Fall AGS Fieldtrip

The AGS Field Trip on Saturday, October 25, 2008, to view the Canyon Dam gorge was a
splendid success. On a stunningly beautiful day, we traversed the gorge that was created by an
enormous cascade of water (circa 70,000 cubic feet per second) when the dam’s spillway
overtopped in July, 2002. An analysis of the hydrology of the flood event was presented by
Raymond Slade. The walk through the gorge focused on detailed stratigraphy, lithofacies
analyses, and paleontology of the Glen Rose Limestone as presented by Bill Ward, Ann
Molineux, and Pat Abbott. Structural geology of the Hidden Valley Fault was presented by
Kevin Smart. In addition, Jim Sansom provided a historical summary and engineering attributes
of Canyon Dam. A road log for the route that included travel to the dam via IH-35 and a return
via scenic back roads of the Hill Country was prepared by Chock Woodruff and Eddie Collins.
The field trip guidebook (AGS # 30) was dedicated to the memory of Professor James Lee
Wilson, who was a preeminent expert on carbonate rocks (Shell Oil, Rice University, and The
University of Michigan). Final layout of the guidebook was done by Shane Valentine.