Both the gneiss and intrusives have been overprinted by pervasive chloritization, cataclastized and mylonitized. Overlying the basement rocks are a series of volcanic, volcaniclastic and epiclastic rocks of Miocene age. These rocks have been loosely grouped into the Jackhammer, Pickhandle and Barstow Formations to the north in the Mud Hills and Calico Mountains. Present practice is to simply map the Miocene rocks of the Waterman Hills as undifferentiated. The WHDF juxtaposes lower plate Waterman Gneiss and Mesozoic intrusive and upper plate Tertiary volcanics and sedimentary rocks.
Kinematic indicators suggest top to the northeast shear.
Subsequent rotation must have occurred since northeast transport would necessitate a northeast dip for the master detachment surface. High angle normal faults cut both the basement complex and Tertiary rocks. The relationship of these faults to the structural evolution of the central Mojave is enigmatic. In the Calico Mountains to the northeast, these faults appear to be listric faults related to upper plate transport during Miocene extension. However, in the Mitchell Range to the east and to a lesser extent in the Waterman Hills these faults can be seen to cut the metamorphic basement complex and hence would appear to be post-detachment.