The Palisades at Sheep Creek Canyon Geological Area

Abstract

The Palisades is an impressive ridge within the Sheep Creek Canyon Geological Area—an area nestled on the north flank of the eastern Uinta Mountains not far from Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area. Sheep Creek cuts through the Palisades, as well as the heart of the geological area, to reveal about 800 million years of geology, from ancient environments to the rise and ultimate erosion of the Uinta Mountains. The oldest rocks exposed at the Palisades comprise the upper part of the Neoproterozoic (about 770 million years ago) Uinta Mountain Group, which have been thrusted upon the Mississippian (about 350 million years ago) Deseret Limestone (equivalent to the upper Madison Limestone). That thrust fault and others exposed along the north and south sides of the Palisades are part of the Uinta thrust fault zone, which is responsible for intense folding of both formations. Although the uplift of the Uinta Mountains and related deformation along the Uinta fault zone set the stage for development of the Palisades, it was erosion that revealed and shaped this spectacular feature.