Death Valley

Geologic Site: Death Valley

The final part of my November geology adventure was a 3-day visit to Death Valley, California. This was barely enough time to superficially survey a few of the geologic wonders of the area. Sites with known geologic history in the Death Valley area span 1.7 billion years from metamorphic rocks in the turtlebacks of the Black Mountains to the erosive and geoclimatic phenomena in Mosaic Canyon and the Racetrack Playa. The photo gallery is my attempt to document some of the stunning scenery and geologic specimens that I was able to view during my short visit. (Click on Right Side of Photo to Proceed through the Gallery)

Parked at Father Crowley Vista Point with Panamint Valley below and Panamint Mountains in the distance.

Rainbow Canyon at Father Crowley Vista Point. Exposure of complex layers of basalt, limestone, marble and granite.

Upper wall of Rainbow Canyon with top layer of basalt from the Pliocene Epoch (2-4 million years ago) over Paleozoic Era strata originally deposited under shallow seas more than 250 million years ago.

Dante's View from Black Mountains facing North overlooking Badwater Basin (lowest point in Death Valley). Panamint Mountains and their alluvial fans in the distance. Badwater Alluvial fan visible at bottom left.

Dante's View facing North in infrared photo with labels.

Dante's View facing South, Infrared photo. Mormon Point and South end of Death Valley and Panamint Range to the right and Owlshead Mountains beyond Mormon Point to the South.

Dante's View area Black Mountains: The upper surface is covered by rhyolitic porphyritic igneous (volcanic) rock that was deposited 6-7 million years ago (MA), Miocene epoch according to radiometric dating.

Funeral Mountains with Pyramid Peak in the background and Ryan Mesa (folded basalt deposited 4 MA in the Miocene Epoch) in the midground. The Funeral Mountains are formed from Paleozoic sedimentary layers deposited in a shallow sea. Layers have been folded and broken by thrust faults linked to Mesozoic compression and further tilted/cut by faults during the late Tertiary period.

Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes at dawn.

View from the alluvial fan for Mosaic Canyon with Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes and Grapevine Mountains in the distance.

Eroded rock samples on the Mosaic Canyon alluvial fan. The access road to Mosaic Canyon was closed. Walking up the alluvial fan from the Ranger Station permitted inspection of rocks washed out of the canyon and surrounding areas. Two pieces samples of eroded dolomite marble are on the right. Polished quartzite is on the left. All are sitting on conglomerate rock washed out of the canyon.

Mosaic Canyon Fault at the wash near the parking area (at bottom of V-shaped area). To the right (West), are Noonday dolomite strata derived from algal carbonates (~635 MA – Neoproterozoic Era). To the left (East) are Johnnie formation strata (~550 MA) rich in shale and Stirling quartzite (~500 MA). Mosaic Canyon narrow area. West side on right is water erosion polished dolomite marble. East side on the left is cemented dolomite breccia.

Mosaic Canyon narrow area. West side on right is water erosion polished dolomite marble. East side on the left is cemented dolomite breccia.

Mosaic Canyon – Cemented dolomite breccia from previous sediment- and rock-rich flooding.

Mosaic Canyon – Polished dolomite marble.

Mosaic Canyon – Polished dolomite marble; dry.

Mosaic Canyon – Polished dolomite marble; wetted with water.

Mosaic Canyon – West wall of dolomite and limestone strata

Mosaic Canyon – West wall of dolomite strata progressively condensed towards floor of canyon.

Mosaic Canyon – Widened portion with Mosaic Canyon Fault running through center of canyon floor. To the left (East) are Johnnie formation strata rich in shale and Stirling quartzite.

Copper Canyon Turtleback, Black Mountains. The turtlebacks contain cores of metamorphic rock with the oldest rocks in Death Valley.

Badwater turtleback fault in shady area to the left separates the core Precambrian metamorphic rock in the turtleback on the left from tertiary sedimentary and igneous rock on the right. Metamorphic rocks recovered from this area have been dated by radiometric methods at 1.7 billion years.

Badwater turtleback fault area metamorphic rock: Gneiss

Badwater turtleback fault area metamorphic rock: Schist with heavy mica deposits

Badwater turtleback fault area metamorphic rock: Folded gneiss $Badwater turtleback fault area metamorphic rock: Gneiss with fractures and pegmatite intrusions$
Badwater turtleback fault area metamorphic rock: Gneiss with fractures and pegmatite intrusions

Badwater turtleback fault area metamorphic rock: On the left is gneiss with pegmatite instruction. I think the rock on the right would be described as amphibolite because of its darker colors. Badwater Basin: I'm standing at the base of the Badwater turtleback and fault looking out over the Badwater Basin. You can see groups of people walking out to the basin which is the lowest point in North America (282 ft. below sea level). The Panamint Mountains and alluvial fan are in the distance.

Badwater Basin: I'm standing at the base of the Badwater turtleback and fault looking out over the Badwater Basin. You can see groups of people walking out to the basin which is the lowest point in North America (282 ft. below sea level). The Panamint Mountains and alluvial fan are in the distance.

Mountains, tuff and debris from Miocene epoch volcanic activity along Artists Drive at sundown. The red deposits contain oxidized iron-rich hematite. Titus Canyon Road: Low hills of predominantly volcanic origin. Infrared image

Titus Canyon Road: Low hills of predominantly volcanic origin. Infrared image

Titus Canyon Road access looking West. Multiple sedimentary and igneous strata are shown as in a similar photo in Miller and Wright, 2015 (photo 41, reference 4). Details of strata and formations are shown and described in the following photographs.

In this peak, slanted strata are Titus Canyon Formation strata from the Oligocene Epoch, Tertiary Period, 23-33 MA. Titus Canyon Formation is composed of green conglomerate, red or green shale, sandstone and megabreccia deposits. The top layer on the peak is volcanic rock deposited in the Miocene Epoch, late Tertiary Period, 22-20 MA.

The highest peak on the left and to the rear is Thimble peak which is composed of Bonanza King Formation (Thick dolomite with thinner layers of limestone and shale from the mid to upper Cambrian Period, Paleozoic Era about 450 to 500 MA). The wide mountain in front of Thimble Peak with horizontal strata is Carrera Formation shale and limestone from the mid to lower Cambrian period. Foreground contains Tertiary volcanic rock on the left and Zabriskie Quartzite (lower Cambrian Period) on the right.

Mountain composed predominantly of Cambrian Period strata from Carrera Formation shale and limestone.

The red rock formations in the foreground are from Zabriskie Quartzite Formation from the lower Cambrian Period (>520 MA).

Weathered intermediate porphyritic volcanic rock in the wash next to Titus Canyon Road on the way to Red Pass.

Weathered conglomerate limestone rock in the wash next to Titus Canyon Road on the way to Red Pass.

Volcanic tuff in an area next to Titus Canyon Road on the way to Red Pass.

Tilted and weathered strata of Cambrian Period Titus Canyon Formation topped by darker Tertiary Period volcanic rock on the way to Red Pass.

Tilted and weathered shale and sandstone of Titus Canyon Formation strata on the way to Red Pass.

The two hills forming a "V" are Titus Canyon Formation topped by Tertiary volcanic rock. The small darker cone at the top of the "V" is the eroded remnant of a latite volcanic plug. The plug closes a former volcanic vent that was probably the source of much of the volcanic rock that covers the surrounding area. The relationship of this volcanic plug to other hills in the area can be best appreciated by looking at high resolution Google earth images of the area.

Detail of peak at Red Pass showing slanted strata of Titus Canyon Formation with shale and sandstone topped by volcanic rock.

I'm standing on volcanic rock at the top of Red Pass looking Northwest into the upper part of Titus Canyon which was named after a young gold prospector (Morris Titus) who died in the canyon in 1905 from heat and dehydration after leaving behind a note that said he was looking for a spring. Alternating dark and light strata of Bonanza King Formation are in the distance to the left.

Limestone megabreccia next to the road just below the top of Red Pass. The presence of this megabreccia at this elevation is used as partial support for the interpretation that there were much higher mountains near this location in the geologic past that were the source of this megabreccia. Leadville: This was the location where a stock market scam was started in the 1920's resulting from false claims that there were rich lead deposits in the location.

Leadville: This was the location where a stock market scam was started in the 1920's resulting from false claims that there were rich lead deposits in the location.

Apparent fold in Bonanza King Formation strata resembling a syncline. However, this is only an apparent syncline since there is a sharp bend in the canyon with intersection of the bedding at two different angles.

Petrogyphs made by prehistoric people living in the area near Klare Spring.

Distorted, eroded and faulted strata.

Limestone megabreccia re-cemented with crystalline calcite at bottom of Titus Canyon.

Grapevine Mountains at the exit of Titus Canyon. There are marked distortions and folding of Paleozoic strata. In the lower right, the Bonanza King Formation is overturned.

Teakettle Junction on the way to Racetrack Playa. Darn, I forgot to bring a teakettle and leave a message for good luck.

Racetrack Playa with the grandstand in the middle in the distance.

Sailing stone on Racetrack Playa. The perfect combination of moisture, wind, and possibly, ice facilitate movement bursts of an estimated 3 mph of these rocks and leave a trail.

Ubehebe volcanic crater after sunset.

Death Valley sunset near Ubehebe crater. I really need 3 or 4 more days to see what I wanted to see…….I'll have to wait until next time.