Northern Arizona Geology

In northern Arizona it's all about the Colorado Plateau. From the Grand Canyon to the Mogollon Rim, this land here is the delight of anyone even remotely interested in geology. If stones can't talk, it's possibly for a good reason. The stories they may have to recount dating back millions of years would indeed prove deafening.

Geology, as we all know, is the study of the earth. In northern Arizona this assumes proportions as deep as the Grand Canyon. For not many places afford the diversity and sense of history—both prehistoric and recorded—that is laid out here in the vast desert expanses, snow capped mountains, and rocky crevices.

The Colorado River has been at work for eons on the walls of the Canyon, surrendering nuggets of information that possibly dates back to Creation. The varying colors of the exposed canyon walls make for great photo ops for the tourist but divulge far more valuable material to those in the know. They hold the key to unlocking the mysteries of prehistoric times such as the Paleozoic and Precambrian eras. It might interest you to know of the 1840-million year old Elves Chasm quartz diorite that rests at the bottom of the Grand Canyon.

Geologists have the time of their lives exploring daunting earth fissures and gorges that hold a great deal of information as to precious minerals and early mining history. The Native Americans mined superficially for coal, quartz and such, but the advent of the Spanish soon turned mining into a professional hunt for silver, copper, gold, molybdenum and other profitable pursuits.

The deceptively barren façade of northern Arizona holds much more than precious minerals and gems. Fossils found here have enormous implications in drawing out an authentic account of life forms that roamed the earth, possibly even before man showed up. The Museum of Northern Arizona holds the life size model of the carnivorous Dilophosaurus; an ancient resident of northern Arizona. This museum is where your search for geological information of this region ought to begin.