Paul Smith leads MOSAIC Earth History tour of Stanley Park

November 18, 2016
Professor Paul Smith and MOSAIC field trip participants on the sea wall

Despite hideous weather, a hardy group showed up to take part in a field trip to Stanley Park run by Paul Smith entitled The forces that shape British Columbia: fire, ice and earthquakes, as part of the MOSAIC BC program. MOSAIC helps new immigrants and refugees to Greater Vancouver learn about the culture and physical environment of their new surroundings.

The focus of the excursion was the sea walk from Prospect Point to Siwash Rock looking at the cliffs and the beaches. The field trip participants examined Cretaceous-Eocene sedimentary rocks intruded by a 33 million year old dike. The view of the North Shore through the mist and rain clouds provided an opportunity to talk about geologic uplift and its relation to local subduction and earthquakes. The granite boulders scattered on the seashore originating from the Coast Mountains brought on discussion of the force and extent of glaciers once present in Vancouver. An illustrated handout and geologic glossary helped participants engage with what they saw during the tip.

Paul expects that trips like these with MOSAIC will become an annual event. More MOSAIC events including field trips can be found on their events calendar and Facebook page.