The colorado plateau is one of the earths most strikingly beautiful geological provinces and one of the most enigmatic. Thompson exit 09192002 the book cliffs from thompson exit on interstate 70 mount garfield 09182002 mount garfield marks the eastern end of the book cliffs. The little book cliffs wilderness study area is characterized by gentlysloping plateaus, various small canyons, and four major canyon systems. Box 687 savannah, georgia 31416 abstract about 25 types of trace fossils occur in major marine facies of the star point and blackhawk formations in the book cliffs of utah. Sequence stratigraphy and marine to nonmarine facies architecture of foreland basin strata, book cliffs, utah, u. Reevaluating the sedimentology and sequence stratigraphy. It is late cretaceous latest turonian early campanian in age and contains fluvial river systems, paralic swamps and lagoons, and marginal marine shoreline siliciclastic strata. During a recent trip through the area i spotted two cars in 110 miles of driving. There are currently no active mines within the book cliffs v cia. The little book cliffs of this landscape drawing are nothing more than the far eastern end of the book cliffs landform that stretches from the eastern edge of the grand valley near palisade to the san rafael swell 140 miles to the west in utah. Together with his experience from spdc shell nigeria, simon effectively demonstrated both theoretical and applied aspects at all levels in a clear, concise and thoughtful manner. Top of the castlegate sandstone, sagers canyon, book cliffs, eastern utah. Reevaluating the sedimentology and sequence stratigraphy of.
Main canyon, coal canyon, cottonwood canyon and spring canyon. Stratal architecture of these rocks is controlled by two regionally extensive surfaces of incision and subaerial exposure. Spieker and reeside 1925 named the emery sandstone for a series of prominent, beige and buff sandstones encased by gray siltstones of the blue gate shale at the foot of the wasatch plateau near the town of emery, utah fig. These colorado cliffs look like books on a shelf outthere colorado. Pdf on jan 1, 2007, brian j willis and others published stratigraphic variations within the sego sandstone, book cliffs, central utah find, read and cite all. The book cliffs are one of the worlds best places to study sequence stratigraphy. Desert member to lower castlegate sandstone stratigraphic interval along. The book cliffs are an enormous area that spans two states. These four larger systems are also accompanied by many smaller side canyons. Upper cretaceous trace fossils, book cliffs of utah. Cretaceous and tertiary formations of the book cliffs, carbon. When one thinks of how little had been published on formalized sedimentary stratigraphy and how little was known of the relationship of fossils to depositional setting and time, this was a miraculous creation of intuitive genius. Winding for 250 miles across utah and colorado, it is the longest continuous escarpment in the world.
The seemingly endless stretch of the stratigraphic sequence of the rocks is. The straight cliffs formation is a stratigraphic unit in the kaiparowits plateau of south central utah. Accessible from the selection map, the stratigraphic columns section will eventually be. Cretaceous and tertiary formations of the book cliffs carbon. William strata smith 23 march 1769 28 august 1839 was an english geologist and surveyor who generated the first geological map of england. This stratigraphic interval has been documented extensively in the book cliffs area in utah, and its sequence stratigraphy has been interpreted and used as a proxy to trace cretaceous sealevel variations van wagoner 1991. Sequence stratigraphy of the book cliffs of eastern utah. Cretaceous and tertiary formations of the book cliffs, carbon, emery, and grand counties, utah, and garfield and mesa counties, colorado series title professional paper. It is well exposed around the margin of the kaiparowits plateau in the grand staircase escalante.
All trips begin and end in grand junction, colorado. Extensive carbonate cementation of fluvial sandstones. These colorado cliffs look like books on a shelf outthere. Sequence stratigraphy of the book cliffs of eastern utah, the. Digging into the pocket of a nodule in the book cliffs area, working hard trying not to damage any crystals. From grand junction take i70 east to the cameo exit. It extends from the grand mesa at the mouth of debeque canyon in the east into utah in the west. The sedimentary successions of the book cliffs in eastcentral utah have been extensively studied with respect to sequence stratigraphy e. Northern colorado plateau by keith rigby geologic history of utah by lehi hintze purchase information.
The campanian book cliffs strata of eastern utah and western colorado has been used to develop, test and refine sedimentological and stratigraphic ideas and models over the years, including the principles and concepts of sequence stratigraphy. This video is a virtual field trip to one of the classic locations in the world book cliffs, utah, usa where the sequence stratigraphy method was developed and tested. Plateau in central utah to grand mesa in western colorado a distance of. The book cliffs are a series of desert mountains and cliffs in western colorado and eastern utah, in the western united states. Book cliffs data sets are often used as outcrop analogues for similar subsurface settings worldwide.
Beginning near helper, utah, and joined at green river, utah, by a second escarpment, the roan cliffs, the 2,000foot 610metre tall mountain wall, winds a 250mile 400km course along the tavaputs and roan plateaus, ending near grand junction, colorado. Locally it is known as castle valley, clark valley, gunnison valley and grand valley. The book cliffs coal field in emery and grand counties, utah. Book cliffs, geological feature of eastcentral utah and western colorado, u. The book cliffs appear mostly along the southern and western edge of the tavaputs plateau. Geological evolution of the colorado plateau of eastern. The book cliffs are one of the fewest used spots in utah.
The book cliffs are a range of eroding, steepsloping cliffs, also called escarpments. Information was gathered from a number of sources see info for more information. The book cliffs v cumulative impact area cia is located in carbon county, utah, south of the town of sunnyside plate 1. The desert member of the blackhawk formation and the castlegate sandstone in the book cliffs of utah and colorado were analyzed to develop a model of sequence stratigraphy and facies architecture in foreland basins. For about 200 miles this escarpment extends from where the colorado river descends south through debeque to price canyon near price, utah. Us oil sands scam is occurring on sitla controlled land. Utah stratigraphic columns overview page these stratigraphic columns are dynamically created on the fly from information stored in a database. A good appreciation of the nature of reservoir and nonreservoir rocks in the subsurface is of fundamental importance to sound ep decision making. During the hunting seasons the usage rises, this is one of the premier hunting regions in utah. Chapter 2 also describes the internal stratigraphy of the rollins sandstone member and interprets the history of change in sea level during the deposition of this member. The green river through desolation and gray canyons is a popular multiday float trip, known for its easy rapids, nice scenery, varied wildlife sightings, moderate hiking and interesting historical locations. In this lab, you will put together your knowledge of nearshore facies and sequence stratigraphy to correlate sections and interpret facies changes in the cretaceous stratigraphy of the book cliffs.
Topographically the mancos shale also forms the broad valley paralleling the book cliffs to the south. Frey department of geology university of georgia athens, georgia 30602 james d. The mountain is one of the more notable land marks in the grand valley. Roadside geology of utah by halka chronic field guide. Stratigraphic variations within the sego sandstone, book cliffs, central utah article pdf available january 2007 with 165 reads how we measure reads. It is bordered on the north by the bookcliffs and on the south by. Cretaceous and tertiary formations of the book cliffs. The book cliffs extend from helper, utah to east of grand junction, colorado fig. Cost includes tuition, fees, food, lodging and transportation to. Utah stratigraphic columns selection map utahgeology.
The rollins sandstone member contains a thick marineshoreface sandstone that is a cliffforming unit of the book cliffs east of grand junction, colorado. Plateau denmark pass valley mtns wasatch plateau manti area book cliffs. Between price, utah and grand junction, colorado, highway 6 and interstate 70 cross 170 miles of barren and windswept terrain. The desert and castlegate sandstones, 2001 pages iiii, 181. Van wagonersequence stratigraphy and marine to nonmarine facies architecture of foreland basin strata, book cliffs, utah, usa j. The term grand staircase was first applied to this region by charles keyes 1924. Stratigraphy and sedimentation of the book cliffs, utah. Flint, 1999, a sedimentological and sequence stratigraphic reinterpretation of the upper cretaceous prairie canyon member mancos b and associated strata, book cliffs area, utah, u. Directions there are two routes to access the little bookcliffs wsa.
The book cliffs form a sinuous southwardfacing escarpment that extends. A subsequent trip through colorado and utah segments of the colorado plateau provided many photogenic encounters with the book cliffs, which seem to be everywhere in plateau country. The risers correspond to cliffs and the steps correspond to the broad benches, terraces, or. Below are weather averages from 1971 to 2000 according to data gathered from the nearest official weather station. The division refers to the existing horse canyon mines mining and reclamation plan. This area features an amazing array of scenic opportunities. Mount garfield 09192002 i took this picture a few miles east of grand junction as it contrasts the rich farm land of the valley with the desolate desert. Cross the colorado river and drive past the public service power plant.
Summary introduction late cretaceous depositional setting stop 1. This is the 6th year of utah tar sands resistance opposition to the destructive mine plans of the canadian corporation, us oil sands or usos. Millions of years of the planets evolution are recorded in layer after layer of distinctive geological strata, which are remarkably free from the folding and other distortions that scramble the record elsewhere. The drive would be lonely but for a constant companion. It does not, however, form a valley for a single stream system. Gold occurrence in the cretaceous mancos shale utah. Outcrop and subsurface examples from the cretaceous of north america, aapg memoir, vol. The video shows some of the field evidence for sealevel change and how the sequence stratigraphy model has been applied to this shallowmarine and fluvial succession. The western henry mountains syncline is located in southcentral utah 5 km ssw of the book cliffs at coal canyon. The book cliffs create the northern backdrop for the entire grand valley from clifton.
I have always known of the book cliff as i spent the first 30 years of my life in utah, yet have never hunted the books. Highresolution correlation of upper cretaceous stratigraphy between the book cliffs and the western henry mountain syncline, utah. The book cliffs are one of the most recognizable landforms in western colorado and eastern utah. And with the exception of a few privately held parcels of land, almost 96% of the 2.
Usos has been leasing 50 square miles in the book cliffs from the state of utah for tar sands strip mining since 2005. Stratigraphic variations within the sego sandstone, book cliffs. They are so named because the cliffs of cretaceous sandstone that cap many of the southfacing buttes appear similar to a shelf of books. A nodule where a pocket of barite and calcite crystals may have been found, in the book cliffs area. Part of the southern edge of this wsa is dominated by the 2,000foothigh face of the book cliffs. This geological wonder cuts through beautiful desert terrain and parallels steep canyons and raging rivers, making it a yearround destination for scenic viewing, hiking, camping and rafting below. This geological wonder cuts through beautiful desert terrain and parallels steep canyons and raging rivers, making it a yearround destination for. The columns will follow the standard usgs format for stratigraphic columns, containing. Book cliffs geological feature, utah, united states. Stratigraphic variations within the sego sandstone, book. The series of topographic benches and cliffs, hich form the grand staircase, step progressively up in elevation from southw to north figure 1. Sequence stratigraphy in the book cliffs, utah goal. The mancos formation and its stratigraphic equivalent to the east known as the pierre shale, often contain concretions.
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