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“The World of Elephants”
Hot Springs, South Dakota, USA September 22-25,  2005

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Rocky Mountain Cell
Active Geologic Environment of Central Colorado
September 12-14, 1997
Central Colorado Rockies
The 1997 trip, beginning Friday, 7 am, will cover the area between Aspen, Glenwood Springs, and Rifle, Colorado. This part of the central Colorado Rockies is dominated by glaciated valleys above about 7500 ft elevation, and broad alluviated valleys below that which grade to the Colorado River. The mountains are generally composed of late Paleozoic to Mesozoic sedimentary rocks, and given the local relief of >1000 m and abundant precipitation, mass movements are widespread. The area contains the popular Aspen Mountain, Aspen Highlands, Buttermilk, Snowmass, and Sunlight ski areas; we will camp at the latter. An EIS for major expansion of Aspen Highlands was just completed, and an EIS for a gondola connecting Highlands, Buttermilk, and Snowmass ski areas is underway.
In the past 10 years the explosive growth of population and housing near these resort areas has led to conflict between construction and geologic processes. The most common problems stem from landslides, debris flows, and floods. However, slower and more esoteric geologic processes also pose hazards, including ridgetop spreading (sackungen), sinkhole formation, and slow quasi-tectonic movement induced by salt flowage.

 The trip will have several areas of emphasis:
1. Slow to rapid mass movement processes operating in ski areas, and how these processes impact, and are impacted by, ski area operations. This subject is of considerable concern to the U.S. Forest Service which leases most ski area land to private operators. This may be the first introduction for many FOP'rs to the wonderful world of sackungen (Environmental and Engineering Geosciences, 1(3):277-290).

 2. Geomorphic and quasi-tectonic processes resulting from subsurface dissolution and flow of the Permian Eagle Valley Evaporite. Salt flow has both warped Quaternary landforms and induced displacement on Tertiary faults. Much of this work results from ongoing geologic mapping in the I-70 corridor and has not been presented in prior field trips.

3. Landscape evolution of the Colorado River valley and the role of mass movements in creating large valleys. Many of the high-level erosion surfaces in the Colorado River valley are veneered, not with river gravel, but with huge diamictons interpreted as debris flow deposits. These deposits have no modern counterparts. Where did they come from? Could such deposits be created in the future, and if so, what is their origin? Would it constitute a geologic hazard?

Itinerary:
Day 1: Aspen Highlands, Buttermilk, and Snowmass ski areas. At Aspen Highlands we will ascend to Loge Peak (elevation 11,650 ft) on ski lifts to examine sackungen on the ridge between Castle and Maroon Creeks. At Buttermilk we will discuss the ambiguity between till and landslide deposits. At Snowmass we will ascend lifts to 11,500 ft to examine paleo-landslides in Dakota sandstone. Topics include landsliding, debris flows, sackungen, Holocene periglacial processes, fire history, artificial drainage diversions, rill erosion on ski runs.

Day 2: Lower Crystal River and Glenwood Springs area. Focus on salt related subsidence and flowage, deformed Quaternary landforms, Storm King Mountain debris flows, Colorado River terrace stratigraphy.

Day 3: Colorado River Valley, Glenwood Springs to Rifle. Topics include late Pleistocene erosion/ deposition history of the upper Colorado River, landslides, debris flows, loess, soils, lowest-elevation moraine in Colorado, Pleistocene damming of the river.

An optional one-day field trip will be led by Pete Birkeland on Monday, Sept. 15 to the classic rock glaciers of Mt. Sopris (see Arctic and Alpine Research 5:401 416). Strenuous hike.

Most field trip stops will involve short to moderate hikes (<1-2 km) with minimal driving (<20 km) between stops, but longer drives to and from base camp. Our base will be the campground at Sunlight Ski Area, 15 km SW of Glenwood Springs. Lodging is available in at the Sunlight Bavarian Inn (800-733-4757) adjacent to the meadow/campground, or in Glenwood Springs. The 1997 trip will include the first annual FOP Homebrew Non-Competition, for those brewers who are brave enough to have their produce sampled by a panel of distinguished (well, experienced anyway) beer drinkers. We hope to see you in time for the turning of the aspens of central Colorado. Contact: Jim McCalpin, GEO-HAZ Consulting, Inc., P.O. Box 1377, Estes Park, CO 80517; 970-586-3217; mccalpin@ geohaz.com