first 14 or so miles, the road crosses a geologic formation  called the Mancos Shale.  The Mancos shale is primarily mud and silt layers deposited in a shallow seaway that covered much of the interior western part of the U.S. back in the Cretaceous (100 million years ago....).  It has some coal deposits and a few interesting fossil invertebrates, but really isn't the most interesting rock around.  The road really does seem endless some mornings.

This is definitely taking the "road less traveled" as some days we only get 6-10 visitors at the quarry.  But the people who take the time to come out there are always interesting and fun to talk to.


To get the to quarry, the BLM supplies us with Big Silver --- a Chevy Silverado truck.  Here I am leaving the quarry in the truck!

More later!

The Little Grand Canyon

You want rocks Matthew?   Utah has lots of them!

This is a view from the Wedge Overlook in the San Rafael Wilderness.  The photo is of the "Little Grand Canyon".  A couple of thousand feet down you can see the San Rafael River running through it.  (Oddly, the first time I looked over the edge of this canyon two weeks ago, the water was brilliant blue!  Must have been some rain in the watershed as on this day it was running muddy brown.)

The "beehive" like dome in the foreground is part of the Navajo Sandstone, a roughly 200 million year old rock formation.  It is very famous as it outcrops all over the Colorado Plateau, including Zion National Park.  The "cross bedding" indicates that during that period of geologic time, an ancient desert had massive sand dunes.  Those sand dunes have now hardened into rock!

Internet connections are spottier than I thought they would be....mainly because I have been working 10 hour days and am limited in time to get connected.  Hope to post more pictures soon! 

The Lovely Forest Service Wareyard

So!  My new home for a little while.  The ware yard is definitely a ware yard.  Poul raked up all the tumble weed and stickies, so we can at least get out our door!  The trailers in the background belong to the other summer interns -- 3 incredibly nice young women.

My first day was spend in the BLM office, completing a 3-1/2 hour defensive driving video class.  Apparently for the past several years the BLM has lost at least one vehicle each summer because of intern driving....so now we all have to be tested before we drive government trucks!   Then the director of the Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry gave another intern and I a whorlwind tour of the BLM land near the quarrry -- the "Little Grand Canyon" of the San Rafael Swell.  Gorgeous!  Photos to follow!

Today I spent several hours out in the field on a special project.  Needless to say, as you can see from the cloudless blue sky, I am sunburned -- total farmer's tan!
I'll update as frequently as I can.

Thanks to my sisters for the well-wishes!  It will definitely be a summer to remember.  I loved the haiku! 

And to think....I'm leaving all this behind!?

Can you see it?  Can you see it?  That very fine, steady downpour of rain, rain, rain.  I wish I could capture it with the camera.  It is what I've always called a "Seattle Soaker".  It fascinates me how the sky can just open up and pour for hours at a slow, steady rate. This is happening (unfortunately) as we pack up the RV for our trip to Utah. No doubt everything will be damp until we hit the dry, heat of the desert!

It might be the last time I see such lush greenery and cool temperatures for a while.   I'm looking forward to the start of a summer adventure! 

Almost On The Way

This summer, I plan to do something a little bit different. I've taken an internship through GeoCorps and will be working under the direction of the Bureau of Land Management near the tip of the San Rafael Swell.

The San Rafael Swell is one of the emptiest regions in Utah.  The "Swell" is actually a gigantic oval-shaped fold in Earth's rocks.  This type of fold is called a plunging anticline.  You can see the nose of the fold in the page banner/title photo!  This wide plateau is surrounded by an upturned ring of interesting rock layers.  The plateau is a desert with little vegetation, but has been dissected by streams.  Many scenic mesas, buttes, canyons, and slot canyons abound! 

Here is a view of the Cleveland Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry Visitor's Center where I will be spending about 1/2 my time.  Yesterday it was already in the 90's!   We haven't even had a 70 degree day here in Seattle!

I'm looking forward to what this summer will bring!  We (my spouse and I) leave for our 12 week adventure in 4 days.