Please Share Your Photos!

Please share your photos from the trip by uploading them to Picasa and tagging them with "umgeo2009softrock". One nice thing about Picasa is that the rest of us can access your photos at full resolution, if we are interested in using them for teaching, inclusion in the newsletter, or to print them out. Another is that you can georeference your photos in Picasa, so that they will appear on the trip map, either by specifying their location by clicking on a map or by matching the time they were shot to our GPS logs. (I'll be posting the GPS log of our trip shortly.)

Once you've uploaded a photo and tagged it in Picasa, then it will be added to the slideshow widget on this page automatically, though there can be a delay of several minutes. You can also search in Picasa for all the photos tagged with umgeo2009softrock.

Live Trip Log (Loopt Site)

Now that the trip is over, I've removed the Loopt Journal widget, as you probably don't want to follow me around anymore :) It showed our progress live during the trip and we tried to post a photo for every stop; at least whenever we had cellular data coverage. There ended up being a lot of gaps, particularly when we were looking at geology, as there seemed to be a strong correlation between good outcrops/hikes and the lack of cellular data service.

Thanks All!

Thanks everyone for a safe and fun trip!

Corpus Christi

Overview of local geology by U-M alum Egon Weber, bayside on campus.

US Border Inspection Station

Reminder to foreign students: always carry your travel documents!
Thanks to the assistance of the University's International Center and
helpful Border Agents we were only delayed about an hour.

Day 5

Hiking Mckittrick Canyon, in Guadaloupe National Park provides an
excellent opportunity to view a Permian reef system in it's entirety.
Starting in the distal beds at the foot of the reef one hikes up
through the slope to the crest, 3.8 miles one-way and 2000ft of
elevation gain, examining close-up the remaims of the reef, as well as
being able to step back and appreciate the system and relationships at
full-scale. The hot weather (high-90's) and dry conditions made the
hike a challenge, but the geology was well worth carrying all the
extra water.

Day 3

The first three days involve a lot of driving, and not too much in the way of rocks. That's to be expected, however, when you're trying to get all the way from Michigan to Texas / New Mexico. So far we've seen mostly late Paleozoic carbonates and sands and some Ordovician dolomites. Many of the outcrops yesterday were nicely wetted by the rain for enhanced viewing, but we stayed reasonably dry and the rain had given up by the time we pitched our tents.

Today's been a long drive from the cool clouds of Oklahoma to the hot sun of Texas. As soon as we get gassed up and locate some groceries for dinner though, then we get spend the rest of the day exploring the fascinating geology of the "Grand Canyon of Texas", Palo Duro Canyon.