Eastern Mojave Vegetation New York Mountain Road - Mojave National Preserve  
 

Tom Schweich  
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Other articles:
• Pinto Valley Road:   at New York Mtn Rd;  

 Junction:
  • Pinto Valley Road

Full Size ImageMiocene pyroclastic rocks on the south flank of the New York Mountains.  		  

 

 

Literature Cited:
- Hewett, D. Foster, 1956.

Other articles:
• Eastern Mojave Geology:  Golden Quail Claims;  

Golden Quail Mine

The small hills at the mouth of Caruthers Canyon, in the southwest corner of New York Mountain Road and Caruthers Canyon Road have some very interesting and accessible examples of geology. The claims are currently known as the Golden Quail claims. Hewett (1956) describes this area as follows:

 

Within an area 1,500 feet in diameter in the low hills that lie 2 miles west of benchmark 5118 near the southern edge of New York Mountains there are eight shafts and short tunnels (no 110, pl. 2). The principal works is a shaft 250 feet deep with about 500 feet of drifts, which, to judge from the materials on the dump, explore the Cedar Canyon Fault along which flows of Teritary age on the south lie in contact with the Goodsprings dolomite and monzonite on the north. This shaft is dismantled but the dump yields blocks of nearly solid sulfides, largely pyrite with a little chalcopyrite, galena, and blende in a chloritic gangue (Hewett, 1956).
  This area is now known as the Golden Quail mine. Ore was being hauled to the mill at the former Vanderbilt Mine on Ivanpah Road. However, they last time I visited this area the mine and mill were inactive. However, if you visit, be careful of possible hazardous conditions.

Literature Cited:
- Hewett, D. Foster, 1956.

Other articles:
• Glossary:  gneiss;
Full Size ImageSketch map: 1987.  

 This is my field sketch map of the surficial geology I found during a day's visit.
  • sch - schist.
  • pE - metasandstone and metaconglomerate, possibly Precambrian and correlative with the Precambrian schist and gneiss found elsewhere in the Mid Hills, not mentioned by Hewett (1956).
  • ls - limestone, probably Goodsprings dolomite.
  • hb - highly sheared greenish rock, probably the Cedar Canyon Fault.
  • gr - granite.
  • Tv - Tertiary volcanics, probably Peach Springs Tuff or Hole-in-the-Wall Tuff.

    • Full Size ImageMetasandstone.      		 This picture, and the next two were taken on the first hill south of New York Mountain Road, and north of the Golden Quail mine. It shows the swirling deformed bedding planes in the metasandstone.

    Full Size ImageMetaconglomerate.      		 There are numerous outcrops of meta-conglomerate in this area. Conglomerate is a sedimentary rock of sand and rounded gravel. When it is slightly metamorphosed by heat and pressure, the mineral grains interlock between the gravel and the sand, so it becomes a single rock called "metaconglomerate" with a texture that looks like sand and gravel. When the rock is fractured, as the rock face is in this photograph, the fracture cuts right through what used to be individual pebbles, giving this natural terrazzo effect.

    Full Size ImageSlickensides near Golden Quail mine.      		 George Hilton examines some exposed slickensides in a small adit on the east side of the hill. Perhaps this is one trace of the Cedar Canyon Fault.

    Literature Cited:
    - Hewett, D. Foster, 1956.

    Other articles:
    • Field Notes:  198104010;   field trip;  23 May 1998;
    • Eastern Mojave Geology:  Golden Quail Claims;  Golden Quail Claims;

    Locations: Golden Quail Claims.  

    This is the shaft that Hewett (1956) notes is 250 feet deep. Kate, Scott, Matt, and Linda are looking at the owl chicks in a nest about 6 feet down the shaft. The shaft is gone now as the current operators of the Golden Quail mine have dug an open pit about 30 feet deep. The stake in the right foreground marked a bore from which cores had recently been taken. None of the cores were left at the mine location.

    Full Size Image
    The open pit of the Golden Quail Mine: 1998.    		 Full Size Image
    Exploration at the Golden Quail Mine: 1987.    		 Full Size Image
    Mine shaft: 1981.
    This is the Golden Quail Mine as it looked in March, 1998. The shaft discussed above has been dug out are replaced by an ugly open pit. Many new roads have been bulldozed, and the area left a horrible mess.

    Other articles:
    • Caruthers Canyon Road:   at New York Mtn Rd;  

    		 Junction:
    • Caruthers Canyon Road, north into Caruthers Canyon, at one time ending at the Giant Ledge Mine.

    Full Size ImageJoshua trees(Yucca brevifolia) in bloom near Caruthers Canyon      		 A photo of Joshua Trees in bloom near Caruthers Canyon.

    Locations: Lanfair Valley.
    Full Size ImageLanfair Valley and Hackberry Mountain, seen from the New York Mountains.  

    		  

    Full Size ImageNew York Mountain Road in Ross Horse Pasture.      		 Ross Horse Pasture

    Literature Cited:
    - , .

    Other articles:
    • Ivanpah Road:  OX Ranch;  

    		 Junction:
    • Ivanpah Road
    If you have a question or a comment you may write to me at: tomas@schweich.com I sometimes post interesting questions in my FAQ, but I never disclose your full name or address.  

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    Date and time this article was prepared: 11/3/2024 5:22:47 PM