IGC Field Excursion C-03 Ends on Vancouver Island, A Semi-Centennial Celebration
2022 Anniversaries in the History of Canadian Science and Technology: The Excursions of the 1972 Montréal International Geological Congress (IGC).
First posted Tuesday, September 13, 2022 / Yom shlishi, 17 Elul, 5782.
By David Orenstein, Emeritus, Danforth CTI
david.orenstein@alumni.utoronto.ca
Final Days of Excursion C-03
On Wednesday, September 13, 1972, exactly fifty years ago, our C-03 excursionists completed their Cross-Cordilleran Excursion in Victoria, British Columbia. They had bussed from Calgary to Victoria, taking the ferry across the Georgia Strait from Horseshoe Bay, west of Vancouver, to Nanaimo on Vancouver Island. They then continued up-Island to Campbell River where they spent the night. They then spent Day 13 going up and down Buttle Lake, before a long drive back to Nanaimo, where they also spent the night.
J.E. Muller of the GSC took over as temporary excursion leader for the Vancouver Island stage of the trip, writing a short general introduction to “The Insular Belt” for the Guidebook and showing the geologists around Stops 12:3 at Little Qualicum Falls Park (northwest of Nanaimo), the Buttle Lake Stops, and on the last day, Day 14, that is Wednesday, September 13, 1972, the six Stops between Nanaimo and Victoria.
Because of time pressure I haven’t been able to do full justice, especially to the second half of this excursion. But I’ll return to it in subsequent posts, later in the year.
The Other 1972 IGC Cordilleran Excursions
Excursion C-03, of the 1972 Montréal International Geological Congress (IGC),
was one of well over 100 excursions, across Canada, that delegates and their families were offered: before, after, and during the Congress sessions.
And C-03 was just one of several excursions through the Cordilleran Region of Alberta, British Columbia, and Yukon.
Its pre-Congress twin, A-03, had run from Saturday, August 5 to Saturday, August 19, with the same leadership as C-03 and with only15 participants (half the larger C-03 contingent). It was also under the co-leadership of Jim Monger, Vic Preto, and their team of ten friends and colleagues, who had helped with the Guidebook and with specific local sub-excursions.
Another pair of Cross-Cordilleran Excursions were AX-01, July 24 to August 4, and A-01, August 7 to 19: “Structural Style of Southern Canadian Cordillera with Emphasis on Core Zone of Eastern Fold Belt”. (C-01 was cancelled due to lack of interest.) They had 7 and 14 excursionists, respectively. They travelled from Calgary, but only as far as Vancouver and on a route somewhat farther north than C-03.
“Quaternary Geology of the Southern Canadian Cordillera”, August 10 to 19, also crossed the Cordillera, but with a different point of view. They went eastward from Vancouver ot Calgary, but with time on Vancouver Island.
Close in itinerary to the 2022 CTG Fall Excursion, were A-15 (August 8 – 19) and C-15 (September 1 – 11), “The Canadian Rockies and Tectonic Evolution of the Southeastern Canadian Cordillera”. R.A. Price and H.A.K. Charlesworth had three colleagues supporting them.
And there were many more Excursions in this geologically exciting province: A-04, A-06, A-08, A-09 and C-09, A-10, A-11, A-12, A-17, C-17, C-18, A-19, A-20. Not to mention the several Excursions that were proposed but did not run.
CTG Fall Field Trip and Virtual Workshop
The early part of the C-03 itinerary included the Interior Platform, the Foothills, the Rocky Mountains (both the Front Ranges and the Main Ranges), the Rocky Mountain Trench, the Purcell Mountains and anticlinorium. This closely matches the 2022 Canadian Tectonics Group (CTG) Fall Field Trip: Friday, September 23 to Sunday, September 25, also out of Calgary.
At the CTG Fall (Virtual) Workshop on Saturday, October 1, and I hope to give a talk entitled: “The Cross-Cordilleran Excursions of the 1972 International Geological Congress, A Semi-Centennial Celebration”. I would look at Excursion C-03, of course, but also A-03.
The 1972 Canada-USSR Hockey Series
The many Russian geologists in Excursion C-03, got to enjoy the Canadian leg of the 1972 Canada-USSR Hockey Series, along with their Canadian colleagues, on September 2, 4, 6, and 8. That last game played was played at the Pacific Coliseum in Vancouver, which the Soviet Union won 5 to 3. Then the excursion was at Pinewoods Lodge in Manning Park, B.C., a mere 150 km to the east of Vancouver.
The Next 1972 IGC Excursion Blog Posts
One month earlier, on Sunday, August 13, the pre-Congress Excursion A-59, “Vertebrate Paleontology of Eastern Canada”, commenced in Halifax, Nova Scotia.
But that’s another story!
Bibliography
Excursion Guidebook with all the team:
J.W.H. Monger and V.A Preto with several others (1972),
Field Excursion A03 – C03: Geology of the Southern Canadian Cordillera, Guidebook., 24th IGC, Ottawa. (iv) + 87 pp. incl. 5 pp. ref.
+ 6 foldout maps and cross-sections + 1 separate map sheet.
– J.W.H. Monger and V.A Preto (1972), “Preface” and “Introduction” in Field Excursion A03 – C03: Geology of the Southern Canadian Cordillera, Guidebook, pp. 1-12.
-Days 1 & 2. P.L. Gordy (1972), “Rocky Mountains and Foothills”, in Field Excursion A03 – C03: Geology of the Southern Canadian Cordillera, Guidebook, pp. 12-18.
-Day 2. J.L. Crabb (1972), “Kaiser Coal Operation”, in Field Excursion A03 – C03: Geology of the Southern Canadian Cordillera, Guidebook, pp. 19-21.
-Day 3. G.B. Leech (1972), “Western Rocky Mountains and Southern Rocky Mountain Trench”, in Field Excursion A03 – C03: Geology of the Southern Canadian Cordillera, Guidebook, pp. 21-26.
-Day 4, H.C. Morris (1972) “Purcell Mountains” in Field Excursion A03 – C03: Geology of the Southern Canadian Cordillera, Guidebook, pp. 27-30.
-Days 5 & 6, J.T. Fyles (1972) “Selkirk and Monashee Mountains” in Field Excursion A03 – C03: Geology of the Southern Canadian Cordillera, Guidebook, pp. 31-41.
-Day 7, V.A. Preto and J.W.H. Monger (1972) “Monashee Mountains and
Interior Plateau” in Field Excursion A03 – C03: Geology of the Southern Canadian Cordillera, Guidebook, pp. 41-49.
-Day 8, B.N. Church (1972) “The Lower Tertiary and Basement Rocks of the Okanagan Valley” in Field Excursion A03 – C03: Geology of the Southern Canadian Cordillera, Guidebook, pp. 49-53 + one fold-in map.
-Day 9, V.A. Preto (1972) “Interior Plateau to Cascade Mountains” in Field Excursion A03 – C03: Geology of the Southern Canadian Cordillera, Guidebook, pp. 53-59 + one fold-in map.
-Day 10, J.A. Jeletzky (1972) “Mesozoic Rocks of Manning Park Area” in Field Excursion A03 – C03: Geology of the Southern Canadian Cordillera, Guidebook, pp. 59-64 + one fold-in chart and one fold-in cross-section.
-Day 11, K.C. McTaggart and J.W.H. Monger (1972) “Cascade Fold Belt” in Field Excursion A03 – C03: Geology of the Southern Canadian Cordillera, Guidebook, pp. 64-71.
-Day 12, K.C. McTaggart (1972) “Coast Mountains” in Field Excursion A03 – C03: Geology of the Southern Canadian Cordillera, Guidebook, pp. 72-74.
-Days 12, 13, & 14, J. E. Muller (1972) “The Insular Belt” in Field Excursion A03 – C03: Geology of the Southern Canadian Cordillera, Guidebook, pp. 74-83.
Links
Pinewoods Lodge, now called Manning Park Resort.
https://www.manningpark.com/food-and-dining/
https://www.manningpark.com/maps-and-stats/
Malaspina Hotel, overnight location on Day 13 in Nanaimo, B.C., from Vancouver Island’s Mid Island News. Note: Gaps due to missing illustrations but keep on scrolling.
https://midislandnews.com/early-nanaimo-history/malaspina-hotel-nanaimo-19271984/
1972 Canada-USSSR Hockey Series, from The Canadian Encyclopedia.
https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/1972-canada-soviet-hockey-series