Field Trips

The field trip was led by Dr. Perry Rahn, geologist and Professor Emeritus at South Dakota School of Mines and Technology. The trip included a discussion of the history of the mine including the structures still present, the fact that little historical gold production occurred at the site, and the observation that one of the interpretive signs includes a poorly worded and arguably incorrect reference to meteor impacts as the reason for the presence of gold in the rock. At the conclusion of the field trip, Dr. Rahn, a member of AIPG since 1977, was presented a “Lifetime Achievement Award” by the South Dakota Section for his many contributions to the organization and to the fields of geology and geological engineering. Dr. Rahn’s nomination letter for this award was written by 2024-25 SD Section President Dr. J. Foster Sawyer.

Click on photos below to enlarge.

The field trip was led by Dr. J. Foster Sawyer, geologist and Faculty/Research Scientist at Oglala Lakota College. The trip included an in-depth look at classic exposures of Paleozoic and Mesozoic strata in the southern Black Hills of South Dakota.

The field trip was led by Brian Fagnan, geologist with the South Dakota Geological Survey. The trip included stops along the Needles Highway, an abandoned pegmatite mine, Sylvan Lake, Mt. Coolidge, and the Rankin Ridge area of Wind Cave National Park. The trip was attended by eight members, family, and friends of the South Dakota Section.

This field trip focused on Cretaceous stratigraphic units exposed along the Missouri River near Chamberlain, SD, along with their associated paleontological characteristics and taxa. The trip was led by Dr. Darrin Pagnac, Curator of Vertebrate Paleontology at the Museum of Geology at the South Dakota School of Mines & Technology. The trip was attended by 14 members and family/friends of the SD Section and consisted of a four-hour roundtrip pontoon ride from the Marina at Arrowwood Cedar Shore Resort & Conference Center in Oacoma, SD, to exposures of Cretaceous strata in the area as shown in the story map at:

https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/ce92b7d5079e40d9858290a39bb400c0 

The trip focused on the outcrops along the shores of the Missouri River in the Lewis and Clark Lake. This Reservoir is located above Gavin’s Point Dam. This field trip is boat-based and designed with at starting point at the Gavin’s Point boat ramp.

The trip focused on the Deadwood Formation in the Black Hills of South Dakota and “Frac Sand” Potential, led by SD Section President Derric Iles and other staff members of the SD Geological Survey including Mark Fahrenbach, Tom Marshall, and Brian Fagnan.

Field Guide Driving Route

During the 49^th Annual AIPG National Conference, that the South Dakota Section hosted, there were 14 different field trips and tours.  These are a few photos from some of the trips.

For the conference agenda, abstracts and list of the field trip titles, see pages 7-15 of the Sept/Oct 2012 issue of The Professional Geologist.

The trip focused on the geology of Bear Butte in the north-eastern Black Hills and included a hike to the summit

The field trip was conducted on a section of the Missouri River.  It was attended by 23 people and included 14 kayaks and 4 canoes.  The trip began at Myron Grove boat ramp on the South Dakota side and ended at the Mulberry Bend boat ramp on the Nebraska side. Derric Iles lead the float.

This field trip focused on hydrogeology of the east-central Black Hills. Thanks for Foster Sawyer and Perry Rahn for organizing it!

Thanks for Jack Redden for organizing it!

Thanks for Perry Rahn for organizing it!

The Quaternary history of northeastern South Dakota is one of repeated glacial and nonglacial events. Ice sheets that covered all or part of the region at various times have left behind an impressive accumulation of a variety of glacial sediments. Thanks to Mike Meyer and Pat Emmons for helping organize the trip and to Jay Gilbertson for leading it!

More information.

The field trip went to Mt. Rushmore National Memorial and the
Mammoth Site of Hot Springs. Paul Nelson from RESPEC kindly agreed to give a very interesting presentation on the system
to monitor rock movement/stability at Mt. Rushmore. Thanks to Tom Durkin for organizing it!

Itinerary

Thanks to Mark Nelson, Perry Rahn, and Gary Haag for helping to organize it!

Fifteen members and friends of SDAIPG toured Badlands National Park.  The weather was perfect and the scenery spectacular. Dr. Mark Fahrenbach of the SD Geological Survey guided the group on several stops that focused on the unique geology and paleontology of The Badlands. Recent landslide areas, the fossil exhibit trail, the Acheotherium excavation site (i.e., “Pig Dig”), Sheep Mt. Table, Pinnacles Overlook, and several other locations were visited. Robin Barber was the winner of the drawing for the Estwing Rock Hammer. After the geology tour was over, most of the group continued to Quinn, SD where Ron Dyvig, President of Badlands Observatory showed us the large Newtonian telescope and observatory that he constructed for astonomical research and education.  The evening was topped off by a sighting of the International Space Station as it orbited overhead. Thanks to Tom Durkin for organizing it!

Photos taken at 7,400 foot level of mine.  Date is believed to be October 2000. Thanks to Mark Nelson for organizing it!