New Mexico - Sacramento Mountains; Mississippian Lake Valley Formation

[Kato]

Mother Nature graced us locally with another temperate day so I had time to squeeze in a long exploration into some hidden canyons that comprise a large subset of the local Mississippian formation known as 'Lake Valley'

 

 

To get to the canyons of interest I walked through Silurian-Devonian exposures but I did not stop to explore for anything.

 

Here was my first view toward the hidden Lake Valley Formation canyons. You can see deformation from the mud mounding. 

 

More to follow.

 

 

 

[Kato]

I tend to take the most difficult way in the first time I visit a locale. This time was no different. Once at this location I spotted a narrow game trail I will use in future trips.  This time I followed along the bottom of the tiny butte on a different game trail. At this point the first hidden canyon is not visible.

 

The ground and formation is absolutely littered with crinoid remnants.

 

 

 

 

[Kato]

Traipsing around the bend affords the first view into the small bowl preceding the first of 2 hidden canyons.

 

It's my thought there is a small igneous dike under this bowl/canyon. There is evidence of small camptonite debris just at the bottom left of the bowl.

 

 

I hiked to the opposite end of the bowl to take a photo

[Kato]

Down in the bowl revealed these layers with, possibly, some thin igneous veins of camptonite shooting through.

 

 

 

[Kato]

At another location in the bowl where the crinoids are much more obvious. For reference, most of the bigger diameter crinoid columns are approaching 20mm (3/4").

 

[Kato]

A hash plate

 

 

 

[Kato]

A different layer in the formation containing crinoids, horn corals and brachiopods

 

[Kato]

I collected some small samples and proceeded to climb out of the small bowl to ascend the first hidden canyon

 

 

 

[Kato]

Up the first canyon was very little bedrock and mostly boulder scramble and bushwhacking. I did come across this nice trace fossil. Zoophycos, I think.

[Kato]

Also, some of the boulders had large diameter chert type nodules full of crinoids. This nodule 6" in diameter (15-16 cm).

[Kato]

At the top of this canyon there was a formation full of nodules of various diameters. It was like walking on ball bearings. Unfortunately, I can't seem to find a photo of that. I did whack a few nodules and they had small crystals inside. I didn't find any obvious fossils.

 

Turning I descended into a different canyon that was older Lake Valley. 

 

 

From a hiking point of view, this 2nd canyon was much more of a joy to hike as almost 75% of it was sheer bedrock that afforded one the opportunity to view the rock strata.

 

 

 

[Kato]

Turning the corner one officially enters the 2nd canyon which descends, for the most part, on a marble like limestone layer.

 

[Kato]

Small bowls worn into the bedrock

[Kato]

Pinons, tamarisk, sotil, banana yucca and other local vegetation. A great place for a picnic or to throw down a sleeping mat and bag to cowboy camp during dry weather.

[Kato]

Interesting pink colored crinoid sample

 

[Kato]

I am hopeful one of you brachipod experts can put a name to this one. It is not very detailed, hopefully one can make a determination by what remains.

 

 

When I do these exploratory trips I am usually moving fast and light. I typically don't take many, if any, samples. Mostly I am determining if they are locales I'd like to re-visit. I would say this trip had a lot of visual wow factors going for it and plenty of solitude.

[Tidgy's Dad]

Nice report with some super photos. 

It's a productid brachiopod, but i wouldn't like to guess which one.

[Monica]

Such beautiful scenery!!!  Thanks for taking us along, and congrats on finding some sweet fossils!