Caulfeild Park
West Vancouver
BC
Explore the unique geology at Caulfeild Park with Colin Godwin, Professor Emeritus, UBC Department of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences, and Des Wilson, a previous Geology Instructor and Dean of Science, Douglas College. As you visit the very scenic shore in the park, you will see the oldest rocks in the Vancouver area. These rocks formed deep within the Earth’s crust under very high temperature and pressure. Since then, they have been elevated by Earth forces, and the overlying rocks have been eroded. There are two main types of rocks at Caulfeild Park: (i) “roof-pendant” dark-laminated metamorphic gneiss [“Caulfeild gneiss” that originally was mainly volcanic rock about 200 million years old], and (ii) pale granitic rocks that intruded the gneiss, and which consist mainly of medium-grained quartz, feldspar and hornblende [Coast Range granodiorite, about 150 million years old]. Features at this site featured in 1950’s pre-plate-tectonic debates about the origin of granitic rocks.
Caulfeild Park is a shore park in West Vancouver. It can be accessed by car from Marine Drive, approximately 10 km from Lions Gate Bridge. Parking is limited and restricted to designated sections of Pilot House Road and Piccadilly Street (park in the designated parking sections only). If you are interested in carpooling, meet at Runnel Drive on the street behind The Coquitlam Grill in Coquitlam at 9:00 am.
THINGS TO KNOW
- Level of difficulty: An easy, short stroll from the parking area
- Date: Sunday, April 29.
- Time: 10:00 am to 1:00 pm
- Wear sturdy shoes with good tread as there are slippery, lower seaweed-algae areas of the outcrops
- Dress appropriately for the weather. It can be cool by the ocean, especially since we won’t be moving quickly.
- Bring your own lunch and water
- There is no cost for this event
Contact Christina Saremba at 2sarembas@gmail.com or 604.351.9643 if you are interested in coming on the field trip.