Geologic Tour to St. Peter’s Dome

Spend a day exploring the volcanic highlands of the southeastern Jemez Mountains with PEEC and local geologists Fraser and Cathy Goff. This trip is perfect for those with an interest in geology and natural science. Non-geologists are particularly welcome.

This one-day trip carpools from PEEC at 8 AM and returns at 5 PM. The trip will include 2 short hikes of 200 meters round-trip length, and 1 hike of 2 km round-trip length on Boundary Peak Trail.

Please plan to arrive at PEEC by 7:30am to check-in and plan carpooling. Bring appropriate hat, sunscreen, sunglasses, small pack, camera, good tennies or light boots, rain gear, hiking sticks (optional), 2-3 quarts of water, lunch, and additional beverages (optional). Participants should be back at the PEEC parking lot by 5 PM. The journey will follow Forest Service roads into the Dome Wilderness. Round trip distance from PEEC is only 60 miles but the road toward end of trip is rough and poorly maintained. Consequently, 4-wheel drive, high-clearance vehicles are mandatory. Vehicle drivers should bring shovel(s), tow straps and small first aid kits for safety. Registration is required to participate in this Tour.

St. Peter’s Dome is a prominent block of 6 to 10 million-year-old rocks, which is upfaulted and rotated along the Pajarito fault zone, the west margin of Rio Grande rift. This tour is designed for non-geologists who love the natural sciences and the outdoors. Stops will include obsidian-bearing debris, avalanche deposits, volcanic domes, flows and intrusions, thick lajar (mudflow) deposits shed from old volcanoes, valley-fill deposits of Bandelier Tuff, dramatically offset rocks broken by the Pajarito fault zone, and feature commanding views!
 

Admission:

$55 for PEEC Members, $70 for Non-Members

About the Group Leaders:

Fraser Goff is the author of Valles Caldera: A Geologic History (2009) and was lead author of the Geologic Map of the Valles Caldera (2011). He worked at Los Alamos National Laboratory for 26 years. He has worked extensively in the Valles Caldera and on about 40 geothermal systems and 15 active volcanoes worldwide during his career.

Cathy Goff is also an accomplished geologist/geochemist and has worked on geothermal and volcanic projects throughout the western USA and in Alaska, Hawaii, Latin America, Italy, and Japan. More recently, Fraser and Cathy worked for the New Mexico State Map Program and helped produce the recently published geologic map of Mount Taylor volcano near Grants (2019).

Photo:   Wikipedia Commons