Photogeologic maps of the Miles Ranch and Love Ranch quadrangles, Fremont and Natrona Counties, Wyoming
Love Ranch and Miles Ranch quadrangles are in the Wind River Basin, Wyoming (fig. 1). The rocks exposed in the quadrangles are sedimentary, and range in age…
Public-domain full text preserved in the Mountain Man Mining Library. Original source: pubs.usgs.gov.
i@©l©gj and Mineralogy , wf©mif§* Bj J. P. for e©Ef©Pttlty with official ettadarts It is not for pufrlic ov quotation* on behalf of the Division . S, Atomic Energy Goramlesion.
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By J. P. Love Ranch and Milts Raneh ajuadraiigltft are In th© Wind River Basin, Wjoislng fflg. 1). flie rentes exposed in the quadrangles are sedimentary, and raise la age fr® Late 0r@tt@<§@iii to early Tertiary . The youngest formation In the qvadtaaaglog, tiit Win;;! Bimr foimtioit ©f Eocsns age, is 0 aija©t areas. Within tha tw quadtraaclas tha Wiiii Rivar ?®rli$ all tfot ©Iter scks. In Milts Ranch Wind Iltr f@m*atloo ii Si?i4@d on th© Mil® of photoimto am u.pptr amd loer iMit; tlit rsi&feicniMp of thei-e units to li¥@r f®mafl@m as mapped in adjoinlis areas,, has not The LOT® Ranch and Hilts Raruh quadranglss (fig. 1) are in th© southeast part of tit® VIM Rir laslm, Wyoming. Th© ar@a is a sparsely vegetated basin-type terraste of m®d@rat@ relief, Th© liver lasixi Is a structural and topographic basin, almost surrounded by mountains, It Is a teroad region of low ridge® ami hills, iom@ of which are gravel capped, file photographic appearam@e of geologic features an<! factors considered and used in mapping the quadrangles 1§ not@d in this report. Such Information reports; additional data were collected on a two-day field cheek of the area.
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ffetst Mips (plates 1 iM wtrt ecnpiled primarily from l/60,Q00-®0al vertical serial photographs tatem In Jumt Supplementary data wtrt derived from l/28,4GO*soale photographs taken in October and Io¥tmb@r 199., A Kelsh plotttr was used 1m th© map compilation and to mak© tkt vertical maii&r®mints necessary f@r ©tftalm Iritifrpr@t-alon§. fhs moStl i@ait wai 1/liOOO, A® th® infonaation was interpreted. 1% was plotted dirscl j on thf topographic bait maps by means additional plsniratrie detail ttet wai not shown on the ©misting topoand smell additional stress',® thit would aid in field As a result of tfea fltld lnipetlon dips wer® aditd t© tht maps, tfe® contact tofevsgn tb* Wind Rlcr fonutlon and tht Coiy steal® in apprximat'$lf 4-0 mi ths tor-mat-ion contacts In the southwest t© conform more clo&ely with the northwttwaM plunging anticline. This Mork was done by the- 0, S. Geological Survey on behalf of thft Blvlsion of law Hatrials of titt 1, S, Atomle Intgy @©wi®slo.
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Wint Rivtr formations' of tertiary age. The Cretaceous bads consist mainly of marine shale® grading upward into sandstone, ffe® Tertiary formations tr® composed primarily of continental ailtatMmt, sandstone, and conglomerate. Cody Bhalt Ira this ar@a th® Qody shale fKc) 1$ approximately 5,000 f@®t thiek. It consists of darfe gray marine shale with gome sandstone beds ntar the top. Som<§ of upper fe@<ts weather rusty brown and appear kills and rligts ami %ro®d steallow valleys constituting moat of suggestion of 'bedding Is on the photographs In 'the low, parallel, sloping rlig§ and foiroitd tonal dlff®rtne®§. On the atrlal photo- , the upper oomttot of the Ccdy shale Is difficult to distinguish In w@stwtrd facing Huff in the aoatfeeaat part of Miles Ranch quadrangle because of siopt wash fr th® 'ov@rlylng Wind River formation, fhl® contact was later observed and mapped In th® field. Mesawrd® formation Th® MaaavarAt formation fKmv) consists of alternating massive and thin-bedded sandstones and gray sandy ghal©§. In this area th<§ sandstones ar© nalnly at the bast and top of the formation and ttnd to exhibit more relief than tht Intervening shales.- fm@. test of the Mesavrde formation Mas picked at tht hast of a dark leigy bd (on th® aerial photographs) a short distance below a light-colored, ma£ilir<§ bed that Is rtailly apparent and easily traced on th© aerial photographs, Tht dark btd forms th<§
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angular landfonif resulting from erosion. Where the Fort Union formation crops out In Castle Oardemj)'in the west part of Miles Ranch quadrangle, wind- and water~i©ulptmrtd sandstone §plr>®s and-pillars rise from the valley floor and along the Irregular cliff fa©@ H@rt the sandston® Is light gray to white and ,i§ loosely cemented by @al@lt@ In the outcrop farthest t© the northwest In tht Lce Fanch quadrangle sandstone In the fort Union formation is dark gray, massive, blociqr, and resistant* The
/ "Oastle ©ard<®Es" derived, are distinctive ftaturts on the tfeit Is 9-0 feet thick, according to find River formation ffwif la this ar®a ©omslsti of the stvAtigraphic Interval.hre as / doi om the toatli flank ©f the Swtftwater aroh just to th@ feouth. As the Swttwater arch w@i upliftesa,, weathered material was stripped off and deposited on the north and south flanks of th uplift, flti bulk of the I'luiatlle deposits making up th lower part of tha Mint Fiver formation was derived primarily from post* Cambrian Palezcdc and M:tsczolc roeki fht deposits composing th upper part of the Wind Risr formation were derived largely from Cambrian and Precambrlan rocks a® the streams cat deeper Into the uplift. The Wind River formation Is eoiapostd of clayey iltatoae, sandstone, and conglomerat® beds. Abrupt lateral gradation, lensing, and tongulng art eommon. The siltstones art generally thin bedded, Tfe©
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Wind liver formation lit on th® will fetddid, modtrateSy dipping fapproxl f the un3©rl;flr>.g Lwris, Lane© ami Fort Union This mp unit fQg) Includes gravel deposits which kave beeaus* of ttilr locations tkt .tops of 10*? rldgts and killi formed th® Oody shale and art similar In ©€po§ltlon to tiioit e©m§tl%mtlng tte Mind River formation., ffee ts in til® Wind ll¥tr formation, and fto topographic position of abov© the pr®s@nt stream level f, on th@ tk@M from other mirfi©lal deposits, fhey fonntr vall@j fill t© at least their d@post@. Their present high position moving mort sllty adja@@nt S@posts or tte Wind RlT@r tides distinguishes feeea laid 4oim as or i® stream channel residual r®amants of rtworlctd as th© bulk of that
fills nap unit (Qs) smrflfclal deposits not otherwise ftiese deposits Include stream deposits such as eaannsl wash, sand fears ami lew terrace®; slop® wash? evaporate* and stabilized Stabilized dtmes ©orer am area of several square miles in the norther® part of Love lam@k qraadrasigXe a Irregular mounds, dry depressions, ami afesemee of surf a e® dralmtg® typify thl® ar@a ffe© dunes art more tmt dlstiKiat; wte@m vltwM in ti&tir entirety on th© aerial photographs fe®n viewed om tk® gr@mmt d fills is partly because of sagebrush amd grass cover amd part If because of the limited natur© of ttee ground , fwe> iasall plsfs lak®s art prtstnt aijatmt to the southwest part of tte© dune area framlnai Is pr@s©nt In ttee Wind River formation 1m adjeiiiing ar®as> especially in tfe@ Puddle Springs and ias Hills quadrangles which border the Love Ranch amd Kil®s Raiich quadrangles on ;the south |Z©11®T, Soister, and Hyden 1956) 0 Z©ller personal ©onminlcatlom} stated that ttee uranium In many of these deposits was pr©cdpitat©d from ground water against faults with miner displacements fom@ to s¥@ral feet) 0 Detailed selsnle surveys art necessary to locate many of ttesse snail faults, although some can be dis@rn@d om the photographs as llmsar f®atmrts
Batt*r, 0, II. , l$J$g Wind Rlwr Basin; tool. 3oo. Asutrlca Ball,, p , i'si mmtml iciiiigi I. S, §®ol. Survey Ball. 6*1-1, 233-279* of R. M., aM Wliittj, T. I., 192, @t@l@gy ©f €0namt~lluskrat Cx*tk rroioat 0omat lyomings 3. it@l* Suw@y opta filt .,I latrcm.a Goimtl® Wyoiigi S, f@@ld &u?v@f -Nlntral Inv, Field