5 



the ridge to the north of Ellsraere Canyon. There is here an abrupt 

 and striking change from a medium grained sandstone to an overlying 

 very coarse conglomerate. The conglomerate is more resistant than 

 the underlying sandstone which weathers out from under it, and causes 



it to stand out very prominently on the otherwise even slope of 

 the ridge. On examining the actual contact, the conglomerate is 

 seen to rest on the sandstone without any irregularity of the con- 

 tact plane, and the sandstone grades up into the sandy matrix of the 

 conglomerate. Farther west the conglomerate pinches out, and the 

 change in lithology is not so abrupt. On Ellsmere Ridge strata 

 typical of "both the upper and lower divisions are interstratif ied. 



The conglomerate has a strike of North ?0 West, and dip 12 

 North, while the lower part of the sandstone, and the granitic sur- 

 face on which it was deposited have strike North 65 West, dip 20 

 North. No difference in dip or strike was observed at the actual 

 point of contact. 



Along with the difference in strike there is a thinning out of 

 the shaly beds toward the East, and the conglomerate comes to rest 

 directly on the granite at the head of Whitney Canyon. The presence 

 of such an overlap does not however preclude conformity. The 

 lithologic character of the sandstones and shales indicates that they 



are probably of estuarine origin, and the conglomerates are fluvia- 

 tile delta deposits. In deposits of this character some irregularity 



is to be expected. The two different lithologic units are there- 

 fore considered to be conformable in this area. 



