Ducks @ Oregon - University of Oregon

Northwest Geology Field Trip

Leah C.

October 31, 2009 - 8:00 PM

I never thought I would have a field trip in college. I remember the days when I was in elementary school, and we had field trips at least once a month. Gradually the term "field trip" died down from middle school to high school, and I just never really pictured myself doing anything like that in a lecture course with 70 plus students. The trip today brought back all those sweet memories of getting on a bus with my lunch box and seeing the world in a "educational" viewpoint. Being able to see and explore the land and rock formations in Oregon and to visit the places that I studied in class is definitely more meaningful then looking at photos and slides. I know that if I went to Central Oregon outside of class, I would have never fully appreciated everything I saw.

The trip was lead by Professor Ray Weldon, who is very passionate about the study of geology. The field trip was very enjoyable, and it felt like I was on a tour bus as he spoke to us on the microphone. We left at 7 in the morning from campus, and headed east. Our first stop was at a basalt flow and quarry at Crescent Cutoff. We jumped a fence into a quarry and walked on top of large chunks of rock that wobbled with each step. From a distance the quarry looked as if someone purposely pilled up these mountains. I would have never guessed that the vast amount of large loose rocks had naturally formed there. What amazes me as well was that this rubble of rocks had acted as an insulator that had carried a large lava flow out towards the coast. To be able to see the size and to stand on the basalt flow was just unbelievable. There was barely anything growing there, only a couple trees peaked out of the large blacken landscape.

At around 10 we made it past the Cascades through the tall fir trees and tiny blankets of snow on the ground. The vegetation gradually started to thin, and the climate was almost desert like. The ground was yellow with sand and covered with low growing shrubs when we reached our destination at Fort Rock.It was literarily a rock shaped like the walls of a fort. We climbed a bit of it, and at the top, I saw nothing but empty plains and the clear blue sky above me. Professor Weldon described the formation process as a very hot marble that was dropped in to a pan of water. This formation was once in a large lake, and to learn that we were walking on the bottom of a once massive lake is really hard to imagine. The nearest shoreline would've been at the far distant hills that made up the thin horizon line around us. We ate lunch shortly after and spent a few minutes to explore the old cave formations that were once homes to Native Americans thousands of years ago. It was really difficult to picture this dry and empty location as a wet environment, but fossil records proved the existence of abundant resources as well as fossils of flamingos. Can you believe that? Flamingos in Oregon!

From Fort Rock, we headed back west towards our final destination over at Salt Creek Falls, I assume that we were back near the cascades since there was snow along the side of the road again. We entered the park, and learned about the glacier carved valley where the water currently flows through. What a sight it was. We were only there for about 10 minutes but the sound of the water rushing down and the cool mist that hovered below the ground felt much longer and very calming. I was mesmerized by the sheet of white that flowed towards the small winding stream below. If I had more time to explore I would've liked to climb towards the bottom to see the size of the waterfall up close.

I must say, central Oregon is a very beautiful place. This was my first time visiting the east side of the Cascades. I had never explored Oregon outside of the Willamette Valley, and I was very astonished by the dramatic change in the landscapes and environment. The fir trees are so different from the ones I'm used to. The branches are shorter and grew near the trunks, closely resembling pipe cleaners. The trees are also less densely spread. There were also many slopes and hills driving through the Cascades, and flat plateau paths in Central Oregon. We returned shortly after 5 just in time to watch the USC game. I don't regret not having a ticket. As much as I had wanted to, there will be many more games to come. As far as the trip I will definitely visit the sites again sometime in the near future. It was a very wonderful experience to see these rocks and to actually know the process of their formation really helps you fully appreciate the landscape more. I also feel like I learn better through actual field study and can take away more from the experience than from a textbook.