Graduate student, William Jarvis, and undergrad Ben Walters spent 4 weeks mapping the lithologies and structures of scenic Coast Range of Central California, and especially the lost Los Burros mining district. Here is Ben’s testimonial for this unforgettable experience:
“ The fieldwork consisted of camping, hiking, and cooking in beautiful landscapes. Ocean and beaches on one side, mountains on the other, and scenic 
Highway 1 in-between. The north-facing slopes of the mountains were shaded with redwoods, while the south-facing slopes were golden fields above the clouds dotted and sparsely with oak trees. There, we sometime found signs of humanity, past and present. An ancient cabin in the woods crowned with a deer skull, a friendly son of a gold miner who had lived in the mountains for much of the past 60 years, abandoned gold mines everywhere you looked, jade hunters combing the beaches, tourists climbing the trails with us, and old logging equipment and cars laying next to redwoods still standing proud.
What did we actually do for fieldwork? We used our trusty Brunton compasses, rock hammers, topographic maps, GPS, sample bags, hand lens, and field notebooks to measure and record lithology, structures, and locations. After days trying to figure out how it all the geology worked, it became a treasure hunt for outcrops while hiking.
It wasn’t all fun and games. Poison Oak was probably the worst thing out there, and sometimes we had to walk through entire fields of the fiends to find the outcrops we were looking for. In some places the flies and mosquitos could be oppressive, and in one memorable spot, the lady bugs.
It was California, so everything was overpriced. The heat was oppressive our first couple of days, but we got around that by taking siestas and hiking near the cooler coast. Due to COVID-19, trying to rent a 4-wheel drive truck was a grueling quest we never did complete! So, at one point we got stuck when our back-wheel drive truck couldn’t make the next rise. I believe that is part of the adventures!
If I could go back, I would. Fieldwork in such a beautiful locale with such interesting geology was a dream.”
