Snowboarding and Geology

2011-05-02 20:22:52.000 – Mike Finnegan,  IT Observer

Skiing or Geology?

If you like rocks, then Mount Washington, affectionately known as the Rockpile, is a great place to be. There are interesting rocks to be seen all over the mountain, from erratics deposited down in Cow Pasture to others precariously perched one atop another. These ones in particular I spied as I booted back up a gully in the Great Gulf after riding down with Becca and Brian this afternoon. Being a climber, I see many other wonders of geology around the White Mountains, from the shear cliffs of Cathedral Ledge to the slabs of Whitehorse. Elephant’s Head gully in Crawford Notch is a great quick ice climb and an interesting feature. If discovering and investigating these places sounds interesting, you can check them out and more at the White Mountain Geology Workshop on Saturday, May 14th. Geologists P. Thom Davis of Bentley University and Greg Kirby from the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services will lead a workshop on the bedrock and surficial geology of ‘the notches’ and adjacent areas to the south in the Whites. Although the workshop begins inside, the majority of the day will be spent outside in the field. There is no better way to learn than to experience something firsthand and this is a great opportunity to do so with some very knowledgeable folks.

On an unrelated note, please notice that Brian looks like a penguin in the thumbnail to the right. It made me laugh and laughing is good, so I thought I’d share my observation. It is my job after all.

Mike Finnegan,  IT Observer