Day three was spent examining the sedimentology, structure and paleontology, and a bit of the wildlife biology at Owl Canyon. We even stopped at the Payless Shoestore in nearby Barstow (Dr. Wilson’s hometown).
The wildlife was the desert tortoise.
The first stop the next day was the Granite Mountains.
Students (above) discussed the possibility of magma mixing and the enclaves of mafics.
The group on a large sphere of granite.
The next stop was Amboy Crater – a large basaltic cinder cone with associated lava flows. This is a view of the cone looking from the inside out as Nick secures the perimeter.
Dr. Pollock was in her element on the ridge of basalt.
Dr. Judge explains to the group how during a time of tectonic extension large-scale folding can develop. This was the last stop of the day at Calico Ghost Town.
The tight ptigmatic folds are almost isoclinal – almost.
Using some sticks found on the side of the parking lot – Dr. Judge folds the earths crust at the location along a strike-slip fault, where the fault makes a bend.
Zach Downes was up early taking a photo of the sunrise across Soda Lake – our home playa.