Imagine hiking through deep canyons carved by snowmelt racing toward the Gulf of California, surrounded by the twisted gneisses of the Rockies blending into the iconic red rocks of the Colorado Plateau. That's the wild, enigmatic world captured in Geology Underfoot on Colorado's Western Slope, the latest in the beloved Geology Underfoot series. This paperback isn't just a book—it's your personal geologist companion for unraveling the complex history of this arid region.
Nothing here follows a simple script. Fractures in supervolcanoes brim with metal ores, tiny mammals thrived amid dinosaur giants, and rivers rerouted themselves with every tectonic uplift or lava flow. If you've ever wondered why the rocks look so crumpled or why certain canyons plunge so dramatically, this book lays it all out without the jargon.
Follow a team of geologists to spots like:
Each chapter packs concise illustrations, full-color photographs, and straightforward prose that makes 300-million-year-old events feel immediate. It's designed for real exploration—fossil collectors spot ancient sea creatures, rockhounds identify ore veins, and hot spring enthusiasts trace volcanic remnants.
Picture yourself at a trailhead, book in hand, tracing a fault line that once split continents or standing where lava dams forced a river to carve a new path. Families on road trips through the Western Slope use it to turn drives into discovery sessions; miners revisit old sites with fresh context; adventurers connect dots between geology and local history. The sensory details hit home—the crunch of red sandstone, the metallic tang near ore deposits, the vast silence of dinosaur bone beds.
At around 400 pages of dense yet accessible content, this June 2022 release suits all ages, from kids poking at pebbles to retirees mapping lifelong hikes. It answers questions like 'What formed these hoodoos?' or 'Why do fossils cluster here?' naturally as you read. Grab it for your next trip and see Colorado's Western Slope not just as scenery, but as a living geology textbook. You'll walk away spotting stories everywhere you step.
