Geology in the Pyrenees

This year's field training course was in the southern pyrenees.  Truly a breath taking place!  Our two tutors teach at the university in Barcelona and were nothing short of amazing!  The theme for this year's training was structure.  Basically faulting and more specifically extensional and contractional faulting.

There's not a lot I can really say because I think the pictures speak more than words do when it comes to geology, as long as you know what you are looking at.  The first day was extension tectonics, followed by 3 days of compression tectonics (thrusting), one day of growth strata and the final day was spent inside a salt mine.  Salt tectonics is an amazing thing when you realize that salt is a solid state rock but the ability it has to "flow" and create folds and vertical beds.

We stayed at a wonderful hotel, the Can Boix.  If you ever find yourself in that part of Spain, the Can Boix is a must!  The views are amazing, the hotel is adorable and the food is out of this world!!!  We had three course meals for lunch and dinner, even when we had packed lunches in the field.

The tutors do these amazing sketches in the field

This is the outcrop they were sketching in the picture above

View looking down the hinge of an anticline

More amazing views

Josep sketching the outcrop

Vertical beds in the background

The poppies were in full bloom

Can Boix hotel

Entrance to the salt mine

Stalactites forming on the ceiling

Salt folds 

Salt precipitating out from the water creating stalactites

For the complete Photo Album