Field Camp

A 6 week course from which a portion of the Beaverhead Mountain range in eastern Idaho will be measured and mapped by senior level geology students.

 

Useful Supplies to Have Beforehand

Field Notebook

Sturdy Shoes

Hand Lense

Rock Hammer

Rain Gear

Sleeping Bag/etc (Tents are provided)

Water Containers (about 4 liters on your person per day)

Warm Clothes

 

Geology Field Studies at Brigham Young Unversity-Idaho

 

 

One of the strengths of the geology program at Brigham Young University - Idaho is the extensive experience that several of our faculty members have in conducting field-based research, and, as such, we have a highly field-oriented undergraduate program. We consider field skills to be an essential part of geological training, regardless of the nature of the employment that a student will ultimately choose to follow. For instance, a seismic section represents a number of surfaces that, when formed, were at the earth’s surface, hence, mental images developed during field studies are invaluable when making subsurface interpretations. To provide those skills, most of our major’s courses include at least one significant field exercise, and we have two courses that are conducted entirely in the field. The first is a week-long Introduction to Field Methods (IFM) course taken just prior to the semester in which the involved students will be simultaneously enrolled in Sedimentology and Stratigraphy and in Structural Geology. The second is the Advanced Field Methods course (field camp). In addition, most of our students complete a senior thesis and present the results at regional professional meetings. To date, the bulk of these projects have been an outgrowth of their field camp experiences.

 

The Introduction to Field Methods course consists mostly of a trip through parts of Idaho and Wyoming. Students become familiar with the stratigraphic units they will be mapping later during field camp and learn to measure and describe rock bodies. Samples are collected to be used in sed/strat labs for facies analyses and recognition of ancient depositional environments. During the trip, students make drawings to illustrate structural relationships and later, as part of the structural geology lab, draft cross-sections through areas visited. The trip culminates with a one day mapping exercise where we have them measure, unknowingly, a section across the axis of an overturned fold. Being able to draw upon examples already seen in the field greatly enhances class discussions and adds significance to lab exercises in the sed/strat and structural geology courses.

The sed/strat and structural geology courses are traditional in their approach, except that a single report, based on features visited during the IFM trip, is submitted to both classes, with each instructor grading his respective portion. One of our objectives is to see if students can put together the big picture and relate stratigraphic successions to the tectonic and eustatic history of the region.

By the time the students arrive at field camp, they have already become somewhat familiar with the stratigraphy and have seen examples of the types of structures they will encounter. This allows them to “hit the ground running” with their map projects. We typically conduct three separate projects. The first is a week-long group exercise in which we guide them from beginning to end. This is followed by assigned areas where students work in pairs with occasional checks by instructors. Finally, they are taken to a third area where each individual has his/her own assignment and we are available to assist with “problems.” Our field camp is carried out over a seven week period, primarily in the Big Hole and Beaverhead Mountain Ranges. These are structurally-complex regions involving Paleozoic carbonate strata that have been subjected to folding (some overturned), thrust faulting, high-angle reverse faulting, and normal faulting. Each student is assigned an area that is challenging and expected to produce a map that is reasonable in its interpretation and a report that is professionally written. The final map is drafted using ArcGIS software and includes a poster presentation of their area, including map, stratigraphic column, brief descriptions of stratigraphic units and structures, cross-sections, and labeled photographs. One of the objectives of field camp is to help students learn to plan, carry out, and present the results of an independent project, hence they finish the term by presenting at a department poster session, where they have an opportunity to explain their projects and “defend” their interpretations.

 

We have found this to be a highly successful approach. Several students have returned to their map areas to conduct further study on complex relationships or interesting features, leading to a number of senior theses, most of which have been presented at professional meetings. Additionally, we find that in addition to learning the methods associated with field studies, their confidence in being able to conduct personal research and their ability to convey the results of that research increase, greatly improving the likelihood of success in a graduate program and reducing the need for training in internships.