MAPPING A TECTONIC PLATE COLLISION: Rocks and Rain in the Olympic Backcountry

Along the west coast of North America, from Mexico to southern Canada, are mountain ranges of diverse character collectively called the Coast Ranges. The Olympic Mountains, at the extreme northwest corner of the conterminous United States, are a unique part of these ranges. Even though they are closely related in rock composition to the Coast Ranges of Oregon, they are separated from them by the broad lowland of the Chehalis River and are considerably higher and more rugged. They have some scenery in common with the Insular Ranges of Vancouver Island in Canada but are geologically quite different. To learn more about the geology of the region, or to take a virtual field trip, go to http://geomaps.wr.usgs.gov/parks/olym/index.html

Dr. Rowland W. Tabor, a leading scientist of the region and author of the seminal publication Geology of Olympic National Park, will present his personal experiences mapping in the Olympics, a detailed outline of their geology, the development of geologic ideas, and briefly mention of some new work by others.
The Saturday May 4th lecture at 4 pm in Port Townsend is sponsored by the Jefferson Land Trust Geology Group and will be held at the Quimper Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, 2333 San Juan Avenue. For more information, contact Michael Machette 531-2441 or visit www.quimpergeology.org

The Sunday, May 5th presentation in Port Angeles will be at 4 pm in room M125 at Peninsula College, 1502 E. Lauridsen. This event is co-sponsored by the Coastal Watershed Institute (CWI) and Peninsula College. For more information, contact Nicole Harris, CWI, nicole.harris@coastalwatershedinstitute.org, or Barb Blackie, Peninsula College, BBlackie@pencol.edu. The talks are free and open to the public, but a donation of $5 would be appreciated to defray expenses.