I live in Flagstaff about 80 miles southeast of Grand Canyon and taught geology at Northern Arizona University for 35 years. Have sponsored numerous M.S. candidates working in and around the G.C. Thanks so much for your clear, interesting videos ... you're a gift!
Thanks Chuck. I actually know of you. I went to NAU for grad school from 1997-2000 and was a student of Umhoefer doing research in Baja. My friend and office mate was Fred Ramstad who was your student, I believe. Thanks for the kind words and hope you are well.
Thank you for these videos! I'd never make it to this spot, so it's great to see the Grand Canyon's basement rocks and to hear an expert description of the formations as well!
Great stuff! when I think climate change, I think about the layers of different types of material as shown in the Grand Canyon. The southwest US is a showcase of this. Thank you.
Yes. In hindsight, I wish I had done more videos down there but it was a long, arduous (but rewarding) day. Look for more Grand Canyon videos soon. I recently did several on each of the upper Paleozoic layers (Kaibab to Redwall) while hiking the Grandview Trail.
Thanks a lot. Very good! How can we truly understand the magnitude of such geological forces that occurred through the vastness of time? For me an explanation that takes a few seconds is about as good as it gets. It’s good to gain a sense of what we are looking at in the Grand Canyon. Most people who experience the Grand Canyon don’t have a clue what they’re looking at. Sadly, many likely don’t even care. The rest of us ask questions and seek answers and wonder. And we suffer for not knowing the secrets. Keep up the great work!
Thank you, Shawn. Love this place. Came here years ago when we had little daughters. My younger daughter did the R2R2R all in one day with friends recently. Running it. Going back and catching up on your videos. Thank you for them all.
You have to be in terrific condition! That's so cool to be with you for a bit, thank you. I was there in 1998 on a June float trip, pretty much the best time ever.
also the east edge of las vegas near the bottom of Frenchman mountain is also the great unconformity with the tapeats sandstone right there on top which was the shore and then upward a bit when it was under shallow water you have trilobites the works right there.
Did you do that hike in one day? Even if done in more than one day, I'm impressed with your condition. Thank you for sharing the bottom of the canyon with us. Even when I was in my best backpacking shape, I couldn't have done the trip to the bottom. Not only because of the height exposure but also because of a high school knee injury. It always made going down steep trails difficult for me. I have the Blakney book you recommended to another commenter in my small stack of geology books to read this year. You certainly were trained by excellent geologists. You have a gift for explaining this science to us non geologists. This is the first pink granite I have seen. Thank you.
Yep, all in one day. 24.5 miles. I trained for several months prior but was still pretty smoked by the end. I'll be back there this summer on a river trip (easier on body).
@Shawn Willsey definitely easier on the body. When young, I did white water canoeing. Mostly class 2-3,but had one disastrous class 4 run. After we had 3 children, I would no longer agree to anything above a 2 if they were along. My ex didn't always use the best judgment and liked to get thrills. Although he stopped rock climbing after his climbing partner walked away from belaying him to look at the view.
Also curious about the Tapeats in the vicinity of Explorer's Monument and Conquistador's Aisle. Especially it's interface with the metamorphic and igneous basement rock. Some pretty cool travertine deposits as well by Elves' Chasm.
That was super cool. I just did the Rim to Rim and it was awesome to see this. Do you where I could learn more info regarding the geology of the Southwest? I live and have explored here for a while and would like to know more. I'm speaking generally of the area Sedona, Petrified Forest, Zion, Grand Escalante etc..
I'll eventually get some more videos in these areas so subscribe and stay tuned. In the meantime, I recommend Ancient Landscapes of Western North America by Ron Blakey. Great visuals. Carving Grand Canyon by Wayne Ranney is also really good.
@@shawnwillsey By Ron Blakey and Wayne Ranney. Wayne Ranney of course has great uploads on youtube which I recorded the sound and burned disks that I listen to while driving plus he said it was ok if only I listen to them and throw in a word for Pink Jeep tours. ancient landscapes of the Colorado plateau is of course the bible. its not just the plateau ITS EVERYTHING. best investment I ever made.
@@jaysilverheals4445 Yes, good correction. I inadvertently left Wayne's name off of authorship. I went to graduate school at NAU and had a class from Ron. Just saw him a few weeks ago in Flagstaff at a memorial service. Both men are great resources for southwest geology.
I've got a river trip through the canyon in late July so look for more videos from there later this year. Let me know if there is a topic or location of interest.
How long did the expedition take you ? Seeing as you've got your regular hiking miles per day (flat vs mountainous hiking) plus stopping for filming ..
The Canyon should never disappoint. Wondering what happened on your visit. My experience is that folks who just look from the rim really miss experiencing the scale and context of the canyon. You've got to get down there to really get it.
No. The metamorphic rock at the bottom of the canyon formed when it was deep beneath a large mountain range caused by two plates colliding. As the plates collided, the crust was thickened, mountains rose, and the rocks deep below the mountains were squeezed by the colliding plates and heated because they were so deep. This allowed the existing rocks to change slowly and recrystallized into the metamorphic schists we now see at the canyon's bottom.
I live in Flagstaff about 80 miles southeast of Grand Canyon and taught geology at Northern Arizona University for 35 years. Have sponsored numerous M.S. candidates working in and around the G.C. Thanks so much for your clear, interesting videos ... you're a gift!
Thanks Chuck. I actually know of you. I went to NAU for grad school from 1997-2000 and was a student of Umhoefer doing research in Baja. My friend and office mate was Fred Ramstad who was your student, I believe. Thanks for the kind words and hope you are well.
Thank you for sharing your geological knowledge with us!
You bet. I love doing these and sharing what I know and love.
Thank you for taking us to places we may never travel to! Amazing insight into the rock formations!
Thank you for these videos! I'd never make it to this spot, so it's great to see the Grand Canyon's basement rocks and to hear an expert description of the formations as well!
Awesome. Yes, that was one reason to do this: share with those who can't make it down for whatever reason. Glad you enjoyed it.
thank you for taking me to a place that I cannot get to on my own.
You bet. It's an amazing place. Glad to share with you.
It’s nice to visit a place I’ll never seen in person. Thank you for another great video. The education is much appreciated.
Great stuff! when I think climate change, I think about the layers of different types of material as shown in the Grand Canyon. The southwest US is a showcase of this. Thank you.
Looks like that was a nice trek. Thanks for pausing to explain the rock formations.
Yes. In hindsight, I wish I had done more videos down there but it was a long, arduous (but rewarding) day. Look for more Grand Canyon videos soon. I recently did several on each of the upper Paleozoic layers (Kaibab to Redwall) while hiking the Grandview Trail.
Great video. Our group was hiking R2R this same day. Thank you for this
It was a busy day on the trails for sure. Great weather.
Thanks a lot. Very good!
How can we truly understand the magnitude of such geological forces that occurred through the vastness of time? For me an explanation that takes a few seconds is about as good as it gets.
It’s good to gain a sense of what we are looking at in the Grand Canyon.
Most people who experience the Grand Canyon don’t have a clue what they’re looking at. Sadly, many likely don’t even care.
The rest of us ask questions and seek answers and wonder. And we suffer for not knowing the secrets.
Keep up the great work!
I really enjoy these videos and how well you present these fascinating pieces of our planet. Thanks Shawn!
Thank you, Shawn. Love this place. Came here years ago when we had little daughters. My younger daughter did the R2R2R all in one day with friends recently. Running it. Going back and catching up on your videos. Thank you for them all.
Thanks Shawn, whole Grand Canyon playlist is great!
So informative and interesting 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻. Love it!
Awesome tutorial.
Glad you liked it!
Thanks!
Thank you for supporting geology education.
You have to be in terrific condition! That's so cool to be with you for a bit, thank you. I was there in 1998 on a June float trip, pretty much the best time ever.
So cool!
also the east edge of las vegas near the bottom of Frenchman mountain is also the great unconformity with the tapeats sandstone right there on top which was the shore and then upward a bit when it was under shallow water you have trilobites the works right there.
Did you do that hike in one day? Even if done in more than one day, I'm impressed with your condition. Thank you for sharing the bottom of the canyon with us. Even when I was in my best backpacking shape, I couldn't have done the trip to the bottom. Not only because of the height exposure but also because of a high school knee injury. It always made going down steep trails difficult for me. I have the Blakney book you recommended to another commenter in my small stack of geology books to read this year. You certainly were trained by excellent geologists. You have a gift for explaining this science to us non geologists. This is the first pink granite I have seen. Thank you.
Yep, all in one day. 24.5 miles. I trained for several months prior but was still pretty smoked by the end. I'll be back there this summer on a river trip (easier on body).
@Shawn Willsey definitely easier on the body. When young, I did white water canoeing. Mostly class 2-3,but had one disastrous class 4 run. After we had 3 children, I would no longer agree to anything above a 2 if they were along. My ex didn't always use the best judgment and liked to get thrills. Although he stopped rock climbing after his climbing partner walked away from belaying him to look at the view.
Absolutely fascinating.
Also curious about the Tapeats in the vicinity of Explorer's Monument and Conquistador's Aisle. Especially it's interface with the metamorphic and igneous basement rock. Some pretty cool travertine deposits as well by Elves' Chasm.
That was super cool. I just did the Rim to Rim and it was awesome to see this. Do you where I could learn more info regarding the geology of the Southwest? I live and have explored here for a while and would like to know more. I'm speaking generally of the area Sedona, Petrified Forest, Zion, Grand Escalante etc..
I'll eventually get some more videos in these areas so subscribe and stay tuned. In the meantime, I recommend Ancient Landscapes of Western North America by Ron Blakey. Great visuals. Carving Grand Canyon by Wayne Ranney is also really good.
@@shawnwillsey By Ron Blakey and Wayne Ranney. Wayne Ranney of course has great uploads on youtube which I recorded the sound and burned disks that I listen to while driving plus he said it was ok if only I listen to them and throw in a word for Pink Jeep tours. ancient landscapes of the Colorado plateau is of course the bible. its not just the plateau ITS EVERYTHING. best investment I ever made.
@@jaysilverheals4445 Yes, good correction. I inadvertently left Wayne's name off of authorship. I went to graduate school at NAU and had a class from Ron. Just saw him a few weeks ago in Flagstaff at a memorial service. Both men are great resources for southwest geology.
Great “stuff”, when I was there in the time of the Mammoths there was no bridge!😁
Supergroup in the eastern canyon,
Surprise valley mega slide,
Uinkaret lava dams!
More Grand Canyon stuff please.
I've got a river trip through the canyon in late July so look for more videos from there later this year. Let me know if there is a topic or location of interest.
How long did the expedition take you ?
Seeing as you've got your regular hiking miles per day (flat vs mountainous hiking) plus stopping for filming ..
I hope you remembered to go back and get your hiking sticks!
I did! It was a rough hike out but still awesome.
The dark schist that was invaded by the granite, was that the Vishnu schist?
Yes, Vishnu Schist intruded by Zoraster Granite.
Gold too?
I feel if we went to the Grand Canyon with you, we'd not have been as disappointed as we were when we went alone
The Canyon should never disappoint. Wondering what happened on your visit. My experience is that folks who just look from the rim really miss experiencing the scale and context of the canyon. You've got to get down there to really get it.
So the Metamorphic rock was mostly caused by lava?
No. The metamorphic rock at the bottom of the canyon formed when it was deep beneath a large mountain range caused by two plates colliding. As the plates collided, the crust was thickened, mountains rose, and the rocks deep below the mountains were squeezed by the colliding plates and heated because they were so deep. This allowed the existing rocks to change slowly and recrystallized into the metamorphic schists we now see at the canyon's bottom.