55^th Midwest Friends of the Pleistocene Field Conference

FOP Field Conference

Ridges, Mounds, and Valleys:
Glacial-Interglacial History of the Kaskaskia Basin,
Southwestern Illinois

May 20-22, 2011

Headquartered at Mariner's Village
Carlyle, Illinois

Co-Leaders:
      Dave Grimley (dgrimley@illinois.edu; 217-244-7324)
      Drew Phillips (aphillips@illinois.edu; 217-333-2513)

The 55^th Midwest Friends of the Pleistocene Field Conference is set for the May 20th - 22nd weekend and is now open for registration. We encourage those interested to register and make hotel reservations as soon as possible, but by April 1st at the latest. We have planned a tour of Quaternary history in the Kaskaskia Basin region of southwestern Illinois, an area where we have conducted detailed mapping and research over the past decade. Our tentative guidebook title is "Ridges, Mounds, and Valleys: Glacial-Interglacial History of the Kaskaskia Basin, Southwestern Illinois."

DATES: May 20th - 22nd, 2011. A welcoming reception and guidebook handout is scheduled for 6 to 9 PM on Friday, May 20th at the Mariner's Village Motel. Buses will load at 7:45 AM on Saturday and Sunday mornings, ending at midday Sunday.

LOCATION: The trip will be based out of Carlyle, Illinois. The primary location will be the Mariner's Village Motel which is adjacent to Carlyle Lake. Swimming at the small beach will be open in May and there are several nearby campgrounds. The trip will be conducted by buses Saturday, May 21st and Sunday, May 22nd. The use of personal vehicles will not be allowed due to site access constraints.

COST: $110. Includes guidebook, buses, Saturday breakfast, lunch, and dinner (banquet); Sunday breakfast and lunch; snacks and most beverages. Fee does not include lodging.

REGISTRATION (required by April 1st): Please register online or send a check made out to "University of Illinois" (mail to Attn: LeAnn Benner, 615 E. Peabody Dr., Illinois State Geological Survey, Champaign, IL 61820). If mailing a check, please also send along the mail-in form with it. DUE TO BUS AND SITE CONTRAINTS, THERE WILL BE A MAXIMUM OF 100 PEOPLE ALLOWED TO REGISTER FOR THE TRIP (first to register will have priority).

MOTELS/CAMPSITES: Please make your own reservations at either the Mariner's Village Motel (block of 40 rooms @ $60/room; 618-594-7666; mention Illinois State Geological Survey), or the Super 8 Motel in Carlyle, IL (block of 15 rooms including 4 large suites at $67-102; 618-594-8888; mention Friends of the Pleistocene). There are also campsites < 0.5 mile from the motel along the lake at the Dam West Recreation Campground. You can call Carlyle Lake visitor's center at 618-594-2484 or make camping reservations at Recreation.gov. Three additional motels are 25 minutes north in Greenville, IL. WE ENCOURAGE YOU TO SHARE ROOMS IF AT THE MARINER'S VILLAGE LOCATION SINCE MOST ROOMS ARE DOUBLES AND THIS WILL ALLOW MORE PEOPLE TO STAY THERE.

WEBSITE: AMQUA Friends of the Pleistocene

TRIP THEME: This area, glaciated during both the pre-Illinoian and Illinoian, includes the controversial Ridged-Drift area, a train of constructional hills of various forms which protrude from the dissected Illinoian till plain. During this trip, we will offer our current hypothesis for a Kaskaskia Basin Sublobe or ice stream within an overall glacial advance from the Lake Michigan Basin during oxygen isotope stage 6. We believe that such a sublobe may explain the presence and general distribution of morainal ridges, esker forms, and other ice-contact landforms in southwestern Illinois.

Stops will include sand and gravel pits, natural exposures, and core samples of ridge deposits. Other stops will include exposures of last glacial slackwater lake deposits in Glacial Lake Kaskaskia, archeological sites in the vicinity of ridges, and sodium-affected surface soils.

WHAT TO BRING: Hard hat (if you have one), field boots, digging tools, pointed questions, etc.

We hope to see many of you on the trip. Please register and reserve lodging as soon as possible!

Dave Grimley and Drew Phillips (co-leaders)
Illinois State Geological Survey

Other contributors:
Tim Larson (ISGS); Brad Koldehoff (Illinois State Archaeological Survey)
Sam Indorante (USDA-NRCS); Brandon Curry (ISGS); Nathan Webb (ISGS)

Updated 09/20/2011 SLD