Tumey Gulch

Included in this area are some eight kilometers (5 miles) of the Tumey Gulch, which separates and drains portions of the Ciervo and Tumey Hills. In the lower portion of the area there is a good example of a relatively undisturbed alluvial fan, with such associated features as a fan-head trench and longitudinal bars.

Most of the rocks exposed along the course of the gulch are of marine sedimentary origin, sandstones, claystones, shale and conglomerates, and range in age from Cretaceous in the upper reaches through Paleocene, Eocene, Oligocene, to Miocene near the lower end. Near the debouchment to the valley floor there are nonmarine sedimentaries dating from the Pliocene and Pleistocene.

Vegetation in the area is primarily grassland.

There is a variety of animal life in the area, including a number of reptile species.

Integrity: There is a jeep road through the area. The vegetation is overgrazed, but the geological features are in good condition.

Use: Research, educational, observational. Some private.

January 1980