REGIONAL DAY TRIPS (offered periodically or as requested)

 

Northern Utah (around Salt Lake City, UT):

 

Explore more than two billion years of Utah’s geologic story on three distinctly different one-day field trips.

• On Antelope Island, we’ll examine some of the region’s oldest rocks alongside remarkably young shorelines left by Ice Age Lake Bonneville.

• ​​In Little Cottonwood Canyon, spectacular bedrock exposures reveal a story of magma, mountain uplift, and powerful alpine glaciers.

• Our third trip travels from Ogden to Echo Canyon, crossing tilted and folded rocks that record the immense compressional forces of the Sevier Orogeny.

 

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Southwestern Utah (around St George, UT):

 

Three one-day trips explore the remarkable landscapes around St. George, Utah.

• Trip 1 explores the lava flows, colorful sandstone, and dramatic scenery of Snow Canyon State Park.

• Trip 2 traverses the transition zone between the Colorado Plateau and Basin and Range, from young volcanoes to ancient crystalline basement rock.

• Trip 3 investigates two magnificent structures,  the Virgin Anticline and Hurricane Fault, to see firsthand how folding, faulting, and uplift have shaped this landscape.

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Southern Utah/Northern Arizona (around Page, AZ):

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Two one-day trips investigate some of the most spectacular geologic landscapes of the Colorado Plateau.

• Trip 1 examines the amazing East Kaibab Monocline, a huge fold that dramatically bends the rocks of the Colorado Plateau, along with the colorful sedimentary rocks of this region.

• Trip 2 journeys to Marble Canyon near Lee’s Ferry where we’ll examine the colorful rock layers, dramatic cliffs, and the beginnings of the Grand Canyon while unraveling the region’s geologic history.

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Central Idaho (around Stanley, ID): 

 

A one-day hike that explores the spectacular geology of Idaho’s Sawtooth Mountains, starting at Redfish Lake and heading into Redfish Canyon, where dramatic peaks, glacially carved valleys, and beautiful exposures of granite tell the story of how this iconic landscape formed.

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Southern Idaho (around Twin Falls, ID):

 

Discover the remarkable geologic diversity of southern Idaho on five unique one-day field trips.

• Craters of the Moon, we’ll explore a remarkably young volcanic landscape of lava flows, cinder cones, fissures, and other features created by repeated basaltic eruptions.

• At City of Rocks, we’ll investigate spectacular granite fins, domes, and ancient basement rocks while learning how weathering and erosion sculpted this iconic landscape.

• Along the Snake River Canyon, we’ll uncover evidence of enormous Yellowstone supervolcano eruptions and the incredible erosional features left behind by the catastrophic Bonneville Flood.

• Explores Box Canyon, Malad Gorge, and the Hagerman area, where powerful springs, deep canyons, volcanic rocks, and other hidden geologic treasures reveal a surprisingly complex landscape.

• Visit the otherworldly spires and hoodoos of Little City of Rocks before venturing into Black Magic Canyon, where flowing water has sculpted a narrow, twisting passage through basalt. Together, these trips reveal why southern Idaho is such a remarkable natural geology laboratory—where volcanoes, catastrophic floods, ancient rocks, powerful springs, and millions of years of erosion have created an astonishing variety of landscapes.

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ANNUAL TRIPS

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Big Island of Hawai’i: 

A one-week trip (usually in early January) exploring one of the most volcanically active places on Earth. We’ll travel around Hawai‘i’s Big Island examining lava flows, craters, faults, coastlines, and the remarkable landscapes created by the island’s active volcanoes. From Kohala to Kīlauea, we’ll explore the evidence that reveals how a Hawaiian island is built—and how it continues to change today.  Trip includes hikes up to 3 miles (4.8 km) with 500 feet (152 m) elevation change over rocky terrain.

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Grand Canyon:

Join me and Western River Expeditions for an unforgettable rafting adventure through the heart of the Grand Canyon. Over six days (usually May or June) , we’ll travel down the Colorado River, explore spectacular side canyons, and examine the rocks and landscapes that reveal how one of the world’s great geologic wonders came to be. It’s an extraordinary combination of geology, adventure, and some of the most spectacular scenery on Earth.

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Iceland:

Spend a week (usually occurs sometime between May to August) exploring the spectacular geology of southern Iceland. We’ll visit volcanoes, lava fields, faults, glaciers, waterfalls, black-sand beaches, and the active plate boundary where North America and Eurasia are pulling apart. Along the way, we’ll explore both Iceland’s ancient geologic story and the dramatic volcanic activity reshaping the Reykjanes Peninsula today. Few places on Earth put so much geology on display in such a small area. Trip includes hikes up to 3 miles (4.8 km) with 500 feet (152 m) elevation change over rocky terrain.

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Chasing the Yellowstone Hot Spot: 

Follow the trail of one of Earth’s great volcanic systems. This four-day, caravan-style field trip (late September to early October) begins near Twin Falls, Idaho, and follows the Yellowstone hot spot northeastward across the Snake River Plain to Yellowstone. Along the way, we’ll investigate an incredible variety of volcanic features—from basalt lava flows and volcanic rift zones to massive explosive eruptions, calderas, and thick deposits of volcanic ash and rhyolite. By the time we reach Yellowstone, you’ll see how more than 10 million years of volcanism connects the landscapes of southern Idaho with the spectacular volcanic system beneath Yellowstone today. Trip includes a few short hikes and one up to 2 miles (3.2 km) with 600 feet (182 m) elevation change.