Stop 1 — Mountain Quarry, Boya (deep remnants of an ancient volcano)
Processes Interpretation
Structures / diagnostic
Rock / sediment (chemical / (igneous / Comments /
Composition features (observations you System
/ mineral type physical / sedimentary / thoughts
can note in the field)
geological) metamorphic)
Dark grey–black, aphanitic
Amygdales with
groundmass; vesicles /
Effusive lava Ancient calcite/quartz
Mafic to intermediate; amygdales (often infilled
Basaltic– eruption, degassing volcanic clinch the
plagioclase (labradorite– with quartz/calcite/zeolites);
andesitic → vesicles; cooling Igneous edifice volcanic origin;
andesine), clinopyroxene flow banding locally;
volcanic rock contraction; late- (extrusive) within vesicle tops can
(augite), ± amphibole; magnet sticks slightly
(aphanitic lava) stage hydrothermal cratonic indicate paleoup
Fe–Ti oxides (magnetite); conchoidal to
infill of amygdales basement direction if
blocky fracture; weathers
preserved
brown
Subvolcanic
intrusion feeding
Equigranular, medium- Look for straight,
surface eruptions;
Dolerite grained; tabular bodies parallel joints and
rapid cooling at
(diabase) Mafic; plagioclase laths + cross-cutting host; chilled Igneous Volcanic finer grain size at
margins → chilled
dyke/sill pyroxene; medium- margins a few cm against (hypabyssal plumbing edges vs coarser
rind; thermal
(subvolcanic grained country rock; intrusive) system interior to
metamorphism of
feeder) sheet/columnar jointing; confirm a
wall rock; columnar
baked contact in host sill/dyke
joints from
contraction
Volcaniclastic Angular lithic clasts of Poorly sorted, angular Explosive Sedimentary Proximal Even one lens of
breccia / tuff (if basalt/dolerite + crystal blocks in finer ash; graded fragmentation, (volcaniclastic) volcanic angular, unsorted
present in fragments (plagioclase, beds or lensing; impact mass-flows, with igneous apron blocks supports
benches or pyroxene) in ash matrix structures; fragments share reworking on source proximity to
lenses) chemistry with lavas volcano flanks; rapid vents
deposition;
dewatering and
Processes Interpretation
Structures / diagnostic
Rock / sediment (chemical / (igneous / Comments /
Composition features (observations you System
/ mineral type physical / sedimentary / thoughts
can note in the field)
geological) metamorphic)
compaction
Late-stage Veins often align
White translucent veins Post-
Hydrothermal hydrothermal with joint sets;
Quartz ± cross-cutting; drusy crystals; Secondary magmatic
quartz– circulation, vein note relative
calcite/epidote/chlorite may fill joints and (vein) fluid
carbonate veins precipitation from timing (they cut
amygdales system
cooling fluids the lava/dolerite)
Explains why
Low-grade Greenschist-facies
Greenish tint, schistose rocks can look
metamorphic Chlorite, actinolite, metamorphism Cratonic
patches along shear zones; Metamorphic “altered”
overprint epidote replacing mafic during later tectonic
alteration halos around overprint compared with
(“greenstone” minerals tectonism; fluid– history
veins/dykes fresh
textures) rock interaction
basalt/dolerite
Stop 2 — Garratt Road Bridge Park (Swan River; fluvial–estuarine)
Rock / sediment / Structures / diagnostic Comments /
Composition Processes Interpretation System
mineral type features (observations) thoughts
Predominantly Bedload transport
Well to moderately sorted,
quartz sand; (rolling, saltation); Fluvial
sub-rounded grains; cross- Measure paleoflow
Channel sand & feldspar/lithic hydraulic sorting; channel
bedding (planar/trough), from cross-bed dip;
fine gravel fragments; bar migration; Sedimentary (tidally
ripples; imbricated pebbles pebble imbrication
(bedload) occasional pebbles channel migration influenced
on bars; lateral accretion leans upstream
of granite, basalt, forming point bars & reach)
surfaces on point bars
laterite cutbanks
Settling from
Note fining-
Very fine lamination, mud suspension during
Overbank silt & Quartz silt, clay upward sequences
drapes, plant root traces, floods; levee and Floodplain /
clay (suspended minerals; organic Sedimentary from channel to
oxidation mottling; soft, floodplain levee
load) matter overbank—classic
easily deformable deposition; periodic
fluvial motif
desiccation
Bidirectional cross-
Tidal pumping,
lamination, flaser/wavy
slack-water Lower Flaser bedding is a
Estuarine sand– Quartz + some shell bedding (sand lenses in
deposition, river / giveaway for tides;
mud couplets fragments; organic mud); occasional Sedimentary
alternating ebb– estuary closer to mouth =
(tidal influence) laminations bioturbation; salinity
flood currents; transition stronger signal
smell/efflorescence after dry
brackish conditions
periods
Note where erosion
Bank materials Bank erosion at
Clays/silts; riprap (if Cohesive banks with Sedimentary threatens paths—
(cohesive clays & cutbanks, human Channel
present) of undercutting at outer bends; (with human links
anthropogenic stabilisation altering margin
limestone or granite possible riprap blocks overprint) geomorphology to
armouring) flow
management
Stop 3 — Cottesloe Beach (coastal–marine & aeolian)
Rock / sediment / Structures / diagnostic Comments /
Composition Processes Interpretation System
mineral type features (observations) thoughts
Quartz + Lamination
Well-sorted, rounded, Wave swash/backwash,
bioclastic angle parallels
planar lamination from longshore drift (Perth
Modern beach sand carbonate (shell High-energy shoreline; shell
swash; beach cusps, coast commonly net Sedimentary
(foreshore–shoreface) fragments, beach lags mark
swash/backwash streaks; northward under SW
forams), heavy storm/high-tide
shell lag lines swell); selective sorting
minerals locally lines
Cross-bed dip
Large-scale cross-beds
direction gives
(sets decimetres–metres), Aeolian saltation,
Dune sand Mostly quartz + palaeowind
pin-stripe lamination, grainflow on lee slopes, Sedimentary Coastal
(transverse/parabolic carbonate fine (commonly
grainfall/grainflow dune migration; (aeolian) dune field
dunes) to medium sand landward-
foresets; root traces vegetation stabilisation
dipping from
where vegetated
onshore winds)
Lithified Early meteoric Solution pipes
carbonate dune Planar to trough cross- cementation of dunes → are vertical
sand bedding preserved; root- aeolianite; later Sedimentary cylindrical
Tamala Limestone Quaternary
(calcarenite); tube/rhizomorph traces; diagenesis, karst (lithified voids;
(aeolianite) coastal ridge
cement is solution pipes, cavities, dissolution by acidic aeolian) rhizomorphs
calcite; may karst; local calcrete cap meteoric waters; soil- prove dune
include quartz forming calcrete origin
Often forms
Hard, pale caprock, Evapotranspiration & resistant ledges
Calcrete / soil Secondary Secondary Vadoze zone
nodular to massive soil CO₂ drive carbonate and benches on
carbonate (duricrust) CaCO₃ diagenetic / soil profile
textures above limestone precipitation the foreshore
cliffs