Amargosa Chaos
SC2. Location/Access:(35o 55.409’N, 116o 38.255’W) Approximately 3.5 miles east of Ashford Mill. Stop anywhere directly along the main highway and look to the north. Direct access to the rocks will require a moderate hike north across the alluvial fan to the mountain front.
Best Time: All year in the morning.
Geology: For professional geologists, this is one of the most famous geologic locations in the world. Although completely obscure to lay people and confusing for many years to all but a few insightful geologists, this area is a type locality for understanding extensional tectonics. Building on the work of other geologists, Wright and Troxel (1984, and many other prior and later publications) conclusively demonstrated that the southern portion of the Great Basin has undergone profound extension, perhaps as much as 100%, in relatively recent (Miocene) times. In this area, the Precambrian rocks mentioned at previous sites have been faulted, rotated, attenuated and in some places completely turned upside down by forces related to extension. It is a highly confusing site and when visiting the area one should have a copy of Wright & Troxel’s 1984 map as well as a copy of the diagram on page 721 of Wright & Miller (2004) and a copy of page 71 of Miller & Wright (2004). Good luck.
