The group at Fern Valley. Gaging Wilkin Run and measuring water levels in wells. We are fortunate to be able to monitor the streamflow, climate and geomorphic changes along Wilkin Run. Thanks again to Betty and David Wilkin for donating Fern Valley to the College.
Leo examining the Ice Contact stratified drift of the terminal moraine that in part lies across Fern Valley. This deposit records the Laurentide’s ice sheet advance into the proglacial Odell Lake (note the gray lacustrine clays and silts to Leo’s left). The exposure is capped with loess – the parent material of the soils here.
A well installed in the middle of the Run indicates whether the stream is gaining or losing. It is confusing at first.
The Archaeology team measures the velocity profile at Fern Valley. Note the terrace in the background, most of this sediment is eroded soils – likely introduced over the past few hundred years – so-called Legacy sediments.
Describing the stratigraphy along the Little Killbuck Valley – this is a delta – topsets (note the channel fills at the top) and foresets (The students are standing on the foreset beds, the foresets are muddy and weathered because the local bedrock is weathered shale and there was some rain falling that day) – the bottomsets are shown below.
The bottomset beds – gray silts to the right. Jim navigates a modern mudflow fan on his way to the colluvium that lies above the bedrock contact.
Nice to see spring fieldwork beginning! This would be a good place for a sed/strat field trip as well.
Are there any alums age >40 who can possibly see the name Killbuck and not think of it being described as “mighty” and “roaring to the sea”?
Looks like a fun day.