Whiskeytown National Recreation Area 

Geologic Resource Evaluation Report 

Natural Resource Report NPS/NRPC/GRD/NRR—2007/008 

National Park Service 

U.S. Department of the Interior 

Natural Resource Program Center 
THIS PAGE & ON THE COVER: 

Whiskeytown Lake, Whiskeytown NRA, CA 

NPS Photos 
Whiskeytown National Recreation Area 

Geologic Resource Evaluation Report 

Natural Resource Report NPS/NRPC/GRD/NRR—2007/008 

Geologic Resources Division 

Natural Resource Program Center 

P.O. Box 25287 

Denver, Colorado 80225 

June 2007 

U.S. Department of the Interior 

Washington, D.C.
The Natural Resource Publication series addresses natural resource topics that are of interest 

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only available as long as the supply lasts. This report is also available from the Geologic 

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gre_publications) on the internet, or by sending a request to the address on the back cover. 

Please cite this publication as: 

Thornberry- Ehrlich, T. 2007. Whiskeytown National Recreation Area Geologic Resource 

Evaluation Report. Natural Resource Report NPS/NRPC/GRD/NRR—2007/008. National 

Park Service, Denver, Colorado. 

NPS D- 98, June 2007 
 WHIS Geologic Resource Evaluation Report iii

Table of Contents 

List of Figures .............................................................................................................. iv

Executive Summary ...................................................................................................... 1

Introduction ................................................................................................................... 3

Purpose of the Geologic Resource Evaluation Program ............................................................................................3

Geologic Setting .........................................................................................................................................................3

Geologic Issues............................................................................................................. 6

Restoration of Roads and Mass Wasting ...................................................................................................................6

Mine-Related Issues...................................................................................................................................................6

Recreation Demands..................................................................................................................................................8

Effects of Whiskeytown Dam......................................................................................................................................8

Seismicity and Volcanic Hazards................................................................................................................................8

Potential Research Projects .......................................................................................................................................9

Geologic Features and Processes............................................................................. 12

Shasta Bally..............................................................................................................................................................12

1848 Historical Structures ........................................................................................................................................12

Mining History...........................................................................................................................................................12

The Reservoir and Whiskeytown Dam .....................................................................................................................13

Structure...................................................................................................................................................................13

Accreted Terranes....................................................................................................................................................13

Map Unit Properties .................................................................................................... 20

Map Unit Properties Table........................................................................................................................................21

Geologic History.......................................................................................................... 23

Glossary....................................................................................................................... 32

References................................................................................................................... 34

Appendix A: Geologic Map Graphics ........................................................................ 36

Appendix B: Scoping Summary................................................................................. 39

Attachment 1: Geologic Resource Evaluation Products CD
 NPS Geologic Resources Division iv 

List of Figures 

Figure 1. Map of Whiskeytown National Recreation Area ..............................................................................................2

Figure 2. Location of Whiskeytown-Shasta-Trinity National Recreation Area ................................................................4

Figure 3. Location of Whiskeytown National Recreation Area on a physiographic map of California ............................5

Figure 4. Shaded relief image of area surrounding Whiskeytown NRA........................................................................10

Figure 5. Boulder Creek. ..............................................................................................................................................11

Figure 6. View of Shasta Bally from reservoir shore ....................................................................................................15

Figure 7. Shasta Bally summit......................................................................................................................................16

Figure 8. President John F. Kennedy on September 28, 1963 ....................................................................................17

Figure 9. View of reservoir in autumn...........................................................................................................................18

Figure 10. Map of accreted terranes of the Klamath Mountains...................................................................................19

Figure 11: Geologic time scale.....................................................................................................................................26

Figure 12. Location of tectonic features during the early Mesozoic Era.......................................................................27

Figure 13. Location of magmatism in the western United States .................................................................................28

Figure 14. Graphic shows the effects of changing subduction angle ...........................................................................29

Figure 15. Paleotectonic map of western United States approximately 15 Ma ............................................................30

Figure 16. Map of late Miocene and younger magmatic systems. ...............................................................................31
 WHIS Geologic Resource Evaluation Report 1

Executive Summary 

This report has been developed to accompany the digital geologic map produced by Geologic 

Resource Evaluation staff for Whiskeytown National Recreation Area. It contains 

information relevant to resource management and scientific research. 

Whiskeytown National Recreation Area is widely known 

for numerous recreation opportunities, especially related 

to Whiskeytown Lake, a large reservoir created by the 

impoundment of Clear Creek behind the Whiskeytown 

Dam (figure 1). 

Whiskeytown is intrinsically connected to the geological 

processes that established the present- day environment, 

scenery, and landforms. Humans have modified the 

landscape in and around Whiskeytown and 

consequently altered this dynamic geologic system. 

During the 1849 California Gold Rush, the Klamath 

Mountains were the focus of miners and prospectors 

seeking gold, silver, copper and other metals present in 

placer and massive sulfide deposits. Exploration and 

mining in the area has continued ever since. While 

Whiskeytown NRA is one of three National Park Service 

units open to federal mineral leasing, little leasing has 

occurred within park boundaries. However, a legacy of 

mining in the park coupled with active mining outside 

the park poses significant resource protection issues for 

present park management. 

Igneous and metamorphic rocks dominate the geology at 

Whiskeytown. Prospectors and miners were attracted to 

the area by the gold and sulfide deposits associated with 

igneous intrusions. Remnants of their settlements still 

dot the landscape at Whiskeytown, preserving the park’s 

historical legacy. 

Studying and protecting the geologic and historic 

features of the park involves more than simple 

preservation and includes understanding the present 

landscape geomorphology and the geologic processes 

that created it. The interactions of rock, water, and 

surface stability are of paramount importance for park 

management. The following issues, features, and 

processes have been identified as geologically important 

and significant to park management: 

• Restoration of roads and mass wasting. The potential 

for landslide and rockfall exists along most, if not all 

roads and trails at the park. Slumps and other forms of 

slope failure are common for some of the weathered 

igneous and metamorphic rock units. The biotite- rich 

rocks of the Shasta Bally Batholith weather 

preferentially and have created slope instability in 

certain areas of the park. Intense seasonal storms and 

snowmelt increase slope instability and erosion. 

Additionally, Whiskeytown has an estimated 300 miles 

of logging and skid roads built on these highly erosive 

units. These poorly constructed roads increase erosion 

and can fail catastrophically, resulting in slides and 

debris flows. 

• Mine- related issues. Whiskeytown, which remains 

open to mineral leasing (oil and gas and solid 

minerals), has a long history of mining activity 

demonstrated by over 100 mines within the National 

Recreation Area and surrounding watersheds. 

Abandoned mines pose several threats to visitor safety 

including the risk of falling, bad air, ground collapse, 

etc. Massive sulfide deposits and sulfide mines are also 

associated with water quality problems. The exposure 

of sulfide waste from abandoned mines and tailings 

has resulted in the creation of sulfuric acid, which 

alters the chemistry of surface and groundwater. 

Mercury used in the amalgamation process to extract 

gold from placer deposits, remains in the waste rock 

and tailings adding another toxic heavy metal to the 

water at Whiskeytown. 

• Recreation demands. Whiskeytown Lake attracts more 

than 700,000 visitors per year. Visitors enjoy the lake 

and lakeshore, the various trails and picnic areas, rock 

climbing, and hiking the trails of the surrounding 

mountains. Slope instability and erosion have made it 

necessary to periodically close trails and roads in the 

recreation area. Careful monitoring would help to 

determine risk of landslides along trails and roads. In 

addition, off- road recreational vehicles are scaling the 

slopes of Shasta Bally. This affects the park’s viewshed 

and creates noise, dust, and engine exhaust. Resource 

management concerns include balancing the 

preservation of the environment with recreational 

demands of visitors to the area. 

Other geologic issues that impact park resource 

management include: The effects of Whiskeytown Dam, 

seismicity, and volcanic hazards. Geologic interpretation 

plays an important role in enhancing visitor 

understanding of the park. Along with a detailed geologic 

map, wayside exhibits, and road logs, a guidebook 

connecting Whiskeytown National Recreation Area to 

other parks in the Cascade- Klamath- Sierra Nevada 

region (as well as to the adjacent Shasta- Trinity Units) 

would be of benefit to visitors. Such a guide would 

increase visitor appreciation of the geologic history and 

processes that not only created Whiskeytown, but also 

created the landscape of the entire region. The accreted 

terranes in the Klamath Mountains that record some of 

the growth of the North American continent warrant 

special attention. 
 NPS Geologic Resources Division 2 

Figure 1. Map of Whiskeytown National Recreation Area 
 WHIS Geologic Resource Evaluation Report 3

Introduction 

The following section briefly describes the regional geologic setting and the National 

Park Service Geologic Resource Evaluation program. 

Purpose of the Geologic Resource Evaluation Program 

The Geologic Resource Evaluation (GRE) Program is 

one of 12 inventories funded under the NPS Natural 

Resource Challenge designed to enhance baseline 

information available to park managers. The program 

carries out the geologic component of the inventory 

effort from the development of digital geologic maps to 

providing park staff with a geologic report tailored to a 

park’s specific geologic resource issues. The Geologic 

Resources Division of the Natural Resource Program 

Center administers this program. The GRE team relies 

heavily on partnerships with the U.S. Geological Survey, 

Colorado State University, state surveys, and others in 

developing GRE products. 

The goal of the GRE Program is to increase 

understanding of the geologic processes at work in parks 

and provide sound geologic information for use in park 

decision making. Sound park stewardship relies on 

understanding natural resources and their role in the 

ecosystem. Geology is the foundation of park 

ecosystems. The compilation and use of natural resource 

information by park managers is called for in section 204 

of the National Parks Omnibus Management Act of 1998 

and in NPS- 75, Natural Resources Inventory and 

Monitoring Guideline. 

To realize this goal, the GRE team is systematically 

working towards providing each of the identified 270 

natural area parks with a geologic scoping meeting, a 

digital geologic map, and a geologic report. These 

products support the stewardship of park resources and 

are designed for non- geoscientists. During scoping 

meetings the GRE team brings together park staff and 

geologic experts to review available geologic maps and 

discuss specific geologic issues, features, and processes. 

Scoping meetings are usually held for individual parks 

and on occasion for an entire Vital Signs Monitoring 

Network. The GRE mapping team converts the geologic 

maps identified for park use at the scoping meeting into 

digital geologic data in accordance with their innovative 

Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Data Model. 

These digital data sets bring an exciting interactive 

dimension to traditional paper maps by providing 

geologic data for use in park GIS and facilitating the 

incorporation of geologic considerations into a wide 

range of resource management applications. The newest 

maps come complete with interactive help files. As a 

companion to the digital geologic maps, the GRE team 

prepares a park- specific geologic report that aids in use 

of the maps and provides park managers with an 

overview of park geology and geologic resource 

management issues. 

For additional information regarding the content of this 

report and up to date GRE contact information please 

refer to the Geologic Resource Evaluation web site 

(http://www2.nature.nps.gov/geology/inventory/). 

Geologic Setting 

The Klamath Mountains of northeastern California were 

one of the focal points of the 1849 gold rush. The region 

is the second most productive gold district in California. 

Placer gold was first discovered in the regions streams 

and rivers in 1848, and the lode gold was found in nearby 

French Gulch in 1852 (Clark 1970). Mining in the French 

Gulch area continued until 1942. From 1900- 1914, and 

again in 1930, gold mining activity was at its peak. During 

the 1970s and 1980s, a resurgence of mining interest for 

lode gold, copper, silver, zinc, and iron contained in 

massive sulfide deposits took place (Albers 1965). The 

name Whiskeytown comes from an early incident 

involving a team of donkeys that lost their footing on a 

local trail spilling a load of whiskey into a nearby ravine. 

From historical remnants of the early settlers to the 

present, human interest in the area has continued with 

the creation of the Whiskeytown Lake and Dam. 

President John F. Kennedy dedicated Whiskeytown Dam 

on Clear Creek on September 28, 1963, during his last trip 

to California. The area was authorized on Nov. 8, 1965 

and established as a Natural Recreation Area on October 

21, 1972. Together with the Shasta and Trinity units (both 

managed by the Forest Service, U.S. Department of 

Agriculture), Whiskeytown is part of the 42,503 acres of 

Whiskeytown- Shasta- Trinity National Recreation Area 

(figure 2). This area received more than 750,000 

recreation visits in 2006. 

The Whiskeytown Unit, with its mountainous 

backcountry and large, man- made reservoir, offers many 

recreational opportunities while preserving the historical 

remains of the 1849 California Gold Rush. Whiskeytown 

Lake provides 58 km (36 miles) of shoreline and 3,200 

surface acres of water at an average elevation of 369 m 

(1,209 ft). The lake was created by diverting water 

through tunnels and penstocks, including the Clear 

Creek Tunnel, from the Trinity River Basin to the 

Sacramento River Basin (Prokopovich, 1993). The most 

prominent geologic feature within the recreation area is 

the peak of Shasta Bally (elevation 1,893 m (6,209 feet). 

Whiskeytown National Recreation Area lies in the 

Klamath Mountains physiographic subprovince of the 

Pacific Border Province in northern California (figure 3) 

(CGS, 2002; USGS, 2003). Geomorphologically, this 

province is considered a northern extension of the Sierra 

Nevada, but this link is still unclear (CGS, 2002). The 
 NPS Geologic Resources Division 4 

boundaries of this province are not well defined. 

According to Irwin (2003), the Klamath Mountains 

extend from about 43o north latitude (near the Umqua 

River in Oregon), south to about 40o15’ (North Fork of 

the Eel River) a distance of approximately 306 km(190 

miles). 

The province extends roughly 113 km (70 miles) in an 

east- west direction from the Great Valley west to the 

Coast Ranges. In northernmost California and 

southwestern Oregon, the Klamaths are bounded on the 

east by the Cascade Range, which includes Mount 

Shasta. The province covers an area of about 30,562 

square kilometers (11,800 square miles) (Irwin, 1966). 

Following their formation, the Klamath Mountains were 

cut by several large rivers into separate mountain ranges. 

In the western Klamaths, an irregular drainage incised on 

the Klamath peneplain, an uplifted plateau. The uplift is 

responsible for a series of successive gold- bearing gravel 

benches in the canyons of the region (CGS, 2002). In 

California the northern half of the province is drained by 

the Klamath River and the southern half by the Trinity 

River (Norris and Webb, 1976). The principal ranges of 

the Klamath Mountains in California are the Siskiyou 

Mountains extending northward into Oregon and the 

Trinity Mountains to the south. Other ranges of the 

Klamath Mountains include the Salmon, Marble, South 

Fork and Scott Mountains. The highest point in the 

Klamaths in Oregon is Mt. Ashland reaching 2,295 m 

(7,530 ft), near the town of Ashland, Oregon. In 

California, the highest elevations are Thompson Peak, 

2,744 m (9,002 ft) and Mt. Eddy, 2,755 m (9,038 ft). 

General elevations range from 610 to 1,524 m (2,000 to 

5,000 ft) in Oregon and 1,524 to 2,134 m (5,000 to 7,000 ft) 

in California. The topography is rugged and steep 

throughout the entire province. 

Figure 2. Location of Whiskeytown-Shasta-Trinity National Recreation Area 
 WHIS Geologic Resource Evaluation Report 5

 

Figure 3. Location of Whiskeytown National Recreation Area on a physiographic map of California. Red line indicates the rough outline 

of the Klamath Mountain physiographic province. Note proximity of Whiskeytown to Mt. Shasta, Cascade Ranges and Sierra Nevada. 

Map is adapted from a U.S. Geological Survey graphic found at the following website: 

http://wwwflag.wr.usgs.gov/USGSFlag/Data/maps/CaliforniaDEM.html 
 NPS Geologic Resources Division 6 

Geologic Issues 

A Geologic Resource Evaluation scoping session was held for Whiskeytown National 

Recreation Area on March 2- 5, 2004, to discuss geologic resources, address the status of 

geologic mapping, and assess resource management issues and needs. The following 

section synthesizes the scoping results, in particular, those issues that may require 

attention from resource managers. 

Restoration of Roads and Mass Wasting 

The potential for landslide and rockfall exists along 

most, if not all roads and trails at Whiskeytown National 

Recreation Area. These events can cause severe road and 

trail damage resulting in closures. There are over 483 km 

(300 miles) of roads, both from logging and mining, 

covering over 42,000 acres at Whiskeytown National 

Recreation Area. Many of these roads in the 

Whiskeytown area are highly prone to downslope 

movement. This movement can occur slowly as slope 

creep or catastrophically as a debris flow. 

Similarly, slumps and other forms of slope failure are 

common for weathered igneous and metamorphic rock 

units in the Klamath Mountains. This region is 

composed of deeply weathered rock and steep slopes. 

The Shasta Bally granite, which underlies one- third of 

the park, has a unique, biotite- rich composition. 

Minerals such as biotite, muscovite and other micas have 

planes of inherent weakness within their crystal 

structure. When these micaceous minerals become 

hydrated from exposure to surface or near surface 

conditions, water lubricates these planes of weakness 

resulting in a sliding movement. These minerals weather 

preferentially. This property has allowed the Shasta Bally 

granite to weather deeply, sometimes as much as 200 m 

(600 ft), creating slope instability in certain areas of the 

park. On a megascopic scale, this translates into unstable 

slopes and mass movement. The rocks of the Shasta Bally 

batholith are rich in micaceous minerals making slopes 

unstable especially during times of heavy precipitation. 

Loosely cemented or unconsolidated rock is especially 

vulnerable to slope failure. Slope failure and debris flows 

along many of the roads at Whiskeytown result from 

erosion associated with seasonal thunderstorms and high 

rainfall. The Whiskeytown area receives an average 

annual precipitation of 140 cm (65 in). These heavy 

precipitation events loosen rock and soil on slopes that 

lack the stabilizing effect of plant roots. The 

unconsolidated rock and soil, suddenly saturated with 

water, can then detach and slide down slope causing a 

slump or flow. In the winter of 1999, the area received 

280 cm (128 in) that triggered three debris flows. Seismic 

activity may also precipitate mass wasting events. 

Earthquakes trigger loose rock and debris to fail on 

moderate to high slopes. 

Erosion and weathering processes are exacerbated by 

road construction, building projects, forest fires, and 

off- road vehicle use. When fire events remove 

vegetation and then subsequent roads are hastily built to 

fight out- of- control fires, erosion is locally accelerated. 

70% of down- slope, mass wasting movement occurs 

within the first year of a fire. 

Whiskeytown is a popular setting for recreation. Some 

areas susceptible to slope failure are also highly visited. 

For example, the beach area below Brandy Creek Trail is 

a debris flow creating a potential hazard where visitors 

may be at risk. Debris flows have been documented on 

almost all the creeks in the southern reaches of the park. 

Dating these events is difficult, however, major flows 

have occurred twice in the last 50 years, the most recent 

in 1997. 

Inventory, Monitoring, Research, and Resource 

Management Needs 

• Reclaim hazardous roads as funding becomes 

available. 

• Locate, characterize, and map the debris flows noting 

their location and aerial extent. 

• Monitor movement along slopes susceptible to slope 

creep. Focus first on areas where these hazards might 

affect visitor safety. 

• Perform a comprehensive study of the erosion and 

weathering processes active at Whiskeytown National 

Recreation Area, taking into account rock formations, 

slope aspects, location and likelihood of instability. 

• Create a rockfall susceptibility map using rock unit 

versus slope aspect in a GIS; use the map to determine 

the best locations for future developments and the 

management of existing developments including trails, 

buildings, and recreational use areas. 

Mine-Related Issues 

The Whiskeytown unit of the Whiskeytown- ShastaTrinity National Recreation Area is open to mineral 

leasing at the discretion of the Secretary of the Interior, 

(excluding Whiskeytown Lake, high use recreations 

areas, and section 34, Twp. 33N, Rge. 7W). The unit does 

allow recreational gold panning, subject to certain 

restrictions, but prohibits the use of other means of gold 

recovery (e.g. use of a suction dredge, a crevice cleaner, 

screen separator, sluice box, rocker, or any other 

mechanical or hydraulic device (36CFR7.91d). 

The NPS is currently working with the Bureau of Land 

Management, California Regional Water Quality Control 
 WHIS Geologic Resource Evaluation Report 7

Board, and Shasta County Department of Resource 

Management to address concerns regarding heavy metals 

contamination emanating from abandoned and active 

mining operations adjacent to the park. Many of the sites 

of concern are located in the watershed above 

Whiskeytown Lake, in the vicinity of French Gulch. 

Arsenic, mercury, acid mine drainage, and other heavy 

metals contamination of tributaries entering the park 

results in elevated contaminant levels in lake sediments 

possibly endangering aquatic wildlife and humans. 

Acid Mine Drainage 

Whiskeytown National Recreation Area has a long 

history of mining activity ultimately resulting in over 100 

mines within the National Recreation Area and 

surrounding watersheds. Much of the lode gold 

extracted from there area was associated with massive 

sulfide deposits. In addition to gold, copper, iron, zinc, 

quartz, and silver have been mined in the French Gulch 

and West Shasta Districts (Albers, 1965). 

The exposure of pyrite- bearing (iron sulfide) rock waste, 

from abandoned mines and tailings, to surface 

conditions has resulted in the formation of sulfuric acid. 

The acid is transported in solution by streams and rivers 

lowering the pH. The low pH of the acidic water also 

mobilizes heavy metals in the rocks such as lead, arsenic, 

and cadmium. A pH as low as - 3.5 (a negative pH) was 

measured at the Iron Mountain Mine, an EPA superfund 

site in the northeast corner of the park. The acid mine 

drainage causing these low pH values can damage 

aquatic habitats, adversely affect birds, fish, and other 

aquatic organisms. Humans, either by ingestion of 

contaminated surface water or direct contact may also 

suffer heavy metal contamination or even acid burns in 

extreme cases (Scorecard, 2005). 

Mercury Contamination 

Despite later success with mining lode gold, the largest 

recovery of gold from the Whiskeytown region has been 

from placer mining (Clark, 1970). Mercury is used in the 

process of extracting gold from placer deposits to 

amalgamate the gold and remove it from the rock. Gold 

is then separated from the mercury and most of the 

mercury is reused. However, some mercury remains in 

the waste rock and tailings and additional mercury is lost 

in the gold extraction process. 

Elemental mercury attaches to both suspended and 

settled particles in water and moves downstream from 

placer tailings. Elemental liquid mercury is difficult to 

immobilize and the process of disturbing and removing 

contaminated mine tailings could release more entrained 

mercury into the environment. Mercury has been found 

in aquatic macroinvertebrates. Mercury tends to 

concentrate in animal tissue by bioaccumulation. Smaller 

animals with lower concentrations of mercury are eaten 

by larger animals in whose tissues, the element 

concentration increases. Mercury is a neurotoxin, 

meaning it affects the central nervous system and may 

cause changes in personality, behavior, trembling, and 

even dementia (PRF, 2002). Mercury in sufficient 

quantities can be toxic when consumed by animals and 

humans (Scorecard, 2005). 

Abandoned Mines 

Abandoned mines pose a serious threat in addition to 

contamination issues. There are health and safety issues 

associated with the mine workings themselves with open 

shafts and unstable adits. Bad footing is associated with 

several adits increasing the likelihood of injury for 

visitors. Mine collapse is a concern at Whiskeytown, as is 

bad air associated with underground mines. According 

to the National Park Service Disturbed Lands 

Restoration Program, there are 39 mine sites and 42 

hazardous underground openings at Whiskeytown 

National Recreation Area (AML, 2001). 

Several mines have been closed to visitor access using bat 

gates, which permit bats and other small fauna to enter, 

but prevent human intrusion. Other mines are blocked 

using fences. Another option for closing a mine is using a 

polyurethane foam which acts as a permanent barrier to 

the mine entrance. This technique was employed 

successfully at Theodore Roosevelt National Park in 

North Dakota. There are likely many mine openings at 

Whiskeytown, which need to be permanently closed and 

made safe. 

Inventory, Monitoring, Research, and Resource 

Management Needs 

• Accurately map the locations of abandoned mine sites. 

Over 100 are exist within the park boundaries and 

surrounding watersheds. 

• Characterize each abandoned mine site on- site with 

regards to size and extent of workings, the amount of 

exposed waste rock, the degree of weathering and 

extent of sulfuric acid formation, the potential for 

mercury (Hg) contamination, proximity to significant 

water sources, etc. 

• Characterize each abandoned mine site with its hazard 

potential in addition to the status of closure and 

remediation. 

• Monitor the quantity and quality of water outflow 

from potentially hazardous mines. 

• Set up sample sites for monitoring stream sediment 

and water for mercury contamination, focusing on 

areas near mine tailings. 

• Investigate outside research tests on ways to safely 

immobilize mercury in situ. Consider ways to 

implement these techniques. 

• Inventory mine sites and create a map with the 

location and characterization of each site. 

• Monitor mine visitation, both human and animal to 

determine candidate sites for permanent closure. 

• Monitor structural integrity of mine workings to 

determine the risk of collapse. 

• Continue efforts to engage the Bureau of Land 

Management and address the impacts that mines 

controlled by the Bureau are having on park resources, 

especially Whiskeytown lake. 
 NPS Geologic Resources Division 8 

Recreation Demands 

Whiskeytown Lake, a man- made reservoir, attracts an 

annual average of more than 700,000 people placing 

considerable demand on natural resources at the park. 

Visitors use the lake and the lakeshore for water related 

activities, hike the various trails, use picnic areas, and 

climb and hike in the surrounding mountains (figure 4). 

Hikers are drawn to the many waterfalls throughout the 

area (figure 5). Whiskeytown offers 45 miles of trails for 

hiking, mountain biking, and horseback riding. In 

addition to numerous logging and access roads, the trail 

system includes a 4x4 drive up to Shasta Bally. 

There are three developed campgrounds and several 

primitive campsites. The campgrounds are located at 

Oak Bottom, Dry Creek, and Brandy Creek. Another 

developed site is the Whiskey Creek Group Picnic Area, 

which offers three- day use picnic areas that can 

accommodate groups up to 40 people. There are three 

boat ramps, two on the north and one on the south side 

of Whiskeytown Lake. The lake itself is ideal for 

paddling canoes and kayaks, swimming, sailing, scuba 

diving, water skiing, boating, and fishing. Park visitors 

negatively impact the park watershed by trampling 

riparian zones, introducing waste and litter to the area’s 

waterways, and increasing trail traffic which speeds the 

process of erosion on slopes. 

In addition to providing recreational activities, the 

National Park Service is dedicated to preserve, protect, 

and restore the natural resources and the existing 

ecosystem of Whiskeytown National Recreation Area. 

Preservation of the regional ecosystem requires 

coordination with the U.S. Forest Service, which 

manages Shasta and Trinity lakes. Whiskeytown is 

surrounded by mostly private land and is in close 

proximity to the city of Redding, CA. As population and 

development increase in the area, demand for all types of 

recreation on public lands will increase and place added 

stress on the integrity of the parks natural resources, 

accordingly. 

Inventory, Monitoring, Research, and Resource 

Management Needs 

• Perform a comprehensive study of the impacts of 

adjacent development projects and determine 

potential threats to the ecosystem of the park. 

• Initiate a monitoring program to determine 

recreational impacts to the park with emphasis on 

water quality, shoreline degradation, slope stability, 

and habitat condition. 

• Cooperate with the U.S. National Forest Service and 

the Bureau of Reclamation to monitor the effects of 

recreational use on the entire regional ecosystem. 

Effects of Whiskeytown Dam 

The presence of the Whiskeytown Dam has a significant 

effect on the Clear Creek watershed and the ecosystem 

supported by it. The tributaries of Clear Creek were 

drowned upon filling the Whiskeytown Lake reservoir. 

The wetlands and riparian zones associated with the 

shoreline of the reservoir are sensitive to 

geomorphological changes and water level changes. 

Salmonoid habitat is degraded by the reduction of gravel 

input downstream of the dam. Siltation is present behind 

the dam in the lake as is erosion of the shoreline locally. 

The Bureau of Reclamation (BOR) has total control and 

jurisdiction over the lake and water level and is 

responsible for the water quality. The National Park 

Service has little input in the control of the water level 

and timing of water releases from the reservoir. 

Inventory, Monitoring, Research, and Resource 

Management Needs 

• Characterize, map and monitor wetlands along the 

shoreline of Whiskeytown Lake. 

• Work with the BOR to restore salmonoid habitat and 

slow siltation behind the Whiskeytown Dam. 

Seismicity and Volcanic Hazards 

Although there are no known major faults in the area, the 

Lake Shasta region experiences frequent minor tremors. 

California is a seismic hotspot with the San Andreas fault 

system running up the western coast of the North 

American continent. This is one of the most active faults 

in the United States. Minor earthquakes occur in 

Whiskeytown nearly every day. These are usually too 

small to be felt on the surface, but are detected with a 

seismograph set up in the park by the University of 

California, Berkeley seismic network. This active 

seismograph is located at an elevation of 976 m (988 ft) 

on Pre- Devonian age metavolcanic rocks (Abrahamson 

et. al, 1984). On November 24th, 1998 the area experienced 

a magnitude 5.3 earthquake that resulted in moderate 

damage to structures in the area. 

While seismic hazards are not perceived as an imminent 

threat to Whiskeytown National Recreation Area, 

awareness of seismic potential is important for resource 

management. The steep slopes of highly weathered rock 

are poised to fail as catastrophic landslides along many of 

the roads, trails, and hillsides at Whiskeytown. Even a 

moderate seismic event may shake the ground enough to 

trigger slope failure. 

With relatively recent volcanic activity from nearby 

Lassen Peak (1914), ashfall could impact the resources at 

Whiskeytown National Recreation Area. The only 

known historical eruption from Lassen occurred in 1786 

with pyroclastic flows and ashfall (Wright and Pierson, 

1992). Another large eruption of Mt. Shasta occurred 700 

years ago (Foxworthy and Hill, 1982). Mt. Shasta is 

approximately 42 km (25 miles) north and east of 

Whiskeytown. Two small fumarole areas on the dome of 

Mount Shasta are currently emitting gas and steam. 

There have been several volcanically associated debris 

flows this century (Wright and Pierson, 1992). The Mt. 

Shasta volcano has a recurrence eruption interval of 

about once every 600 years during the last 4,500 years. It 

has been erupting for the past 100,000 years (Miller, 

1980). Future eruptions seem very likely from the 

mountains 4 main vents at or near the summit, however 

new vents could occur almost anywhere in the vicinity 
 WHIS Geologic Resource Evaluation Report 9

(Miller, 1980; Foxworthy and Hill, 1982). Given the 

distance from Mt. Shasta, in the event of a major volcanic 

event, the recreation area would likely be affected by ash 

fall and seismic activity associated with volcanism. 

Inventory, Monitoring, and/or Research Needs 

• Cooperate with other federal agencies (U.S. Geological 

Survey, Bureau of Reclamation (BOR), U.S. Forest 

Service, etc.) and academic institutions (University of 

California, Berkeley) to determine the risk of nearterm, future volcanic eruption from Mount Shasta and 

surrounding areas. 

• Collaborate with other government organizations or 

educational institutions to perform engineering studies 

using a strain meter to assess possible slope collapse 

hazards and the potential for new volcanism. 

• Look at rockfall susceptibility with respect to seismic 

potential and create a map highlighting the areas at risk 

for seismically induced landsliding. 

• Obtain access to regular seismic activity reports in the 

surrounding areas to measure and monitor activity in 

the region. 

Potential Research Projects 

The unique geology of Whiskeytown National 

Recreation Area has been the focus of human interest for 

over 150 years. It lends itself to potential scientific 

research projects including: 

• Determine the timing of metamorphic, tectonic and 

igneous events using cross cutting relationships and 

age dates in the field. 

• Develop more graphics and brochures emphasizing 

geology, targeting the average enthusiast. 

• Perform an inventory of any historical relics found 

within and around the park. 

• Inventory the different rock compositions at macro 

(outcrop) and micro (thin section) scale. Create a 

digital coverage of the variability in composition to 

determine a sequence of events based on chemical 

genesis. 

• Locate, map and characterize rock units rich in micas 

such as biotite to attempt to predict slope failure. 

Igneous units such as the Shasta Bally Batholith and 

the Mule Mountain Stock are obvious targets. 

Soils 

A soil resource inventory data set for Whiskeytown NRA 

was completed in 2006 in conjunction with the U.S. 

Department of Agriculture, Natural Resources 

Conservation Service, and meets the standards and 

specifications on the National Park Service Soil 

Inventory and Monitoring Program. This dataset is 

intended to serve as the official database for all agency 

applications regarding soils resources. This digital soil 

survey is generally the most detailed level of soil 

geographic data developed by the National Cooperative 

Soil Survey. The information was prepared by digitizing 

maps, by compiling information onto a planimetric 

correct base and digitizing, or by revising digitized maps 

using remotely sensed and other information. Final SRI 

products are available for download from the NPS Data 

Store (http://science.nature.nps.gov/nrdata/index.cfm). 

Any questions regarding this dataset should be addressed 

to Pete Biggam, the NPS Natural Resource Program 

Center Soil Resource Program Manager 

(pete_biggam@nps.gov). 
 NPS Geologic Resources Division 10 

Figure 4. Shaded relief image showing locations of some of mountains, streams, and gulches surrounding Whiskeytown Lake 

reservoir. Image is courtesy of the National Park Service, graphic by Trista L. Thornberry-Ehrlich (Colorado State University).
 WHIS Geologic Resource Evaluation Report 11

Figure 5. Boulder Creek, one of many small streams flowing off the hill slopes at Whiskeytown National Recreation Area. Photograph 

courtesy of the National Park Service. 
 NPS Geologic Resources Division 12 

Geologic Features and Processes 

This section provides descriptions of the most prominent and distinctive geologic features 

and processes in Whiskeytown National Recreation Area. 

Shasta Bally 

The 1,893 m (6,209 ft) high peak of Shasta Bally 

dominates the skyline at Whiskeytown National 

Recreation Area (figures 6 and 7). It lends its name to the 

rock unit that comprises most of the mountain, the 

Shasta Bally batholith. A batholith is a large igneous 

intrusion that has more than 100 km2 (40 sq. miles) 

surface exposure and no known bottom. The Shasta 

Bally is primarily composed of light- colored quartz 

diorite ranging to granodiorite (Albers, 1965). 

The northwest trending (N45°W) batholith is the 

dominant feature in the Whiskeytown area. This 

dominance of the local topographic expression is due to 

its preferential resistance to erosion in contrast to the 

surrounding country rock. Its total exposed length is 

about 48 km (30 miles) and its widest point is about 14 km 

(9 miles). There are several satellite plutons, identical in 

composition that crop out around Shasta Bally. One of 

the largest, the Clear Creek plug, covers more than 2.5 

square kilometers (1 square mile). Contacts between the 

batholith and the surrounding, foliated, gneissic country 

rocks, are sharp. 

The Shasta Bally batholith is an igneous pluton, which 

intruded the older assemblage of quartz- mica schists, 

felsic and mafic volcanic rocks, conglomeratic and shaly 

sedimentary rocks ranging in age from the Precambrian 

to the Mississippian (Albers, 1965; Irwin, 1999). This 

intrusive event occurred during the Late Jurassic- Early 

Cretaceous and was contemporaneous with the Nevadan 

orogenic event. During this time, plutonism was also 

occurring in the area that became the Sierra Nevada 

mountains, southeast of Whiskeytown. 

1848 Historical Structures 

The rich natural resources of the Whiskeytown area, 

including precious metals and minerals, have attracted 

people to this area of California for hundreds, if not 

thousands of years. Archeological sites in the Lower 

Clear Creek, and Sulphur Creek Archaeological Districts 

on Federal Lands of the Whiskeytown area date back to 

prehistoric aboriginal times, as early as 1,000 B.C. The 

Tower House District and the French Gulch area are 

host to a number of historical buildings, cemeteries, and 

other relics, many of which are listed with the National 

Register of Historic Places (as of 2007). Within the 200 

acres of the Tower House District are 7 buildings, 4 

structures relevant to the transportation, agriculture, 

commerce and industry of the area from 1825- 1874. 

This information and more on the areas historic features 

can be found at the following website: 

(http://www.nationalregisterofhistoricplaces.com). 

Opportunities for visitors to experience these cultural 

features include gold panning, interpretive signs, and the 

Camden House, dating back to the 1850’s. The important 

role geology played in the settlement of this area and 

historic mining activities should be emphasized. The 

preservation of these historic features requires 

knowledge of the geologic processes at work on the 

landscape. Seismic shaking may undermine historic 

foundations. Slope processes and erosion may also 

interfere with the preservation of cultural resources. 

Though Whiskeytown National Recreation Area was set 

aside to preserve a natural area for outdoor activities 

focusing on the reservoir, careful attention must be paid 

to the historical context found in the area as well. This 

context is centered on the geologic resources of the area, 

which attracted early mining interest and settlement. The 

preservation and restoration of the historical features 

present at Whiskeytown will add to the heritage of the 

gold rush story for this and future generations. 

Mining History 

Although today there are no active mines in 

Whiskeytown National Recreation Area, the region once 

boomed with mining activity. The rivers draining the 

Klamath Mountains form an irregular drainage pattern 

that is responsible for the areas successive terraces of 

sand, gravel, and assorted alluvium deposits. Gold, 

weathered out from the mountains above, was 

discovered in these deposits in French Gulch in 1848. 

This discovery was part of a veritable frenzy that led men 

to the west in droves during the 1849 California Gold 

Rush. Wherever gold was found, towns sprang up to 

service the miners. 

When the considerable placer deposits in the 

Whiskeytown area were exhausted, attention moved 

toward mining the hillsides for lode gold in massive 

sulfide deposits and gold- bearing quartz veins. Mining 

in the area has been active intermittently since 1848 with 

extraction of copper, zinc, pyrite, gold, and silver 

(Albers, 1964). 

In the quest for gold and other heavy metal deposits of 

the French Gulch area, more than 40 mines were 

excavated. Whiskeytown National Recreation Area is 

located in the Whiskeytown mining district. This district 

is one of 4 in the area which include the French GulchDeadwood, Muletown, and South Fork districts. The 

mines in the Whiskeytown district include the Eldorado, 

Gambrinus, Ganim gold- talc, Mad Mule, Mad Ox, 

Mount Shasta, and Truscott mines. Production of gold 

from the district is estimated between 68,700 and 71,500 

ounces of gold. 
 WHIS Geologic Resource Evaluation Report 13

The geology associated with the different deposits varies. 

Contacts between the Bragdon Formation (described 

below) and intrusive igneous rocks are host to the Mad 

Mule and Truscott mines. Northwest- trending 

structures in the Balaklala Rhyolite and Copley 

Greenstone are the focus of the Mount Shasta and 

Ganim mines. Veins trending east- west in the Mule 

Mountain comprise the Mascot, Eiller, and numerous 

other small deposits (Albers 1965).Veins in the Copley 

and Balaklala Formations as well as the Mule Mountain 

stock were much less productive in terms of gold 

recovered than in the Bragdon Formation contacts more 

prevalent in other districts. 

The Reservoir and Whiskeytown Dam 

Whiskeytown Dam recently celebrated 40th anniversary 

in 2003. It was constructed between 1960 and 1963. In 

September of 1963, President John F. Kennedy dedicated 

the dam on what was to be his last trip to California 

(figure 8). The dam (national ID number CA10204) is 

owned and operated by the Bureau of Reclamation 

(BOR). In addition to the main dam, two dikes, called 

Dike No. 1 and Dike No. 2 (East and West Dikes, 

respectively), enclose the reservoir. 

The dam is located in the Clear Creek drainage basin 

about 18 km (11 miles) west of the junction with the 

Sacramento River Valley in the southeastern portion of 

the Klamath Mountains physiographic province. The 

basin is bordered on the east by the, relatively low 

elevation (701 m [2,300 ft])Mule Mountain range. The 

higher peaks of the Shasta Bally mountains, which grade 

northward into the Trinity Mountains form the western 

boundary. The Trinity Mountains separate the Clear 

Creek drainage from the Trinity River drainage (BOR, 

1995). The drainage area for the reservoir is 524.5 square 

kilometers (202.5 square miles). 

The crest elevation of the dam is 374 m (1,228 ft) with the 

structural height of the dam at 86 m (282 ft). The dam 

and its associated dikes are composed of zoned earthfill, 

a mix of rocks, sand, boulders, mud, etc. The dam is 

constructed on the Balaklala Metarhyolite Formation 

and the granite of the Mule Mountain Stock. 

The reservoir behind Whiskeytown Dam, Whiskeytown 

Lake, is a major northern California recreation attraction 

(figure 9). The lake provides 58 km (36 miles) of 

shoreline and 3,200 surface acres of water. The normal 

surface elevation of the reservoir is 369 m (1,210 ft) with a 

hydraulic height of 77 m (252 ft). The dam is not gated. 

However, the Judge Francis Carr Powerplant on the west 

end of the lake generates power. The powerplant has two 

generators with a total capacity of 154,400 kilowatts and 

has been in service since May, 1963 (BOR, 2003). 

Structure 

Geologic structures including folds and faults have a 

strong influence on the topographic expression of an 

area. In the Shasta Bally area, geologic structures and 

their lithology control the geomorphology as major faults 

weather preferentially and resistant granitic rocks remain 

as high domes and ridges. The dominant geologic 

structure in the Whiskeytown area is a broad anticline 

trending north- northeast, plunging to the north in the 

Bohemotash quadrangle north- northwest of the park. 

The anticline then plunges slightly to the south across the 

northeast corner of the Shasta Dam quadrangle and into 

the Whiskeytown quadrangle. Here igneous rocks of the 

Mule Mountain stock truncate the anticline. Two minor 

synclines on either side of the anticline also trend in a 

generally northerly direction. 

The contact between the sedimentary rocks of the 

Mississippian Bragdon Formation (a primary gold 

producer) and the underlying igneous intrusives is 

thought to be a low- angle thrust fault. In areas where 

contacts are exposed, the Bragdon is highly deformed, 

faulted, and intruded. Intrusive igneous activity focused 

along the faulted areas (Albers, 1965). Magma favors 

preexisting fractures and weaknesses in a rock. 

There are numerous faults running through the park, 

although many are difficult to locate due to the poor 

exposures and a lack of stratigraphic markers necessary 

to determine clear offset in the igneous rocks. Most 

appear to trend northwest to southeast, with secondary 

faulting trending northeast to southwest. The majority of 

these faults have little inferred offset. 

The Hoadley Fault virtually bisects the park from the 

northwest end to the southeast corner. It is a normal 

fault with the downthrown side to the northeast that 

generally dips 50o- 65o to the northeast. Movement along 

this fault likely occurred around 140 Ma. 

Accreted Terranes 

The Klamath Mountains are composed of a series of 

accreted terranes that attached to the western margin of 

the North American continent during compressional 

tectonic events such as orogenies. These rocks range in 

age from Cambrian to latest Jurassic (Irwin, 1997). The 

distribution of rocks in the Klamath Mountains is 

divided into several roughly arcuate, concentric, lithic 

belts, all of which were lapped onto the continental 

margin as mixed sedimentary and volcanic rocks during 

collision with the Pacific and Farallon plates (figure 10). 

Faults, linear ultramafic bodies, or granite plutons 

separate these tectonostratigraphic lithic belts, which 

contain both volcanic and sedimentary units with 

associated deep- seated intrusive granites, and nearsurface intrusive rocks of Devonian through Cretaceous 

age (Irwin, 1966). By the early Cretaceous, after at least 8 

different major accretionary events, belts of sutured 

terranes comprised the southern Klamath Mountains. 

From east to west, these terranes are called: 1) eastern 

(Paleozoic) Klamath belt (Redding, Trinity, and Yreka 

subterranes ~399- 380 Ma), 2) central metamorphic 

terrane (~220 Ma) – Fort Jones terrane (~198- 193 Ma), 3) 

North Fork terrane (~180 Ma), 4) Eastern Hayfork 

terrane (~168 Ma), 5) Western Hayfork terrane (~164 

Ma), and 6) Rattlesnake Creek terrane (~150 Ma) (figure 

10) (Irwin, 1966; 1999). The granites and near- surface 
 NPS Geologic Resources Division 14 

intrusives form another series of interstitial belts 

comprised of bodies of equivalent age that are divided 

into pre- and post- amalgamation referring to the timing 

of their emplacement relative to the addition of the 

major tectonostratigraphic belts. The interstitial belts 

vary on the degree of metamorphism from 

unmetamorphosed to amphibolite facies (Danielson and 

Silberman, 1987). 

The eastern Klamath belt is comprised of an essentially 

homoclinal sequence of layers dipping to the east and 

terminating with some deformation against ultramafic 

intrusive rocks. In aggregate the sediments are 12,000 to 

15,000 m (40,000 to 50,000 ft) thick and range in age 

from Ordovician to Jurassic, although the Ordovician 

and Silurian rocks are limited to exposures in an isolated 

northernmost part of the belt. 

The central metamorphic terrane consists mainly of the 

Abrams mica schist and the Salmon hornblende schist. It 

is separated from the eastern Klamath belt by ultramafic 

igneous rocks and from the western Paleozoic and 

Triassic belt by faulting with no associate intrusives 

(Irwin, 1966). The Abrams mica schist is a composite unit 

which includes metasedimentary rocks occurring both 

above (Grouse Ridge Formation) and below (Stuart Fork 

Formation) the Salmon hornblende schist. 

The lower rocks are considered fensters in a regional 

thrust plate formed by Salmon hornblende schist and the 

Grouse Ridge Formation. The metamorphic history of 

the area is complex. The regional grade generally ranges 

from upper greenschist to almandine (garnet)-

amphibolite facies with some retrograde metamorphism 

as well (Davis, 1966). 

The terranes west of the central metamorphic terrane 

consist of phyllitic detrital rocks, radiolarian (fossils) 

chert, mafic volcanics, and crystalline limestone, which 

have been intruded by ultramafic and granitic rocks. The 

grade of metamorphism ranges from low- grade 

greenschist facies to amphibolite facies. Some fossils 

have been identified from this belt including Late 

Pennsylvanian or Early Permian fusulinids and Permian 

and Triassic ammonites (Irwin, 1966). 

The westernmost belts are composed mainly of the 

Galice Formation and the South Fork Mountain schist. 

The Galice Formation, dated as Late Jurassic, is 

composed of a lower metavolcanic unit and an upper 

metasedimentary unit. The metavolcanic unit is 

composed mainly of meta- andesite flows and breccias 

and may be over 2,100 m (7,000 ft) thick. The upper unit 

is mostly slaty mudstone and foliated greywacke. The 

South Fork Mountain schist is well- foliated quartz- mica 

schist extending in a narrow north- south band along 

western boundary of the Klamath Mountains for about 

242 km (150 miles) (Irwin, 1966). 
 WHIS Geologic Resource Evaluation Report 15

Figure 6. View of Shasta Bally from reservoir shore. Photograph courtesy of the National Park Service. 
 NPS Geologic Resources Division 16 

Figure 7. Shasta Bally summit. Photograph courtesy of the National Park Service. 
 WHIS Geologic Resource Evaluation Report 17

Figure 8. President John F. Kennedy on September 28, 1963, standing at the podium overlooking Whiskeytown Lake during the 

dedication of the Whiskeytown Dam. Photograph courtesy of the National Park Service. 
 NPS Geologic Resources Division 18 

Figure 9. View of reservoir in autumn. Photograph courtesy of the National Park Service. 
 WHIS Geologic Resource Evaluation Report 19

Figure 10. Map of accreted terranes of the Klamath Mountains adapted by Trista L. Thornberry-Ehrlich (Colorado State University) from 

figure 8 of Irwin (1999). Cretaceous plutons including the Shasta Bally batholith are in yellow. Green circle shows approximate location 

of Whiskeytown National Recreation Area. 
 NPS Geologic Resources Division 20 

Map Unit Properties 

This section provides a description for and identifies many characteristics of the map 

units that appear on the digital geologic map of Whiskeytown National Recreation Area. 

The table is highly generalized and is provided for informational purposes only. Ground 

disturbing activities should not be permitted or denied on the basis of information 

contained in this table. More detailed unit descriptions can be found in the help files that 

accompany the digital geologic map or by contacting the NPS Geologic Resources 

Division. 

Though it is intruded and overlain by many rock types, 

Whiskeytown National Recreation Area is underlain 

almost entirely by the granite of the Shasta Bally 

batholith (biotite and hornblende- rich), the granite of 

the Mule Mountain Stock (sodium- rich), and the Copley 

Greenstone (metamorphosed volcanic rocks). The Mule 

Mountain Stock is 400 My old (Irwin, 1999). The Shasta 

Bally Batholith is Late Jurassic or Early Cretaceous in 

age. This age was determined because it sharply cuts 

foliation formed during the Late Jurassic Nevadan 

orogeny (~144 Ma) within the Copley Greenstone of 

Devonian(?) age. 

The sedimentary rocks in the area include; the Kennett 

Formation, a Devonian age shale and limestone mix; and 

the Bragdon Formation, a Mississippian interbedded 

shale and sandstone. The Devonian age Balaklala 

Rhyolite grades into the Kennett Formation and is 

composed of volcanic flows and pyroclastics. There are 

various other rock units present locally including 

hornblendite (Jurassic- Cretaceous) as pods associated 

with the Copley Greenstone, gneiss and amphibolite 

(Jurassic) that are derived from other rocks and 

metamorphosed, peridotite, diabase, tuffs, and 

metagabbro. 

Deposited atop these bedrock units are a variety of 

unconsolidated Quaternary age units. These include 

soils, landslide material, talus, slope wash, colluvium, 

terrace and alluvial gravels, silts, sands, and clays. 

Semiconsolidated and correlative sands and gravels of 

the Quaternary age Red Bluff Formation also appear 

locally. Most of these units are the weathered remnants 

of igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary bedrock units. 

The following table presents a view of the stratigraphic 

column and an itemized list of features for each map unit. 

This table includes several properties specific to each 

unit present in the stratigraphic column, including: unit 

name, map symbol, unit description, resistance to 

erosion, suitability for development, hazards, 

paleontologic resources, cultural resource, mineral 

resources, recreational uses, and global significance. 
Map Unit Properties Table 

Age Map Unit Symbol) Features and Description Erosion Resistance Suitability for Development Hazards Paleontologic Resources Cultura

Resourc

QUATERNARY Soil, talus & slope wash (Qcl); sand & gravel in stream beds (Qal); sand & gravel (Qg); landslide (Qls); Red Bluff Fm. (Qrb) Unconsolidated soils, talus and other unsorted slope deposits, sand and gravel in rivers and terraces, landslide deposits, and slope wash. Red Bluff Formation consists of sand, gravel and other older unconsolidated deposits. Very low Suitable for most forms of development, unstable on slopes and highly permeable Slumps, slides, rockfalls if exposed on slope Modern remains possible Historical structures 

artifacts 

CRETACEOUS Chico Formation (Kc) Conglomerate, shale, and sandstone beds; outcrops only locally. Moderate to high Suitable for most forms of development unless highly fractured Block falls and rock falls if undercut Loose cementation renders fossils unlikely Possible to

material ancampsites 

JURASSIC OR 

CRETACEOUS Birdseye Porphyry (bp); Hornblendite (hb); Quartz Porphyry (qp); Andesite Porphyry (ap); Felsic dike rocks (ad); Metagabbro (mg); lamprophyre (lp) Include diorite porphyry, dacite porphyry, andesite porphyry; hornblendite & quartz porphyry present as small pods in outcrop; felsic dikes include aplite appearing as vertical and inclined bodies related to biotite- quartz diorite; metagabbro and lamprophyre outcrop as dikes and irregular bodies; some are associated with Copley Greenstone and most occur only locally, as small irregular bodies and dikes. Moderate to high Suitable for development; only very local occurrence Slides and rockfalls if exposed on steep slopes None None documen

Biotite hornblende granodiorite (bhgd)and quartz diorite (bqbd, bqd1) 

Gneiss and 

amphibolite (gn) 

Injected rocks and breccia (in) 

JURASSIC OR CRETACEOUS 

Shasta Bally Batholith (bqd) Peridotite (p) Batholith dated at 128 Ma to 218 Ma and is of irregular thickness; largely composed of very biotite rich biotite- hornblende granodiorite and quartz diorite with some associated gneiss and amphibolite; quartz diorite about 40% hornblende and biotite. Gneiss and amphibolite derived from Copley, Balaklala and Bragdon formations; injected rocks and chaotic breccias occur locally and peridotite (silica poor, containing olivine) also occurs locally. Sharp contacts with Copley Greenstone. Low to moderate (biotite- rich portions are less resistant) Biotite- rich layers should be avoided due to preferential weathering and slope stability problems; sloughing common in this unit. Sloughing, rockfalls, block falls, slumping and other slope processes pose hazards None None documen

Upper Unit 

(Mbu) 

Lower Unit (Mbl) 

Shale and siltstone  (Mbds) Conglomerate bed (Mbc) Conglomerate, sandstone and grit (Mbdc) Black siliceous shale(Mbd) 

MISSISSIPPIAN 

Bragdon Formation 

Phyllite Mbp) 

Formation is approximately 1829 m (6000 ft) thick; outcrops 

in northern region of the park with interbeds of a variety of sedimentary rock types; upper unit contains abundant conglomerate and sandstone with siltstone and shale interbeds; lower unit consists of mostly shale, mudstone, and siltstone with subordinate amounts of tuff and conglomerate; phyllite is derived from Bragdon Formation by contact metamorphism upon intrusion of Shasta Bally batholith. 

Moderate to 

high 

Suitable for most forms of development unless highly fractured 

Slides and rockfalls if exposed on steep slopes 

Fossils probable in shale beds 

Histori

mining 
Age Map Unit Symbol) Features and Description Erosion Resistance Suitability for Development Hazards Paleontologic Resources Cultura

Resourc

Trondjemite 

(tag) 

Siliceous, 

pseudoporphyritic albite granite 

(ag1) 

Intrusive breccia 

(br) 

DEVONIAN 

Mule Mountain Stock Diabase (db) Dated at approximately 400 Ma on the basis of U- Pb dating and cross- cutting relationships with Bragdon Formation and Shasta Bally Batholith; stock is largely homogenous composed of light- colored sodium- rich granite with some siliceous rich portions and some intrusive breccia and diabase present as dikes. Moderate Avoid mica- rich layers which tend to weather as planes of weakness; avoid permeable fractures. Slides and rockfalls if exposed on steep slopes; biotite- rich layers might weather preferentially None Histori

mining 

Limestone (Dkl) 

DEVONIAN 

Kennett Fm. 

(Dk) Tuffaceous 

sedimentary rock 

(Dkt) 

0- 122 m (0- 400 ft) thick; outcrops locally outside park boundary; formation contains gray and black cherty shale, most siliceous in composition with limestone dominating the upper beds and tuffaceous (volcanic deposits) sedimentary rocks comprising the lower beds in the formation; some corals, brachiopods in the upper limestone beds. 

Moderate to 

high 

Suitable for most forms of development unless highly fractured or dissolved 

Slides and rockfalls if exposed on steep slopes 

Some corals and brachiopod fossils in limestone beds 

None 

documen

Porphyritic 

rhyolite (Dbc, 

Dbm) 

Nonporphyritic 

rhyolite (Db) 

Volcanic breccia 

(Dbp) 

Tuff and 

tuffaceous 

sedimentary rock 

(Dbt) 

Greenstone (Dbg) 

DEVONIAN 

Balaklala Rhyolite 

Greenstone; 

pyroclastic rock 

(Dbgp) 

0- 1128 m (0- 3700 ft) thick; light- colored generally with flows, pyroclastics and other deposits; porphyritic rhyolite is composed of quartz keratophyre with quartz phenocrysts ranging in size from larger than 4 mm (coarse) to 1- 4 mm (medium); rhyolite with quartz keratophyre and quartz phenocrysts smaller than 1 mm are mapped as nonporphyritic characteristically located in the lower unit of the Balaklala; volcanic breccia includes coarse breccia, tuff breccia, volcanic conglomerate and minor flow breccia; tuff and tuffaceous shale beds are associated with the Balaklala lower beds; greenstones mark the basal layers of the Balaklala, metamorphosed remnants of more basic (less silica- rich) igneous composition; grades upwards into the Kennett Formation. 

Moderate to 

high 

Unit can be preferentially weathered creating stability problems; suitable for most forms of development unless highly fractured. 

Slides and rockfalls if exposed on steep slopes 

None Histori

mining 

Keratophyre, spilite and metaandesite (Dc) Pyroclastic rock (Dcp) Tuff, shaly tuff and shale (Dct) 

DEVONIAN 

Copley Greenstone Shale, shaly tuff and sandstone 

(Dcs1) 

Unit is at least 1128 m (3700 ft) thick. Keratophyre, spilite and meta- andesite includes some volcanic breccia and agglomerate facies rocks. Volcanic pyroclastic deposits are abundant in this unit. Below these are layers of tuff, shaly tuff 

and shale, with some sandstone beds further down the column. Greenstone tuff and breccia, and rhyolite tuff are interfingered with gneiss, migmatite, amphibolite and other metamorphic rocks. Unit intertongues with overlying Balaklala Rhyolite. 

Moderate to 

high 

Unit can be preferentially weathered creating stability problems; suitable for most forms of development unless highly fractured and undercut on a slope. 

Slides and rockfalls if exposed on steep slopes 

None Histori

mining 

PRESILURIANAbrams mica schist and Salmon (?)hornblende schist, undifferentiated (Sch) Abrams mica schist and Salmon (?) hornblende schist are undifferentiated in the map area. Moderate to high Mica- rich layers weather preferentially creating local instability. Block falls, slides, and rockfalls on steep slopes None None documen
 WHIS Geologic Resource Evaluation Report 23

Geologic History 

This section highlights the map units (i.e., rocks and unconsolidated deposits) that occur 

in Whiskeytown National Recreation Area and puts them in a geologic context in terms 

of the environment in which they were deposited and the timing of geologic events that 

created the present landscape. 

The area surrounding Whiskeytown National Recreation 

Area is full of mountain ranges and valleys. Unraveling 

the origin of the Klamath Mountains and associated 

basins exposes the complex tectonic history surrounding 

the growth of the western margin of the North American 

continent. Prior to the early Paleozoic, there was an 

oceanic basin in the present day location of 

Whiskeytown National Recreation Area. Here, 

sediments were deposited from the continental margin to 

the east and volcanics intruded during extension of the 

crust. Some of the oldest rocks, of Cambrian age at 

Whiskeytown reflect this deposition (figure 11). 

The Devonian and Mississippian Antler orogeny shoved 

rocks eastward onto the continental margin along the 

Roberts Mountains Thrust fault. The thrust carried 

deep- marine, continental slope and rise deposits over 

relatively shallow marine carbonate deposits on the 

margin (Miller et al. 1992). This orogeny was fairly rapid, 

lasting only about 25 million years. However, it 

established a compressional regime along the western 

coast of the United States that lasted until the Mesozoic. 

The next tectonic event affecting the Whiskeytown area 

was the Sonoma orogeny. This orogeny followed the 

scant deposition of chert- pebble conglomerates, 

sandstones, and limestones atop the deformed rocks of 

the Antler orogeny. The Sonoma orogeny involved the 

thrusting of an allochthonous block containing volcanic 

sediments atop the continental margin (Silberling and 

Roberts, 1962; Miller et al. 1992). This occurred during 

the Late Permian and Early Triassic periods. 

The Mesozoic brought a period of expansion to the 

western margin of the continent. Large batholiths were 

emplaced along the western margin beneath the 

magmatic arcs. Entire landmasses, some associated with 

the western margin and some foreign to the western 

shore, were sutured onto the western margin from 

Alaska to California. These sutured landmasses are called 

displaced terranes (figure 12). 

Early Triassic tectonic activity was marked by the 

accretion of a major Paleozoic island- arc terrane in the 

northwest Nevada- northern California region. 

However, Following the Sonoma orogeny a new 

subduction zone formed. The subduction zone trended 

north- northwest to south- southeast and dipped 

eastward beneath the continental margin. Early to 

Middle Triassic (245- 230 Ma) igneous rocks were 

emplaced along this subduction zone located east of 

Whiskeytown National Recreation Area (Saleeby et al. 

1992). 

The western continental margin was well- established by 

the Late Triassic (230- 208 Ma). Along the California and 

Arizona margin, the Late Triassic- Early Jurassic arc 

occupied an extensional graben sediment- trap system 

(Saleeby et al. 1992). Evidence of this setting is preserved 

in the metavolcanic and metasedimentary rocks found 

along the western margin from California to Washington, 

and in the displaced terranes of the Klamath Mountains. 

They overlie rocks with compositions similar to oceanic 

crust and upper mantle, commonly found in mid- oceanridge settings. 

Compressional tectonics continued into the Middle 

Jurassic during the Elko orogeny, which was localized in 

Nevada, east of Whiskeytown. A north- south island arc 

extended through what is now central Nevada. During 

this time, movement of the North American plate 

changed from a westward direction to a north- northeast 

direction at a rate of about 45 kilometers per million 

years (Saleeby et al. 1992). This shift caused California to 

begin moving towards the northern subtropical latitudes. 

A significant dextral component of strike- slip faulting 

affected the relative motion along the plate edge in the 

Blue Mountains area of central Oregon and northwest 

Washington. Northwest compressional deformation 

along the southwest margin also caused transtensional 

spreading in the western Sierra- Klamath mountains 

region. Additional accreted terranes were sutured to the 

margin during the Middle Jurassic. 

In the Middle Jurassic a major westward- directed 

thrusting event occurred in the Klamath Mountains 

although subduction continued to generate eastwarddirected thrusts against the continental margin. 

Consequently, during this time, the tectonic 

configuration of the western United States changed to a 

two- sided tectonic geometry with both eastwarddirected and westward- directed thrusts. 

Overall, California continued to migrate into northern 

subtropical latitudes as submarine and subaerial 

volcanism erupted in the northern and western Sierra 

Nevada and in northwest Nevada (Saleeby et al. 1992). 

The volcanic and depositional patterns in northwest 

Nevada were controlled by a roughly east- westtrending sinistral oblique- slip- fault system. Thrusting 

from the west disrupted major volcanism during the 

Middle Jurassic. 
 NPS Geologic Resources Division 24 

Magmatic activity along the western continental margin 

continued into the Late Jurassic (162- 144 Ma), and led to 

the emplacement of clusters of smaller and more 

scattered plutons (Saleeby et al. 1992). Even so, the 

magmatic activity was widely distributed across the 

western United States from the Pacific margin in 

California to the edge of the Paleozoic craton (old 

continental crust) in Utah (figure 13) (Suppe, 1985). 

Accompanying the magmatic activity was the Nevadan 

orogeny, a major deformation event of regional scale. 

The Nevadan orogeny was short- lived and may have 

been the result of colliding terranes along the western 

Sierra- Klamath belt (Suppe, 1985; Saleeby et al. 1992). In 

the northwest, the Nevadan orogeny marks the first time 

that accreted terranes in Washington and Oregon shared 

similar structures. In the south, the western Sierra 

Foothills show a complex pattern of shortening, 

extension, and sinistral strike- slip faulting as part of the 

Nevadan orogeny. West of the broad magmatic arc, the 

ocean basin adjacent to the Klamath Mountains was 

destroyed by eastward subduction and north- northwest 

obduction. The Great Valley fore- arc basin floor in 

California, however, survived Nevadan deformation. 

Thin- skinned deformation also characterizes the 

Cretaceous Sevier orogeny (Stewart, 1980). The Sevier 

orogenic belt is comprised of the the fold and thrust belt 

of western Utah and an eastern branch that extends 

through Utah and southern Nevada into southeastern 

California. The development of the thrust system is a 

classic example of “stacked- shingle” geometry wherein 

the structurally highest and oldest fault systems formed 

in the west and were then carried in piggy- back fashion 

to the east on sequentially younger and lower thrusts as 

the basal decollement propagated eastward (Cowan et al, 

1992). In eastern Washington and Montana, thrusting 

occurred from before 100 Ma to 50 Ma. In southeastern 

California and southern Nevada, thrusting took place 

over a period of time from before 200 Ma to about 85 

Ma. 

During thrusting in the eastern part of the region, a belt 

of Upper Jurassic to Cretaceous granitic plutons was 

emplaced along the converging plate boundary from 

southern California to northern Idaho (red bodies in 

figure 12). The granitic plutons coalesced to form the 

continuous Sierra Nevada batholith. The Sierra Nevada 

batholith intruded the margin of North America after the 

Late Jurassic Nevadan orogeny and before about 80 Ma. 

Individual plutons within the batholithic belt vary widely 

in size and shape and the Sierra Nevada batholith has 

probably been displaced as a block about 200 km (120 mi) 

westward in response to Cenozoic extension in the Basin 

and Range province to the east. 

The western United States (Cordillera) divided into two 

distinct tectonic regimes during this time: an eastern 

regime and a western regime. The eastern regime 

consisted of the Sevier, Idaho- Wyoming, and Montana 

fold and thrust systems. The Sierran batholithic belt 

(described above), the Great Valley Group and the 

Franciscan Complex constituted the western regime. 

The Great Valley formed an elongate basin west of and 

parallel to the Sierra Nevada batholith and southeast of 

the Klamath Mountains in California. Jurassic oceanic 

crust floored the basin, which was flanked on the west by 

an outer- arc high that existed in Late Jurassic to Early 

Cretaceous time (Cowan et al. 1992). Sediments 

accumulated in the basin from Late Jurassic to Paleogene 

time. Within the sediments is evidence for a profound 

change in the tectonic setting of California in response to 

the Nevadan orogeny. Stratigraphic relationships suggest 

that the Nevadan orogeny was more than a simple 

accretionary event. The Nevadan orogeny coincides with 

the extinction of the Late Jurassic magmatic arc and the 

inception of a new forearc basin and magmatic arc 

represented by the Great Valley group and Sierra Nevada 

batholith, respectively. 

The Franciscan Complex also lay west of the Sierra 

Nevada batholithic belt. The Franciscan Complex is a 

chaotic assemblage of upper Mesozoic and lower 

Tertiary clastic sedimentary rocks, basalt, chert, and 

metamorphic rocks deformed by a number of imbricate 

thrusts. The timing and association these thrust faults is 

not fully understood (Cowan et al. 1992). Exposures of 

the sequence are present in the Coast Ranges east of the 

San Andreas fault and west of the Great Valley and 

Klamath Mountains. The Franciscan is considered a 

subduction complex. 

The Sevier orogeny evolved into the Late Cretaceous - 

Early Tertiary Laramide orogeny. Instead of thinskinned thrusts involving the upper layers of 

sedimentary rock, the Laramide orogeny involved deep 

thrusts that carried basement rocks from the subsurface 

and stacked them atop younger rocks. Both the Sevier 

and Laramide orogenies involved subduction of the 

Farallon plate (preceding the Pacific plate) beneath the 

western margin of North America. The east- dipping, 

oceanic Farallon plate subducted at a steep angle during 

the Sevier Orogeny (figure 14). 

Near the end of the Cretaceous, the subducting Farallon 

plate may have changed its angle of dip from steep to 

relatively flat (Dickinson and Snyder, 1978; Livaccari, 

1991; Fillmore, 2000). Subducting at a flatter angle, likely 

caused the oceanic plate to stop melting thus cutting off 

the source for volcanic activity and generating 

tremendous shear stresses between the two slabs. 

Stresses at the base of the thick continental crust were 

transmitted upward in the form of compression which 

thrust great wedges of basement rock skyward forming 

the Laramide Rocky Mountains. 

Following the Laramide orogenic events the Cordilleran 

deformation transitioned from compression to extension 

and strike- slip tectonics. This transition occurred in 

different places at different times and was probably 

related to impingement of the North American plate on 

the western margin, development of the San Andreas 
 WHIS Geologic Resource Evaluation Report 25

fault system, and the opening of the Gulf of California 

beginning in the Oligocene (Bally et al. 1989; Christiansen 

et al. 1992). The change in plate motions and stress 

regimes may have been related to the development of the 

Basin and Range Province at this time (Balley et al. 1989). 

As the crust extended around 15 Ma, the surface broke 

into the basin- and- range topography seen today in 

western Utah, parts of California, Nevada, Arizona, and 

the Rio Grande Rift in New Mexico (figure 15). The Basin 

and Range province of the western United States is an 

excellent example of horst- and- graben topography 

wherein fault blocks forming valleys (grabens) have 

dropped relative to the adjacent uplifted blocks (horsts) 

forming mountain ranges on steeply dipping normal 

faults. These fault planes flatten at depth and merge with 

a regional decollement surface (Wernicke, 1992). 

Transform faulting along the subduction zone on the 

western margin continued to reconfigure the Coast 

Ranges of California west of Whiskeytown during the 

Middle Tertiary. The western Santa Monica Mountains 

moved westward with respect to the Peninsular Ranges 

and the San Gabriel fault became the main strand of the 

San Andreas system across the western Transverse 

Ranges. East of the subduction zone, the Cascades Arc 

extended southward along the California- Nevada 

border and by about 20 Ma, the arc was continuous to as 

far south as the latitude of Las Vegas, some 500 km (310 

miles) from the Klamath Mountains (red area on figure 

15). 

From about 17- 14 Ma, the Western Cascades- Oregon 

Coast Range- Klamath Mountain block rotated 

clockwise by as much as 16o

 (Christiansen et al. 1992). 

Tremendous outpourings of flood basalts, between 

about 17 and 14 Ma, accompanied crustal extension east 

of the Cascade Arc in eastern Washington and eastern 

Oregon. 

Basins in California were filled by sediment as shown by 

bathyal (deep water)organisms to neritic (shallow water) 

or nonmarine organisms deposited near the end of the 

Miocene as the San Andreas fault system was 

superimposed over part of the continental- margin 

subduction zone (Atwater, 1970; Christiansen et al. 1992). 

Central California basins, such as the Sacramento and 

San Joaquin Valleys, that had persisted as bathyal 

depocenters (deep water depositional basins) were 

tectonically inverted in the Pliocene to Pleistocene 

period of combined compression and oblique tension 

and began to collect nonmarine sediments. 

Volcanism in the Cascade Arc along the western coast of 

the United States continues to the present day (figure 16). 

The Quaternary Period is subdivided into two epochs: 1) 

the Pleistocene Epoch, about 1.6 Ma to 10,000 years 

before present (B.P.), and 2) the younger Holocene 

Epoch that extends from 10,000 years B.P. to the present. 

The Pleistocene Epoch is known as the Ice Age and is 

marked by multiple episodes of continental and alpine 

glaciation. Great continental glaciers, thousands of feet 

thick, advanced and retreated over approximately 

100,000- year cycles. Huge volumes of water were stored 

in the continental glaciers during glacial periods so that 

global sea level dropped as much as 91 m (300 ft) 

(Fillmore, 2000).In at least 5 major pulses, local alpine 

glaciers carved the peaks of the Sierra Nevada and 

Klamath Mountain ranges. Evidence of this glaciation 

includes glacial cirques, deposits, and striations. Ice and 

snow bodies still exist in the Trinity Mountains, Mt. 

Shasta, and the Lassen Volcano area, west, north, and 

east of Whiskeytown National Recreation Area, 

respectively (Basagic, 2006). Glacial deposits were not 

specified on the map of Whiskeytown National 

Recreation Area. 

The Holocene, is the age of humans and human impact 

on the global ecosystem is complex. With the retreat of 

the glaciers and the end of widespread glaciation about 

12,000 years ago, the climate has continued to warm and 

global sea level has risen. Geologically, the physiographic 

provinces of the western United States have not changed 

much during the Holocene. Although, volcanoes 

periodically erupt in the Cascade Mountains and 

earthquakes signal the continued movement of the San 

Andreas Fault system. 

The peaks of Shasta Bally and surrounding landscape at 

Whiskeytown National Recreation Area stand as a 

monument to the expression of deep time, that time that 

surpasses human understanding and serves as a reminder 

that Earth is not static but subject to change. 
 NPS Geologic Resources Division 26 

Figure 11: Geologic time scale; adapted from the U.S. Geological Survey and International Commission on Stratigraphy. Red lines indicate 

major unconformities between eras. Included are major events in life history and tectonic events occurring on the North American continent. 

Absolute ages shown are in millions of years. 
 WHIS Geologic Resource Evaluation Report 27

Figure 12. Location of tectonic features during the early Mesozoic Era (Triassic to Late Jurassic). Note the northeast-southwest trend of the 

Paleozoic features and how their southwest margin has been truncated by the Mesozoic magmatic arc and accreted terranes. Solid triangles 

mark the emplacement of major thrust belts with the triangles on the upper, hanging block of strata. Modified from Suppe, 1985.
 NPS Geologic Resources Division 28 

Figure 13. Location of magmatism in the western United States during the Nevadan (160-125 Ma), Sevier (105-75 Ma), and Laramide (50-75 

Ma) orogenies. The red line (87Sr/86Sr = 0.704) marks the western edge of the Precambrian Continental crust. Modified from Suppe, 1985. 
 WHIS Geologic Resource Evaluation Report 29

Figure 14. Graphic shows the effects of changing subduction angle on arc volcanism and mountain building. Graphic is by Trista L. 

Thornberry-Ehrlich (Colorado State University) 
 NPS Geologic Resources Division 30 

Figure 15. Paleotectonic map of western United States approximately 15 Ma in the Miocene Epoch. Initiation of basin-and-range faulting and 

the San Andres fault system takes place about this time. Modified from Dickinson, 1979. 
 WHIS Geologic Resource Evaluation Report 31

Figure 16. Map of late Miocene and younger magmatic systems in the Cascade Mountains. Light coloring indicates volcanic rocks of 7 to 2 

Ma age; dark coloring indicates volcanic rocks of 2 to 0 Ma age. The arrow indicates relative convergence between the Juan de Fucca and 

North American Plates. Modified from Christiansen et al. (1992). 
 NPS Geologic Resources Division 32 

Glossary 

allochthonous. Formed far from its present place. 

alluvium. Stream- deposited sediment that is generally 

rounded, sorted, and stratified. 

ash (volcanic). Fine pyroclastic material ejected from a 

volcano (also see tuff). 

basement. The undifferentiated rocks, commonly 

igneous and metamorphic, that underlie the rocks of 

interest. 

basin (structural). A doubly- plunging syncline in which 

rocks dip inward from all sides (also see dome). 

basin (sedimentary). Any depression, from continental 

to local scales, into which sediments are deposited. 

batholith. A massive, discordant pluton, greater than 100 

km2

, (39.6 mi2) often formed from multiple intrusions. 

bathyal depocenter. Pertaining to an area of maximum 

deposition in an ocean environment between 200 and 

4,000 m of depth. 

bed. The smallest sedimentary strata unit, commonly 

ranging in thickness from one centimeter to a meter or 

two and distinguishable from beds above. 

block (fault). A crustal unit bounded by faults, either 

completely or in part. 

breccia. A coarse- grained, generally unsorted, 

sedimentary rock consisting of cemented angular 

clasts. 

caldera. A large bowl- or cone- shaped summit 

depression in a volcano formed by explosion or 

collapse 

clastic. Rock or sediment made of fragments or preexisting rocks. 

conglomerate. A coarse- grained sedimentary rock with 

clasts larger than 2 mm in a fine- grained matrix. 

continental crust. The type of crustal rocks underlying 

the continents and continental shelves; having a 

thickness of 25- 60 km (16- 37 mi) and a density of 

approximately 2.7 grams per cubic centimeter. 

continental rise. Gently sloping region from the foot of 

the continental slope to the abyssal plain. 

continental shelf. The shallowly- submerged portion of a 

continental margin extending from the shoreline to the 

continental slope with water depths of less than 200 m 

(656 ft). 

continental slope. The relative steep slope from the 

outer edge of the continental shelf down to the more 

gently sloping ocean depths of the continental rise or 

abyssal plain. 

craton. The relatively old and geologically stable interior 

of a continent (also see continental shield). 

cross-bedding. Uniform to highly- varied sets of inclined 

sedimentary beds deposited by wind or water that 

indicate distinctive flow conditions. 

crust. The outermost compositional shell of Earth, 10- 40 

km (6- 25 mi) thick, consisting predominantly of 

relatively low- density silicate minerals (also see 

oceanic crust and continental crust). 

debris flow. A rapid and often sudden flow or slide of 

rock and soil material involving a wide range of types 

and sizes. 

decollement. Detachment structure of strata owing to 

deformation associated with folding and 

overthrusting, resulting in independent styles of 

deformation in the rocks above and below. 

deformation. A general term for the process of faulting, 

folding, shearing, extension, or compression of rocks 

as a result of various Earth forces. 

dike. A tabular, discordant igneous intrusion. 

dip. The angle between a structural surface and a 

horizontal reference plane measured normal to their 

line of intersection. 

dome. A doubly plunging anticline that dips radially in all 

directions. 

extrusive. Of or pertaining to the eruption of igneous 

material onto the surface of Earth. 

facies (metamorphic). The pressure- temperature regime 

that results in a particular, distinctive metamorphic 

mineralogy (i.e., a suite of index minerals). 

facies (sedimentary). The depositional or environmental 

conditions reflected in the sedimentary structures, 

textures, mineralogy, fossils, etc. of a sedimentary 

rock. 

fault. A subplanar break in rock along which relative 

movement occurs between the two sides. 

fenster. A window formed as an area of erosion in an 

overthrust sheet in which the rocks beneath the 

overthrust are exposed. 

formation. Fundamental rock- stratigraphic unit that is 

mappable and lithologically distinct from adjoining 

strata and has definable upper and lower contacts. 

fusulinid. Any foraminifer belonging to the suborder 

Fusulinina, family Fusulinidae, characterized by a 

multichambered calcareous test, commonly 

resembling the shape of a grain of wheat. Used as an 

index fossil from the Ordovician through the Triassic. 

graben. A down- dropped structural block bounded by 

steeply- dipping, normal faults (also see horst). 

homoclinal. A structural condition in which rock strata 

dip uniformly in one direction. 

horst. An uplifted structural block bounded by highangle normal faults. 

intrusion. A body of igneous rock that invades older 

rock. The invading rock may be a plastic solid or 

magma that pushes its way into the older rock. 

island arc. A line or arc of volcanic islands formed over 

and parallel to a subduction zone. 
 WHIS Geologic Resource Evaluation Report 33

joint. A semi- planar break in rock without relative 

movement of rocks on either side of the fracture 

surface. 

landslide. Any process or landform resulting from rapid 

mass movement under relatively dry conditions (cf.: 

debris flow). 

lava. Magma that has been extruded out onto Earth’s 

surface, both molten and solidified. 

mafic. A rock, magma, or mineral rich in magnesium and 

iron. 

magma. Molten rock generated within Earth that is the 

parent of igneous rocks. 

mantle. The zone of Earth’s interior between crust and 

core. 

member. A lithostratigraphic unit with definable contacts 

that subdivides a formation. 

metamorphism. Literally, “change in form”. 

Metamorphism occurs in rocks with mineral 

alteration, genesis, and/or recrystallization from 

increased heat and pressure. 

migmatite. Literally, “mixed rock” with both igneous and 

metamorphic characteristics due to partial melting 

during metamorphism. 

normal fault. A dip- slip fault in which the hanging wall 

moves down relative to the footwall. 

obduction. The process by which the crust is thickened 

by thrust faulting at a convergent margin. 

oceanic crust. Earth’s crust formed at spreading ridges 

that underlies the ocean basins. Oceanic crust is 6- 7 

km (3- 4 mi) thick and generally of basaltic 

composition. 

orogeny. A mountain- building event, particularly a wellrecognized event in the geological past (e.g. the 

Laramide orogeny). 

overthrust. A nondescript and not recommended term 

for a large- scale, low- angle, thrust fault. 

peneplain. A geomorphic term for a broad area of low 

topographic relief resulting from long- term, extensive 

erosion. 

pluton. A body of intrusive igneous rock. 

scarp. A steep cliff or topographic step resulting from 

vertical displacement on a fault or by mass movement. 

slump. A generally large, coherent mass movement with 

a concave- up failure surface and subsequent 

backward rotation relative to the slope. 

stock. An igneous intrusion exposed less than 40 square 

miles at the surface. 

strike. The compass direction of the line of intersection 

that an inclined surface makes with a horizontal plane. 

strike-slip fault. A fault with measurable offset where the 

relative movement is parallel to the strike of the fault. 

subduction zone. A convergent plate boundary where 

oceanic lithosphere descends beneath a continental or 

oceanic plate and is carried down into the mantle. 

suture. The linear zone where two continental 

landmasses become joined due to obduction. 

tectonic. Relating to large- scale movement and 

deformation of Earth’s crust. 

terraces (stream). Step- like benches surrounding the 

present floodplain of a stream due to dissection of 

previous flood plain(s), stream bed(s), and/or valley 

floor(s). 

terrane. A region or group of rocks with similar geology, 

age, or structural style. 

thrust fault. A contractional, dip- slip fault with a 

shallowly dipping fault surface (<45o

) where the 

hanging wall moves up and over relative to the 

footwall. 

transform fault. A type of strike- slip fault along which 

the displacement suddenly stops or changes form. 

transtensional. Deformation of the crust in oblique 

zones of ocean spreading consisting of stepped 

transform faults. 

tuff. Generally fine- grained, igneous rock formed of 

consolidated volcanic ash. 

uplift. A structurally high area in the crust, produced by 

movement that raises the rocks. 

weathering. The set of physical, chemical, and biological 

processes by which rock is broken down in place. 
 NPS Geologic Resources Division 34 

References 

This section provides a listing of references cited in this report. A more complete geologic 

bibliography is available and can be obtained through the NPS Geologic Resources 

Division. 

Abrahamson, N.A., M.R. McKenzie, R.D. Miller, R.A. 

Uhrhammer. 1984. Arcata, Berkeley, Fickle Hill, Friant, 

Granite Creek, Jamestown, Llanada, Mina Mineral, 

Mount Hamilton, Oroville, Paraiso, Pilarcitos Creek, 

Priest, San Andreas Geophysical Observatory, San 

Pablo Dam, Walker Ridge, Whiskeytown Dam; 

earthquakes and the registration of earthquakes from 

Jan 1, 1983 to December 31, 1983. Bulletin of the 

Seismographic Stations 53 (1- 2). 

Albers, J.P. 1965. Economic geology of the French Gulch 

Quadrangle, Shasta and Trinity counties, California. 

Special Report - California Division of Mines and 

Geology. 

Albers, J.P. 1964. Geology of the French Gulch quadrangle, 

Shasta and Trinity Counties, California. U.S. Geological 

Survey, Bulletin 1141- J: 1- 70. 

AML 2001. Recalamation Summary of Abandoned 

Mineral Lands in the National Park Service. 

Abandoned Mineral Lands, Disturbed Lands 

Restoration Program, Geologic Resources Division 

http://www2.nature.nps.gov/geology/aml/amlreports/

AMLinventory02- 23- 01.pdf (accessed March 29, 

2007). 

Bally, A.W., C.R. Scotese, M.I. Ross, M.I. 1989. North 

America; Plate- tectonic setting and tectonic elements, 

In The Geology of North America; An Overview. eds. 

Bally, A.W., A.R. Palmer, Geological Society of 

America, The Geology of North America A: 1- 16. 

Basagic, H. 2006. The Glaciers of California. Portland 

State University 

http://glaciers.research.pdx.edu/california.php 

(accessed March 30, 2007). 

BOR. 2003. Power Program, Judge Francis Carr 

Powerplant, Central Valley Project. Bureau of 

Reclamation 

http://www.usbr.gov/dataweb/dams/ca10204.htm 

(accessed May 1, 2004) 

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Whiskeytown Dam. Bureau of Reclamation 

http://www.usbr.gov/power/data/sites/carr/carr.pdf 

(accessed May 1, 2004) 

CGS. 2002. California Geomorphic Provinces. California 

Geological Survey Note 36. 

http://www.consrv.ca.gov/CGS/information/publicati

ons/cgs_notes/note_36/note_36.pdf (accessed March 

25, 2007) 

Christiansen, R.L., R.S.Yeats. 1992. Post- Laramide 

geology of the U.S. Cordilleran region. In The 

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B.C., P.W., Lipman, M.L., Zoback. Geological Society 

of America, The Geology of North America G- 3: 261-

406. 

Clark, William B. 1970. Gold district of California, 

California Division of Mines and Geology Bulletin 193. 

Cowan, D.S., R.L. 1992. Late Jurassic to early Late 

Cretaceous geology of the U.S. Cordillera. In The 

Cordilleran Orogen: Conterminous U.S., eds. Burchfiel, 

B.V., P.W. Lipman, M.L. Zobackv. Geological Society 

of America, The Geology of North America G- 3: 169-

203. 

Danielson, J., M.L. Silberman. 1987. Geologic setting of 

lode gold deposits in the Redding 1 X 2 degree 

quadrangle, Klamath Mountains, California. Abstracts 

with Programs - Geological Society of America 19 (6): 

370. 

Davis, G.A. 1966. Metamorphic and granitic history of 

the Klamath Mountains. In Geology of Northern 

California, ed. Bailey, E.H. California Division of 

Mines and Geology, Bulletin 190: 39- 50. 

Dickinson, W.R. 1979. Cenozoic plate tectonic setting of 

the Cordilleran region in the United States. In 

Cenozoic Paleogeography of the Western United States, 

eds. Armentrout , J.M.M. R. Cole, H. Terbest, Jr. 

Society of Economic Paleontologists and 

Mineralogists, Pacific Section: 1- 13. 

Dickinson, W. R., W.S. Snyder. 1978. Plate tectonics of 

the Laramide orogeny. In Laramide folding associated 

with basement block faulting in the western United 

States, ed. V. Matthews III. Geological Society of 

America, Memoir 151: 355- 366. 

Fillmore, R. 2000. The Geology of the Parks, Monuments 

and Wildlands of Southern Utah: The University of 

Utah Press. 

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Mount St. Helens, The First 100 Days: U.S. Geological 

Society, Professional Paper: 1249. 

Irwin, W.P. 2003. Correlation of the Klamath Mountains 

and the Sierra Nevada. U.S. Geological Survey, OpenFile Report: 02- 490. 
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Irwin, W.P. 1999. Plutons and Accretionary Episodes of the 

Klamath Mountains, California and Oregon. U.S. 

Geological Society, Open File Report: 99- 374. 

Irwin, W.P. comp. 1997 Preliminary map of selected postNevadan geologic features of the Klamath Mountains 

and adjacent areas, California and Oregon. U.S. 

Geological Survey, Open- file Report: OF 97- 0465. 

Irwin, W.P. 1966. Geology of the Klamath Mountains 

Province. In Geology of Northern California, ed. Bailey, 

E.H. California Division of Mines and Geology, 

Bulletin 190: 19- 30. 

Livaccari, R. F. 1991. Role of crustal thickening and 

extensional collapse in the tectonic evolution of the 

Sevier- Laramide orogeny, western United States: 

Geology 19: 1104- 1107. 

Miller, C.D. 1980. Potential Hazards from Future 

Eruptions in the Vicinity of Mount Shasta Volcano, 

Northern California. U.S. Geological Survey, Bulletin 

1503. 

Miller, E.L., M.M.Miller, C.H. Stevens, J.E. Wright, R. 

Madrid. 1992. Late Paleozoic paleogeographic and 

tectonic evolution of the western U.S. Cordillera. In 

The Cordilleran Orogen: Conterminous U.S., eds. 

Burchfiel, B.V., P.W. Lipman, M.L. Zobackv. 

Geological Society of America, The Geology of North 

America G- 3: 57- 106. 

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Foundation, Agricultural and Biological Engineering 

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http://pasture.ecn.purdue.edu/~epados/mercbuild/src/

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engineering impact in the Trinity River Division, 

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Association of Engineering Geologists 30 (1): 107- 120. 

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tectonic evolution of the western U.S. Cordillera. In 

The Cordilleran Orogen: Conterminous U.S., eds. 

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Geological Society of America, The Geology of North 

America G- 3: 107- 168. 

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March 29, 2007). 

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U.S. Cordillera. In The Cordilleran Orogen: 

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M.L. Zobackv. Geological Society of America, The 

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 NPS Geologic Resources Division 36 

Appendix A: Geologic Map Graphics 

The following pages provides a preview or “snapshot” of the geologic maps for 

Whiskeytown National Recreation Area. For poster size PDFs of this map or for digital 

geologic map data, please see the included CD or visit the GRE publications webpage: 

http://www2.nature.nps.gov/geology/inventory/gre_publications 


 WHIS Geologic Resource Evaluation Report 39

Appendix B: Scoping Summary 

The following excerpts are from the GRE scoping summary for Whiskeytown National 

Recreation Area. The scoping meeting occurred on March 2- 5, 2004; therefore, the 

contact information and Web addresses referred to herein may be outdated. Please 

contact the Geologic Resources Division for current information. 

Executive Summary 

A Geologic Resource Evaluation scoping meeting for 

Whiskeytown National Recreation Area was held in 

Ashland, Oregon, March 2, 2004. The scoping meeting 

participants identified the following geologic resources 

management issues. 

• Restoration of roads from logging and mining activities 

is needed to stabilize slopes and prevent further 

erosion and sedimentation. 

• Acid mine drainage from abandoned gold and copper 

mines is lowering the pH in some streams and 

introducing heavy metals into the environment 

• Mercury contamination from past placer mining has 

introduced free mercury into streams and drainages 

Introduction 

The National Park Service held a Geologic Resource 

Evaluation scoping meeting for Whiskeytown National 

Recreation Area on the campus of Southern Oregon 

University on Tuesday, March 2, 2004. The purpose of 

the meeting was to discuss the status of geologic mapping 

in the NRA, the associated bibliography, and the geologic 

issues in the park. The products to be derived from the 

scoping meeting are: (1) Digitized geologic maps covering 

the NRA; (2) An updated and verified bibliography; (3) 

Scoping summary (this report); and (4) A Geologic 

Resource Evaluation Report which brings together all of 

these products. 

Whiskeytown National Recreation Area was established 

on October 21, 1972, as one unit of the WhiskeytownShasta- Trinity National Recreation Area. The Shasta and 

Trinity units are managed by the Forest Service, U.S. 

Department of Agriculture. The NRA covers about 

42,503 acres including 3200 acres of Whiskeytown Lake 

at a maximum surface elevation of 1,209 feet. The 

reservoir has 32 miles of shoreline and was created by 

diverting water from the Trinity River Basin. The 

Whiskeytown Dam impounds water from Clear Creek. 

Whiskeytown NRA lies entirely within the French Gulch 

15- minute quadrangle (1:62,500). This has subsequently 

been divided into four 71⁄2’ quadrangles: Whiskeytown, 

French Gulch, Shasta Bally and Igo. Albers, et. al. 

published the geology of the French Gulch 1:62,000 

quadrangle in 1964. Kinkel, et. al., published the 

“Geologic Map of West Shasta Copper- Zinc District” in 

1956 at a scale of 1:24,000. This map covers the east twothirds of the park. Both of these maps have been 

digitized. Lyndon, 1972, published a geologic map of 

Shasta County at a scale of 1:250,000. 

Resource Management Issues 

1. Restoration of roads. 

Whiskey NRA has over 300 miles of logging and mining 

roads covering over 42,000 acres. In an area of deeply 

weathered rock on steep slopes with high rainfall, the 

erosion of these roads has created slope failure and 

debris flows. Weathering of the granodiorite of the 

Shasta Bally batholith frees the considerable biotite mica. 

The hydration of the biotite creates glide planes in the 

crystal structure allowing the mica particles to slide past 

one another. On the megascopic scale, this translates to 

this material sliding down slope, especially in periods of 

high rainfall. A similar situation exists in shales which 

comprise some of the Copley Greenstone. 

Road construction as well as fires remove the stabilizing 

vegetation and expose slopes to further hydration and 

erosion. The result is that these roads have created areas 

highly prone to down slope movement. This may occur 

as slow creep or as catastrophic slope failure and debris 

flows. 70% of down slope movement occurs within the 

first year after a fire, both from the fire roads and from 

the denuding of the slopes from fire. 

Some of the areas prone to slope failure are also areas of 

high visitation. For example, the beach area below 

Brandy Creek Trail, a popular recreation spot, is 

susceptible to debris flow and may put visitors as risk. 

Debris flows have occurred on almost all the creeks in 

the southern half of the park. Although there is difficulty 

in dating past debris flows, it is possible and major debris 

flows have occurred twice in the last 50 years, the last in 

1997. There is a need to study and monitor debris flows 

as well as to map their locations and aerial extent. Also, 

there is a need to measure soil moisture and to research 

slope hydrology, although many of these areas are 

remote and inaccessible. 

2. Acid mine drainage 

The Klamath Mountains are the second most productive 

gold producing province in California. Placer gold was 

first discovered in 1848, and lode gold was discovered in 

the French Gulch area in 1852 (Clark, 1970). Gold mining 

in the French Gulch area continued until 1942, with peak 

activity from 1900 to 1914 and again in the 1930s. 

There was a resurgence of gold exploration in the 1970s 

and 80s. Much of the lode gold came from massive 

sulfide deposits. Copper, iron, zinc, and silver along with 

considerable pyrite have been also been mined in the 

French Gulch and West Shasta Districts (Albers, 1965). 

Today there are over 100 abandoned mines in the NRA. 
 NPS Geologic Resources Division 40 

The result has been acid mine drainage from the 

oxidation of the pyrite (iron sulfide) to sulfuric acid and 

transportation of acid solution into streams and rivers. 

The sources are from the abandoned mines and from the 

tailings that were produced and then left from the mining 

and milling of these pyritic ores. This low pH acidic 

water also mobilizes heavy metals such as lead, cadmium, 

and arsenic. At the Iron Mountain Mine, an EPA 

Superfund site in the northeast corner of the park, the 

water is so acidic that a negative pH (- 3.5) has been 

measured. 

There is a need for accurate maps showing the location 

of abandoned mine sites. Each of these abandoned mines 

needs on- site characterization. Additional monitoring of 

water outflow from the mines is also a priority. 

3. Mercury contamination 

The largest recovery of gold from the Whiskeytown area 

has been from placer mining (Clark, 1970). As part of the 

gold recovery process from placer deposits, mercury is 

used to amalgamate the gold and remove it from the 

surrounding rock. The gold is then separated from the 

mercury and most of the mercury can be reused. 

However, some mercury remains in the waste rock and 

tailings and additional mercury is lost in the recovery 

process. 

Although placer tailings are one of the likely sources of 

mercury, the process of removing the tailings and 

disturbing entrained mercury, could release more 

mercury into the environment. Nevertheless, mercury 

has been found in aquatic macroinvertebrates. 

Additional sampling and monitoring of stream sediment 

and water is needed. 

4. Other Issues 

Abandoned mines: Apart from acid mine drainage and 

mercury contamination, abandoned mines also present 

health and safety issues associated with the workings. 

Open shafts and adits can be hazardous to visitors terms 

of falling, collapsed workings, and bad air. Some mines 

have been closed using bat gates to allow access for bats 

and some have fences to keep visitors out. There are 

likely many more mines that need permanent closures 

using polyurethane foam (PUF). These mine sites must 

be inventoried and characterized before closures can 

proceed. 

Groundwater: Most groundwater is high in iron and 

aluminum due to the mineralogy of the country rock. 

Some septic tanks are located too close to water wells, 

raising the potential for contamination. These well are 

closely monitored. 

Surface water: Salmonid habitat below the dam on Clear 

Creek has been degraded by the Whiskeytown Dam 

reducing gravel input downstream. Likewise, there has 

been siltation behind the dam in the lake. There is some 

shoreline erosion on Whiskeytown Lake. However, the 

Bureau of Reclamation (BOR) has jurisdiction over the 

lake and controls the water level. The NPS has little input 

in the control of the water level and timing of the release 

of water from the lake. The BOR also has responsibility 

for the water quality of the lake. 

Wetlands: There are some wetlands along the shoreline 

of Whiskeytown Lake. There may be a need to 

characterize and monitor these areas, especially as they 

respond to changes in lake levels. 

Seismic activity: Although there are minor earthquakes in 

Whiskeytown, there are no major active faults. There are 

frequent minor earthquakes around Lake Shasta. A 

seismograph has been set up in the area as part of the 

University of California, Berkley network. 

Volcanic hazards: Ashfall from a major eruption of Mt. 

Lassen could impact the park. 
 WHIS Geologic Resource Evaluation Report 41

List of Scoping Meeting attendees with contact information 

NAME AFFILIATION PHONE E-MAIL 

Tim Connors NPS, Geologic Resources 

Division (303) 969- 2093 Tim_Connors@nps.gov 

Sid Covington NPS, Geologic Resources 

Division (303) 969- 2154 Sid_Covington@nps.gov 

Anne Poole NPS, Geologic Resources 

Division (303) 987- 6954 Anne_Poole@nps.gov 

Pete Biggam NPS, Natural Resources 

Information Division (303).987- 6948 Pete_Biggam@nps.gov 

Chris Currens USGS, Biological Resources 

Division (707) 825- 5189 CCurrens@usgs.gov 

Marsha Davis NPS, Columbia Cascades 

Support Office (206) 220- 4262 Marsha_Davis@nps.gov 

Brian Rasmussen NPS, Whiskeytown NRA Brian_Rasmussen@nps.gov 

Daniel Sarr NPS, Klamath Network Daniel_Sarr@nps.gov 

Bob Truitt NPS, Klamath Network Bob_Truitt@nps.gov 

Hanna Waterstat NPS, Klamath Network Hannah_Waterstat@nps.gov 

The Department of the Interior protects and manages the nation’s natural resources and cultural heritage; provides scientific and other 

information about those resources; and honors its special responsibilities to American Indians, Alaska Natives, and affiliated Island 

Communities. 

Whiskeytown National Recreation Area 

Geologic Resource Evaluation Report 

Natural Resource Report NPS/NRPC/GRD/NRR—2007/008 

NPS D-98, June 2007 

National Park Service 

Director • Mary A. Bomar 

Natural Resource Stewardship and Science 

Associate Director • Michael A. Soukup 

Natural Resource Program Center 

The Natural Resource Program Center (NRPC) is the core of the NPS Natural Resource Stewardship and 

Science Directorate. The Center Director is located in Fort Collins, with staff located principally in 

Lakewood and Fort Collins, Colorado and in Washington, D.C. The NRPC has five divisions: Air 

Resources Division, Biological Resource Management Division, Environmental Quality Division, Geologic 

Resources Division, and Water Resources Division. NRPC also includes three offices: The Office of 

Education and Outreach, the Office of Inventory, Monitoring and Evaluation, and the Office of Natural 

Resource Information Systems. In addition, Natural Resource Web Management and Partnership 

Coordination are cross- cutting disciplines under the Center Director. The multidisciplinary staff of NRPC 

is dedicated to resolving park resource management challenges originating in and outside units of the 

national park system. 

Geologic Resources Division 

Chief • David B. Shaver 

Planning Evaluation and Permits Branch Chief • Carol McCoy 

Credits 

Author • Trista Thornberry- Ehrlich

Editing • Brian Rasmussen, Sid Covington, and Melanie Ransmeier 

Digital Map Production • Stephanie O’Meara, Trista Thornberry- Ehrlich, and Victor deWolfe 

Map Layout Design • Georgia Hybels
Geologic Resources Division 

Natural Resource Program Center 

P.O. Box 25287 

Denver, CO 80225 

http://www.nature.nps.gov/geology/inventory/ 

(303) 969-2090 

EXPERIENCE YOUR AMERICATM 

National Park Service 

U.S. Department of the Interior