A geologic guide
has always made traveling, hiking, and exploring more
interesting for me. I taught geology for 30 years at
California State University, East Bay (formerly CSU,
Hayward). My specialty was the Hayward fault and earthquake
hazards. My passion has been making geology accessible to
the non-geologist. This website contains illustrated,
self-paced, self-guided tours or field guides in California
and Colorado.
TOUR OF THE HAYWARD FAULT –
The Hayward fault is one of the most hazardous faults in the
United States since it runs under the heavily populated
eastern San Francisco Bay Area. It is visible at the surface
and is easily identified due to the fault slowly creeping
and deforming structures built over it. This tour follows
the Hayward fault from Fremont to San Pablo Bay and shows
you what to look for to identify the fault. Many of the
photographs document creep features and changes over 30
years.
GEOLOGY OF SALT POINT STATE
PARK – Salt Point, located on the north coast of
California, has a spectacular rugged shoreline, sea cliffs,
and uplifted marine terraces. The rocks at Salt Point
represent 40-60 million year old submarine landslide
deposits (turbidites) that are exceptionally well exposed
and very accessible. The San Andreas fault also crosses
through the park juxtaposing rock units with very different
origins. This guide takes you on trails along the coast, and
discusses the ancient environments and geologic history of
this section of the coast.
GEOLOGY TOURS IN BOULDER, COLORADO
– Three guides follow east-west oriented trails located in
Open Space and Mountain Parks (south, central, and north
Boulder). These trails cross rock units ranging from about
300 – 70 million years ago. The rocks record environments
representing the complete erosion of the Ancestral Rocky
Mountains, flooding of Colorado under the Western Interior
Sea, and uplift of the present (Laramide) Rocky Mountains.
The tours identify the rocks, environments they represent,
and how geologists interpret the geologic history.