The Geologic History of Iowa

The Appalachian Plateau | Know Ohio

Great Lakes Plains | Know Ohio

Geology of Northeast Ohio

Ohio's Scenic Geology

For additional info, please see yesterday's Ohio video.

Ohio Rocks - Geology, Ice Age Features, Fossils, and Resources

Ohio is a state through which I have passed several times, initially in 1974, but I haven't spent much time there, other than visiting the Hudepohl and Schoenling breweries in Cincinnati in 1981 and 1982. 

After our van's minor breakdown in Cincinnati afternoon traffic during our August 2021 trip, we stayed the night in Sharon, OH on the north side of Cincinnati, but left out for Michigan as soon as repairs were complete.

That being the case, no slight was intended towards the state, it has just been "in-between" our starting point and our destination on numerous journeys, as have been Alabama and Mississippi (except for Civil War sites in Corinth and Vicksburg during the Spring 2021 van "shakedown cruise" and a 2015 stop at a loess outcrop in Vicksburg).

So today's and tomorrow's videos are for my own learning, in the hopes of being able to visit any geological sites if we are able to make another Michigan trip next year (to visit my wife's hometown of Traverse City).  This year we were constrained by needing to make a family reunion in Traverse City and other than visiting Frankenmuth, MI there were no other stops planned.

Biodiversity in the Bluegrass Region | Know Ohio

Driftless Area Mystery

Glacial Drift is a general term for Glacial Deposits.  "Driftless area" = 24,000 sq. miles

How to Find and Pan for Diamonds

Though this is about Australia, principles, concepts, and practices can apply to other areas.  For instance, scattered diamonds have been found in the Georgia Blue Ridge Province and rumored to have been found in the Piedmont Province, so it doesn't hurt to be more observant. 

Most of them reported from placer gold mining operations.  But I have seen references of tiny diamonds found in heavy mineral samples collected and analyzed by the Georgia Geologic Survey some years ago (even a few from the Coastal Plain).  The specific reference has been lost/forgotten and the only locality I remember is the Sautee-Nacoochee Valley, south (downstream) from Helen. GA.  A pertinent question might be, were they upstream of the confluence of Dukes Creek and the Chattahoochee River, or not?  (I am certain that Dukes Creek dumps a fair amount of gold into the Chattahoochee River and who knows what else.) 

And in the Ohio River Valley, primarily north of the Ohio River, glacial till has yielded both gold and diamonds, having been "scraped" off the Canadian Shield and brought south.

So, in either spot, showings of "heavy minerals" in your pan or sluice box are ways of telling you that "you are on the right track".

As my wife and I may be visiting Arkansas soon, here is some useful info.