Roadside Geology of Northern California

Roadside Geology Series #16

by David D. Alt, Donald W. Hyndman

Trade paperback size book is in-depth look at geology of Northern California. 249 pages; photos; maps.

Genres: Geology, Science, Travel, Reference, Nonfiction

244 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1975

About the author

David Alt was an American geologist, teacher, writer, storyteller and author. He was the author of more than thirty books, including several titles in the Roadside Geology series published by Mountain Press.

He earned his Ph.D. in 1961 from the University of Texas, and joined the Department of Geology at The University of Montana in Missoula, Montana in 1965. He became professor Emeritus at The University of Montana in 2002. He died on April 26, 2015, in Missoula.

Reviews

[Peter Tillman · Rating 4 out of 5]

I bought my copy, of the 18th printing of the 1975 edition, for $1 at the library book sale. It's starting out well, and, even if parts are a bit out-of-date, nothing I've seen so far is going to lead you seriously astray.

My copy is co-authored by Donald Hyndman. Both authors are listed as geologists at the Univ. Of Montana in Missoula. You would think there would be no shortage of Calif. geologists available....

I've ordered the same authors' "Roadside Geology of Northern and Central California" (published 2000), which should (I hope) also cover the Central Coast, where I now live. It will be interesting to compare the old with the new....

OK, done. The new book is a bit more up to date, but the main difference is, it adds coverage of Central Calif to the book. Otherwise, the older book is perfectly useable. So here's my recos. If you are buying the book new, get the expanded edition. If you already have the older book, great! Just keep it. And if (as I did) you come across the older ed ridiculously cheap, buy it! All eds are well-done, and if you are interested in the geology of Calif, it's more important that you have the book in your car (or suitcase) than which ed. you have.

[Hannah]

Continuing to log random field guides because WHO’S GONNA STOP ME?!

Anyway I cherry-picked the areas I’m interested in (Sac-Tahoe, Lassen, Redding). The glossary in the back was greatly appreciated by this geology noob

[Joyce]

Describes the rocks you're looking at as you drive the roads of Northern California -- which in this case means San Francisco and north. Even if you're not too interested in geology and don't want to read the whole book in sequence, it's a nice companion as you drive to Tahoe or Pt Reyes. Really good sections on gold country: when you think about environmental problems today, don't forget that the 19th century had enough technology to fuck up an awful lot of shit with just coal, steam, and railroads. They actually managed to flood vast tracts of the Sacramento Valley with the detritus of gold mining!

The best part of the book though is at the very end, the discussions of Lassen Volcanic National Park and Lava Beds National Monument -- both of which are incredibly interesting geological stories that unfortunately are not strikingly picturesque. The simplest geological structures are usually the most scenic -- think Crater Lake or Mauna Kea -- but California geology in general and Lassen in particular are palimpsests which can only be read as historical sequences. I was blown away by the simple revelation that there is no single spot on any road where you can see all of Lassen! It's so true yet I had never realized it. I was also amused by this description of the 1915 lahar:

"Several ranches were completely buried under deposits of mud, and littered with boulders weighing as much as 20 tons, all within a few minutes. The fact that some of the boulders were red hot lava added considerable interest to the occasion."

Ha! Scientist humor is the best :)

To get the most out of this book it's helpful to have a basic understanding of California geology: slip-strike faults, batholiths, and marginal trenches come up over and over for obvious reasons. The authors cover this ground, but very quickly -- I found John McPhee's _Assembling California_ and _Basin and Range_ very helpful for the bigger picture. Unfortunately the illustrations are crappy, so be sure to look at some decent color photos of the most common rocks -- sandstones and mudstones, serpentinite, basalt, granite, anthracite and dacite -- before heading out on your road trip.

[Kirsten Mortensen · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a delight to have this book in the car while making a road trip. My only regret is that there are so many roads not covered!

[Roland of Karkin · Rating 4 out of 5]

you can get your very own copy at pinnacle national park for the low low price of all of your money. what the hell

[Tinwerume · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely delightful book. I have the second edition too which is a little less poetic but more informative (and has color photographs which is kind of important)

[Toby · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'd love to say that I have the fortitude to just sit down and read through this book. It is knowledge that I would love to have... but have a hard time getting. It is arranged as a serious of surveys along various highways in Northern California. One problem is that "Northern" California always tends to start right in my town as far as books are concerned. So many of the areas I would be interested in get split into another volume. But to the best of my knowledge, "Roadside Geology" doesn't exist for Southern California. I read through the introduction and a couple of the areas that I am very familiar with, but I leave to rest as reference sections for road trips that I'll take some day.

[Jonelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great fun on the drive from Cayucos to Reno. Every road cut is discussed. Save the roadcuts!

[Jacob Fink · Rating 5 out of 5]

Indispensable!