UNIVERSITY OF MONTANA
SUMMER GEOLOGY FIELD COURSE
May 12-June 10, 2008
OVERVIEW OF THIS SITE AND HOT LINKS:
What is this course?
Why southwestern Montana?
SW Montana recreation; what to do in your
spare time…
How does our field course operate?
Examples of geologic mapping problems
Bedrock geology mappingWhat are the details for this year's course?
Quaternary geology/Neotectonics
Digital mapping techniques
Here is a list of gear we recommend you bring:What is this course?
Suggested prerequisites for the summer field course
Course Schedule for 2007
Tuition and Fees
How to apply to our course
U. Montana field course staff
The University of Montana offers a comprehensive 6-credit Field Geology Course in geologically spectacular western Montana. The 4 1/2-week long course will base out of the Dillon, Montana region in southwestern Montana. Final deadline for registration is May 9, 2008, although interested students should apply as soon as possible so we can plan appropriately.
Southwestern Montana provides numerous opportunities for field-based geologic learning in a setting that is world famous for its recreational potential. The geology exposed in southwestern Montana includes a wide variety of rock types and structural settings. Some of our map areas contain folds and faults developed during late Mesozoic and early Cenozoic thrust belt development. Others contain high angle reverse faults that cut crystalline basement rock. Still others contain extensional structures (normal faults and folds) that are still forming today. Paleogene volcanic deposits blanket much of the region and provide a record of early Basin and Range rift-related volcanism and the subsequent evolution of the Yellowstone hot spot. In addition to excellent bedrock geology exposures, southwestern Montana contains a number of interesting younger Neogene geologic features that include active normal fault scarps, evolving river systems, and large debris flow deposits. Tailings piles and other largely abandoned operations associated with historic mining activity provide additional opportunities for field-based learning in the environmental sciences.
Click here
to check to see a bit more detail on some of our recent mapping exercises.
What to do in your spare time: Dillon, Montana offers a very wide range of interesting outdoor recreational possibilities for you to explore on your time off. These include worldclass fly-fishing, hiking in some of southwestern Montana's high-country, mountain biking an endless network of backcountry roads and trails, and boating on some of the local rivers. During late May and early June, it's even possible to find some high-country snow for back-country skiing, although the approach can be plenty strenuous!
LEFT:A student in the field geology class holds up an
Arctic Grayling he caught on a dry fly (check out the large dorsal fin). Grayling
are quite rare in the lower 48 United States, but can be found in a few secret
spots that are divulged to our best students... RIGHT: This fellow caught
a decent-sized brown trout in one of the rivers within a few miles of Dillon.
Here are a few useful links that introduce you recreating in southwestern Montana.
The Montana fly fishing report (updated daily)
The southwestern Montana fly fishing report (updated daily)
A guide to recreation in the Beaverhead-Deer Lodge National forest near Dillon
Here is a group of students from the summer mapping course looking over an exposure of Cretaceous limestone and incorporating it into their field maps.
How does our field course operate?
We schedule five five-day periods of field work, with one day off between each period. Students typically complete one or two field exercises during each five-day period. We normally meet at 8:00 am and convoy in University vehicles to the selected field area. We work in the field all day, then return to our base in Dillon by 5:00 pm. Evenings are usually unstructured, allowing students to continue assigned work on the field project, if they choose.
Examples of past geological mapping problems:
Our course features three broad types of mapping problems. First, we take advantage of the superb bedrock exposures and the wide variety of structural styles through a series of bedrock mapping exercises. Second, we map a series of Quaternary deposits (stream deposits, alluvial fans, fault scarps) to better understand the ways in which evolving landforms can provide constraints on neotectonic geologic processes and to assess the role such features might have in urban planning. Third, we have developed a series of environmentally-oriented exercises that provide students with exposure to modern computer-aided mapping technology, using local geologic features as the basis for study.
Bedrock mapping exercises: These exercises form the core of our course, simply because they provide a natural laboratory for students to apply many of the skills they have developed in the classroom in a real field setting. Many of these map areas are big - up to 21 square km. Despite the large size of these areas, the superb natural exposures allow students to map large areas with several well-chosen traverses across structural strike.
The main skills students develop in our bedrock mapping exercises are field recognition of sedimentary and igneous rocks, thorough note-taking, self-locating without a GPS, recognition and interpretation of basic geologic structures, and accurate placement of observed geology on a topographic basemap. These exercises range in duration from two days for the smallest to five days for the largest of the map exercises.
Quaternary mapping exercises:
Southwestern Montana is geologically very active. Not only are there very
young volcanic flows and ongoing deposition in a variety of sedimentary environments,
but there are a number of significant, active normal faults in the area. Features
such as these have a direct impact on urban development, so understanding
their spatial distribution is important. For example, detailed mapping of
a normal fault and the various Quaternary units that cross-cut or are cross-cut
by the fault can provide important information regarding recent seismic activity
on the fault. Similarly, detailed mapping of Quaternary alluvial deposits
can provide information regarding the best place to drill a water well, because
differences in porosity and permeability controls the rate that water can
be produced from different sedimentary deposits. We include several Quaternary
exercises in our course, because of the importance of this sort of work for
urban planning. Because southwestern Montana is very rural, geologically young,
and located in an arid climate, many of the geomorphologic features we study
are delicately preserved, making them fun to map.
This group of students is operating the total station and is in radio contact with the students who are traversing the fault scarp with the reflecting prisms.
Computer-based mapping exercises:
Most mapping in the modern workplace is computer-assisted. This is particularly true in the environmental industry. We consider it very important to provide our field course students with some exposure to modern technologic devices that can be used to make geologic and other kinds of maps. The two mapping technologies we use in this course are total station laser surveyors and high-precision kinematic GPS units. Total stations surveyors consist of two parts: a laser source with sites (the "gun") and a reflecting prism (the mirror). By bouncing a laser off of the prism, the total station can determine the XYZ coordinates of the prism to within a few millimeters. If the prism is moved across a geologic feature of interest, like a fault scarp, and continuous shots are taken, the total station will generate a very precise profile of the scarp. Our students used the total stations to map a pile of mine tailings from an abandoned gold-silver mine in southwestern Montana. Students worked in groups and are required to use the total station to map the mine tailings, create the map on the computer back at the main camp, write a brief report detailing their findings, and making recommendations for clean-up of the site. By the end of the day, each student is able to navigate through the total station software, use the "gun" to acquire XYZ data, dump the digital data to a computer, and manipulate it to make a map. Below is one of the student maps from our field course.
Map of mine tailings, using a total station. This map was made by a group of four students, working together, in one day.
What are the details for this year's course (2008)?
The 2008 summer field course will start at 8:00AM on Monday, May 12 and will run until about 3:00 PM on Tuesday, June 10. We will meet initially in the parking lot on the northeast side of the campus of Western Montana College (WMC) on May 12 at 8:00 AM. From there, we'll head in to the field to begin our work.
If you are from out-of-state and decide to fly to Montana, we can arrange to pick you up at the Missoula airport, as long as your plane arrives before 3:00 p.m., Sunday, May 11. We will provide students with a ride to Dillon on the afternoon of Sunday, May 11. We can also provide out-of-state students with a ride back to the Missoula airport on the afternoon of Thursday, June 11. If you plan to fly out of Missoula, please do not book a flight departing before the afternoon of June 11, so we can be sure to get you to the airport on time.
Weather in western Montana during the end of May and first part of June is quite variable. Most of our map areas are between 5000 and 7000 feet elevation, so weather can change quickly. In general, it is pleasant and sunny, but everyone needs to be prepared for rain and occasionally chilly weather. Every year, students get caught in at least one major thunderstorm. Please come prepared with carefully selected layers of clothes that include sturdy pants, shirts, a sweater, perhaps a vest, jacket, windbreaker, and rain protection. Layering your clothing will allow you to adapt to the conditions as they change. You should bring a good field sun hat and be careful to apply sunscreen for skin protection at the high elevations. Also, bring a few water bottles - western Montana is quite arid and the conditions can be surprisingly dehydrating. The course requires a moderate amount of hiking under ordinary field conditions - no special heroics. Count on about 7 hours of field work each day, carrying water, lunch, and field supplies. There is no smoking permitted while we are in the field.
Here is a list of gear we recommend you bring:
Multiple layers of clothing:
Good outdoor jacket
Fleece
Long underwear
Shorts
Light T-shirts
Good hiking socks
Sun hat
Cold weather hat
Rain gear
Sturdy hiking boots (not sneakers)
Gloves
Day back-pack
Multiple water bottles
Sunscreen
2 professional-quality field books (not looseleaf notebooks)
a package of graph paper
a field map board **
hand lens with lanyard
small set of binoculars (optional, but very useful)
small bottle of dilute hydrochloric acid
regular compass (we’ll provide you with a brunton compass)
colored pencils
fine-tipped (000) pens: black, blue, and red
protractor
ruler/straight edge
marking pens for labeling rocks in the field
white-out, and green correction fluid
a couple of mechanical pencils
tent
sleeping bag
camp stove (only if you own one already - we should have plenty to go around)
** You will want a field map board so you can view your map while it is protected from rain, dust, and rocks. Most students use two pieces of plexiglas with duct-tape hinges. A couple of bicycle inner-tube strips or large rubber bands are a handy way to hold the map down on the map board. Our largest maps are about 14" X 11" and can be folded.
The University of Montana Geolosciences Department provides brunton compasses, stereoscopes, maps, air photos, GPS units, and necessary computer access.
Suggested prerequisites for the summer field course
We strongly recommend courses in general geology, petrology,
stratigraphy, and structural geology before taking the field geology course.
Some or all of these may be waived under special conditions for especially
capable students.
Tentative 2008 Course Schedule (Appropriate date changes TBA)
| Date | Activity |
| May 11 | Check in to WMC dorms after 3 p.m |
| May 12-16 | Field work in Dillon area - Frying Pan Exercise |
| May 17 | Day off |
| May 18-22 | Field work in Dillon area - McCartneys Mtn. Exercise |
| May 23 | Day off |
| May 24 | Birch Creek total station exercise |
| May 25 - 28 | Birch Creek mapping exercise |
| May 29 | Day off |
| May 30 - June 3 | Timber Hill and Kelly mapping exercises |
| June 4 | Day off |
| June 5 -9 | Badger Pass mapping exercise |
| June 10 | Last day of field course. Course ends about 3:00pm. |
Tuition and Fees (approximate)
These are paid directly to the University of Montana.
Deadline for registration is TBA (See "How
to apply" link below.)
| Cost | Resident | Non-resident |
| Tuition (6 semester hours) and fees | 1260.00 | 4016.00 |
| Transportation fee | 500.00 | 500.00 |
| Admission fee for new students | 30.00 | 30.00 |
| Double Room, WMC * | 384.00 | 384.00 |
| Board at WMC (breakfast and dinner only) | 350.00 | 350.00 |
| WMC facilities use fee (library, computer labs) | 24.00 | 24.00 |
| Total with room/board at WMC | 2548.00 | 5304.00 |
| Total without room/board at WMC | 1814.90 | 4570.00 |
| * price for single room (if available) at WMC | 480.00 | 480.00 |
* Room and Board:
Room and board will be paid directly to the housing office at Western Montana College and the University of Montana upon arrival. It is optional: some students elect to camp near Dillon instead of staying in the dorms. Room and board at WMC includes eighteen nights, breakfast, and dinner but not lunch.
There are three steps to applying for our summer field geology course.
1) Send an email to Professor Marc Hendrix (marc.hendrix@umontana.edu) and notify him of your interest in the course. Marc will answer any questions you might have and send you a course application. You will need to complete this application and return it to Marc. In this application, you will need to demonstrate that you have Medical Insurance for the entire duration of our course, and you will need to include a letter of recommendation from one of the professors at your school. (An email letter from your professor is fine).
2) In addition to applying directly to the Geosciences Department, you will also need to apply for admission to the University of Montana and pay a $30 fee. The easiest way to apply for admission to the University is through the UM Cyber Bear web site.
3) After you have been accepted by both the University and the Geosciences Department (Marc will let you know about the latter within a few days of receiving your G429 application), you can then formally register for G429 through the University using the same Cyber Bear web site.
Jim Sears
Marc Hendrix
Gray Thompson
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