And We are Done!

It’s all over!

Six weeks of blood, sweat, and tears have brought us to our final day.  Okay, maybe not too much blood and maybe not a lot of tears, but they were definitely there!  We have successfully completed field camp!  The final week was a long chaotic one.  It started with our final mapping project and ended with our final mapping and written exams.

We were given our final mapping partners and spent four days out in the field mapping contacts and interpreting structure.  It was our largest mapping area.  The first day was spent walking around mostly confused trying to get comfortable and familiar with the afaultrea, but the second day was business as usual.  It is amazing how all the information we have learned so far is coming together.  We are all mapping robots now.  I think we all felt pretty comfortable after the fourth day and took our maps back to begin our cross sections and our first geologic field report.  I enjoyed writing the report, since we could tie the depositional and tectonic history of the region with what we actually observed in the field.  It felt like all the puzzle pieces were falling in place at just the right time.

Yesterday was our final mapping exam.  We were given only 6 hours in the field to map and then 3 and a half hours in a classroom at Snow College to complete our cross section and lithologic descriptions.  It was the most stressful thing I have done in geology so far and I am glad it is over and behind me.

Today was our final written exam, and I am also glad it is over.  Now all we have to do is pack, clean, and celebrate!  The best way to describe field camp was from previous field campers: “It is the best time that you never want to have again.”  I wasn’t entirely sure I believed them when they told me that, but I can now say that is a pretty accurate way to describe this whole experience.  However, I will miss the beautiful landscapes that we have been so lucky to map, camp, and study in.

We also want to give a special thanks to all of the instructors and teaching assistants that have helped us learn and survive this six week field camp.  Thank you to Dr. Tom Darrah, Dr. Dan Kelly, Dr. Cristina Millan, Dr. Terry Wilson, Will Blocher, Connor Gallagher, Tricia Hall, and Erica Maletic.  We literally could not have done this without you!  And thank you to everyone that cheered us on from at home!  Your faith and support in us kept us all going!  And that concludes OSU 2016 Geology Field Camp!

 

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