Palo Duro Canyon - Geology

Geology

Palo Duro Canyon itself was downcut by the Prairie Dog Town Fork tributary of the Red River, during the Pleistocene, when the whole region was uplifted. Most of the strata visible in the Canyon were deposited during the Permian and Triassic periods. From oldest to youngest, the formations are as follows:

• Quartermaster Formation: Permian in age, this comprises the red, lower slopes of the Canyon. This layer was deposited in a shallow marine environment that alternated with dry tidal flats, indicated by ripple marks and gypsum evaporite deposits, respectively.

• Tecovas Formation: Part of the Dockum Group with the Trujillo Formation, this multicolored Triassic unit consists of shale, siltstone, and sandstone. Deposited in streams and swamps, its colors indicate varying oxidizing conditions, and the alternating dry / wet cycles typical of such environments. These rocks are fossiliferous, containing the remains of phytosaurs, amphibians, and fish.

• Trujillo Formation: This Triassic formation is harder than the underlying Tecovas, and forms many of the Canyon's ledges. Composed of coarse sandstone, river cross-bedding indicates deposition in a stream environment. Fossils are rare.

• Ogallala Formation: This late Miocene to early Pliocene unit forms the cliffs and ledges at the very top of the Canyon. Composed of sandstone, siltstone, and conglomerate eroded from a late Cenozoic uplift of the Rocky Mountains, it is separated from the lower Trujillo Formation by a disconformity, and a very long hiatus. Fossils of saber-toothed cats (Smilodon), bone-crushing dogs (Borophagines), mastodons, horses, long-necked camels (Aepycamelus), rhinoceroses, and tortoises are present in the Ogallala.

• Windmill at bottom of canyon on the Prairie Dog Town Fork Red River.

• Hiking trail to the west of the rancher's dugout in Palo Duro Canyon

• Palo Duro Canyon Interpretive Center built by the Civilian Conservation Corps