New Mexico Geological Society
Fall Field Conference Guidebook – 62
Geology of the Tusas Mountains and Ojo Caliente

Daniel J. Koning, Karl E. Karlstrom, Shari A. Kelley, Virgil W. Lueth, Scott B. Aby, [editors], 2011,
418 pages.

The 2011 NMGS Fall Field Conference, based out of Espanola, traveled through the Tusas Mountains of north central New Mexico. Mesa de la Jarita was the focus of day 1 with stops focused on the Proterozoic igneous and metamorphic rocks with additional stops featuring Tertiary volcanic rocks of the area. Day 2 concentrated on the Tertiary rocks that lie directly on the Proterozoic in the Tres Piedras, Rio Tusas, and El Rito areas. Day 3 centered on the Ojo Caliente area with specialized field trips that concentrated on Proterozoic metamorphic rocks at Cerro Colorado, the Ojo Caliente tuff ring, La Madera traverines, and the Tertiary geology of the Arroyo Seco area. Nineteen research papers explore a wide variety of geologic subjects and 15 color plates help illustrate the geology of the field conference area.

There are two versions of this guidebook available — the complete guidebook (418 pages), and a version with just the road logs that is spiral bound (164 pages).

ISBN: 9781585460977

Table of Contents:

Note —Downloads of the papers below are free. Road logs mini-papers, maps, and other sections are only available in print.

1. Mesa de La Jarita: First-day road log from Espanola to Mesa de la Jarita via Ojo Caliente and Rio Vallecitos
   — Daniel Koning, Karl E. Karlstrom, Aby, Scott, Kempter, Kirt, Tony Benson, and Benjamin Drenth, pp. 1-60.

Mini-papers:

2. Summary of the North Railroad Avenue Plume Superfund Site
   — Steve Jetter, pp. 43-44.
3. Chimaja: Spring-parsley of the desert
   — Kurt E. Sickafus, pp. 44-46.
4. Archaeology of the Rio Ojo Caliente province
   — Richard I. Ford, pp. 46-49.
5. A brief history of Ojo Caliente, New Mexico
   — Daniel J. Koning, pp. 50-51.
6. High-level, quartzitic gravel deposits in the southern Tusas Mountains and development of the fault-bounded escarpment east of the Rio Vallecitos
   — Daniel J. Koning, pp. 52-54.
7. Hydrogeologic regions of Rio Arriba County, New Mexico
   — Finch, Steven T., Jr., Embid, , Eileen, and Chance Coats, pp. 55-57.
8. The Vallecitos Federal Sustained Yield Unit
   — Gabriel M. Romero, pp. 57.
9. Big Rock and adjacent kyanite deposits, Petaca district, Rio Arriba County, New Mexico
   — Virginia T. McLemore, pp. 58-59.
10. The Apache Pegmatite Mine, Petaca district, Rio Arriba County, New Mexico
    — Virginia T. McLemore, pp. 59-60.
11. Tres Piedras, Rio Tusas, and El Riot: Second-day road log from Espanola to Tres Piedras and then down the Rio Tusas (passing Las Tablas, Petaca, and La Madera) to El Rito
    — Daniel Koning, Kirt Kempter, Scott Aby, Tony Benson, and Karl Karlstrom, pp. 61-117.

Mini-papers:

12. Poseyemu, the Pan-Pueblo culture hero
    — Daniel J. Koning, pp. 99.
13. The Embudo local fauna from a high altitude Pliocene fossil site in Rio Arriba County, New Mexico
    — Scott B. Aby and Gary S. Morgan, pp. 100-101.
14. The Santa Fe Branch, aka 'Chili Line', of the Denver and Rio Grande railroad
    — Scott Aby, pp. 102.
15. Stratigraphy near South Petaca, north-central New Mexico
    — Daniel J. Koning, Scott B. Aby, and Kirt A. Kempter, pp. 102-105.
16. Structural, anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility, geochemistry, and paleomagnetic investigations of a steeply dipping, welded tuff (Amalia Tuff) south of Petaca, New Mexico
    — Lorraine Garcia, Michael Petronis, Daniel Koning, Matt Zimmerer, and Nelia Dunbar, pp. 105-109.
17. Globe pegmatite mine, Petaca district, Rio Arriba County, New Mexico
    — Virginia T. McLemore, pp. 109-110.
18. Late Oligocene-early Miocene stratigraphy in Lower Canon de los Alamos, and evolution of early rift drainages northeast of La Madera
    — Daniel J. Koning, pp. 110-113.
19. My hometown, El Rito
    — Epseranza Gonzales, pp. 113-115.
20. The Old Normal School at El Rito: A brief history
    — Sigfredo Maestas, pp. 115-117.
21. Ojo Caliente area: Third-day road log from Espanola to Ojo Caliente, and then four trip options: Ojo Caliente tuff ring, Cerro Colorado, La Madera travertines, or Arroyo Seco
    — Daniel J. Koning, Kirt Kempter, Karl Karlstrom, Laura Crossey, Jud May, and Robert Horning, pp. 119-138.

Mini-papers:

22. Hydrogeology of southwestern Taos County
    — Tony Benson and Gervason,, pp. 139-142.
23. The Ojo Caliente tuff ring
    — S. Judson May and Robert Horning, pp. 142-143.
24. Joseph Pegmatite Mine, Ojo Caliente No. 1 district, Rio Arriba County, New Mexico
    — Virginia T. McLemore, pp. 144.

Papers:

Note — To download papers from this guidebook, you will need a PDF viewer like the free Adobe Acrobat Reader.

25. Geophysical expression of elements of the Rio Grande rift in the northeast Tusas Mountains - Preliminary interpretations (3.59 MB PDF)
    — Benjamin J. Drenth, Kenzie J. Turner, Ren A. Thompson, V. J. S. Grauch, Michaela A. Cosca, and John P. Lee, pp. 165-176. [ABSTRACT]
26. Structural evolution and timing of deformation along the Proterozoic Spring Creek shear zone of the northern Tusas Mountains (4.06 MB PDF)
    — Peter Davis, Mike Williams, and Karl Karlstrom, pp. 177-190. [ABSTRACT]
27. Geology of southern Black Mesa, Espanola Basin, New Mexico: New stratigraphic age control and interpretation of the southern Embudo fault system of the Rio Grande rift (4.90 MB PDF)
    — Daniel J Koning, William McIntosh, and Nelia Dunbar, pp. 191-214. [ABSTRACT] Supplemental Data: https://nmgs.nmt.edu/repository/index.cfml?rid=2011001
28. ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar dating, sanidine chemistry and potential sources of the Las Tablas Tuff, northern New Mexico (964 KB PDF)
    — Matthew J. Zimmerer and William C. McIntosh, pp. 215-222. [ABSTRACT] Supplemental Data: https://nmgs.nmt.edu/repository/index.cfml?rid=2011004
29. Irregular bodies of non-welded Amalia Tuff within the Pena Tank Rhyolite, western San Luis Basin, north-central NM (9.33 MB PDF)
    — William C. McIntosh, Daniel J. Koning, and Matt Zimmerer, pp. 223-234. [ABSTRACT] Supplemental Data: https://nmgs.nmt.edu/repository/index.cfml?rid=2011002
30. The late Oligocene Cieneguilla basanites, Santa Fe County: Records of early Rio Grande rift magmatism (6.48 MB PDF)
    — Jennifer Lindline, Michael Petronis, Rachell Pitrucha, and Salvador Sena, pp. 235-250. [ABSTRACT]
31. Miocene-Oligocene volcaniclastic deposits in the northern Abiquiu embayment and southern Tusas Mountains, New Mexico (2.87 MB PDF)
    — Daniel J. Koning, Kirt Kempter, Lisa Peters, William C McIintosh, and S. Judson May, pp. 251-274. [ABSTRACT] Supplemental Data: https://nmgs.nmt.edu/repository/index.cfml?rid=2011003
32. Recent mapping of the Oligo-Miocene Los Pinos Formation and associated units in the Tusas Mountains, New Mexico (445 KB PDF)
    — Scott B. Aby, Kirt Kempter, and Daniel Koning, pp. 275-280. [ABSTRACT]
33. Terrace stratigraphy, ages, and incision rates along the Rio Ojo Caliente, north-central New Mexico (2.17 MB PDF)
    — Daniel J. Koning, Dennis L. Newell, Andrei Sarna-Wojcicki, Nelia Dunbar, Karl Karlstrom, Anthony Salem, and Laura Crossey, pp. 281-300. [ABSTRACT]
34. The La Madera Travertines, Rio Ojo Caliente, northern New Mexico: Investigating the linked system of CO₂-rich springs and travertines as neotectonic and paleoclimate indicators (1.41 MB PDF)
    — Laura Crossey, Karl E. Karlstrom, Dennis L. Newell, Ara Kooser, and April Tafoya, pp. 301-316. [ABSTRACT]
35. Hydrogeology of the Tusas Mountains, Rio Arriba County, New Mexico (911 KB PDF)
    — Finch, Steven T., Jr., pp. 317-328. [ABSTRACT]
36. Hydrogeology of southeast Sunshine Valley, New Mexico (1.26 MB PDF)
    — Michael J. Darr, pp. 329-338. [ABSTRACT]
37. A new discovery of a skeleton of the horse Protohippus?, and a summary of the Miocene (Barstovian) fossil localities near Dixon, Rio Arriba County, New Mexico (620 KB PDF)
    — Gary S. Morgan, Aby, Scott, B., and Makaela Vogel, pp. 339-346. [ABSTRACT]
38. A paleontological survey of a part of the Tesuque Formation near Chimaya, New Mexico, and a summary of the biostratigraphy of the Pojoaque Member (Middle Miocene, Late Barstovian) (860 KB PDF)
    — Scott B. Aby, Gary S. Morgan, and Daniel J. Koning, pp. 347-358. [ABSTRACT]
39. Quartz-kyanite pods in the Tusas Mountains, northern New Mexico: A sheared and metamorphosed fossil hydrothermal system in the Vadito Group metarhyolite (1.88 MB PDF)
    — Mary C. Simmons, Karl E. Karlstrom, Michael W. Williams, and Toti E. Larson, pp. 359-378. [ABSTRACT]
40. Geology and mineral resources in the Hopewell and Bromide No. 2 districts, northern Tusas Mountains, Rio Arriba County, New Mexico (508 KB PDF)
    — Virginia T. McLemore, pp. 379-388. [ABSTRACT]
41. Rare earth bearing-minerals of the Petaca district, Rio Arriba County, New Mexico (800 KB PDF)
    — Michael N. Spilde, Steve Dubyk, Brian Salem, and William P. Moats, pp. 389-398. [ABSTRACT]
42. Uranium deposits in the Espanola Basin, Santa Fe County, New Mexico (653 KB PDF)
    — Virginia T. McLemore, David Vaniman, Dennis McQuillan, and Patrick Longmire, pp. 399-408. [ABSTRACT]
43. Perlite mining and reclamation in the No Agua Peaks, Taos County, New Mexico (3.14 MB PDF)
    — Ennis, David J., P.G., pp. 409-418. [ABSTRACT]