GEOTOUR GUIDE - City of Kamloops

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(sTop 4) red laKe road and Tranquille: a vieW of The GroWinG delTa of The Thompson river & shrinKinG Kamloops laKe Are you ready to test your imagination? Geologists interpret that at one time, several thousand years ago, the city centre of modern Kamloops sat on the shores of a larger Kamloops Lake. However, the North Thompson River acts as a great conveyor belt carrying sand and silt. Over the years the river continued to dump its load of sediment at its delta where it flowed into Kamloops Lake. Year after year, the lake shoreline moved westwards as the eastern end of the lake filled. This process continues today, with the delta front migrating westwards about 13 metres each year. Geologists estimate that if the modern rate of advance continues, Kamloops Lake will fill completely in 4000 years. Kamloops Lake will become Kamloops valley! The legacy of this westward advance is a flat delta plain that extends from Kamloops to Kamloops Lake. The land is flat because the sand and silt are deposited in the channel of the Thompson River or on the adjacent plain during spring floods. During these floods, the delta plain is inundated with a slow-moving lake of muddy water that leaves behind a layer of sand and silt (just ask anyone who has had their house flooded). This sand and silt is rich agricultural soil and much of the delta is farmland. The drive up Red Lake Road past Tranquille to a roadside pullout at Stop 4a offers panoramic view of Kamloops Lake and the Thompson River delta. The access road and walk along the Lake Trail at Tranquille (Stop 4b) provides close up views of the delta lands, sand bars, and wetlands of the Thompson River delta. It also provides a look at the much smaller gravel delta of the Tranquille River. Figure 16. A winter time view of the mouth of the Thompson River where it enters Kamloops Lake, from the Red Lake Road near Stop 4a. This is the delta of the Thompson River, built of sand and mud deposited by the Thompson River as its waters slow upon entering Kamloops Lake. Features in the photograph are described from left to right: a cliff of volcanic rock; flat agricultural lands, forests, and wetlands on the delta plain of the Thompson River; broad sand bars exposed in the channel of the Thompson River during the low water conditions typical of the winter period; forests and sewage lagoons (Stop 14) on the delta plain south of the river; and the gullied southern slopes of the Thompson River valley. (Photo by R. Turner) Figure 17. A view to the south and west across the Thompson River delta and estuary from the Cinnamon Ridge trail at Stop 2. The delta plain is the flat top of a thick sequence of sand and silt deposited into Kamloops Lake by the Thompson River. The estuary is rich wetland habitat for wildlife and fish where river waters mix with lake waters. The City of Kamloops compost facility (Stop 15) is the dark brown rectangle in the lower right. (Photo by R. Turner) 13
Figure 18. A view from the end of Tranquille Road of pasture and river-side shrubs on the flat delta plain adjacent to the mouth of the Thompson River (Stop 4b). The access lane to the parking lot for the Lake Walk provides excellent views of the delta plain and shorelines of the Thompson River. Extensive sand bars are exposed during the winter when river and lake levels are low. (Photo by R. Turner). Figure 19. A view of the mouth of the Tranquille River, Kamloops Lake, and Battle Bluff (right shoreline) (Stop 4b). The gravel has been carried by the Tranquille River to the lake shore where it forms a delta that protrudes into the lake. Upstream, the Tranquille River flows across extensive areas of volcanic rock and therefore much of the gravel is of volcanic origin. Look for sponge-like volcanic pebbles with holes that were gas bubbles trapped as the lava as it cooled to rock. Other volcanic pebbles are a distinctive brick red, coloured by the release of iron by weathering to form rust. (Photo by E.Frey). getting to red laKe road viewpoint (stop 4a) and tranquille laKe trail (stop 4b): Head west from Kamloops airport on Tranquille Road. Turn right onto Red Lake Road (Tranquille-Criss Creek Road). Follow the road across the train tracks, over Tranquille Creek bridge, and up the side of the valley. Half way up the grade is a pullout (Stop 4a) on the left with a commanding view to the east of the delta of the Thompson River and Kamloops Lake. Retrace your route to Tranquille Road. Turn right and drive to the end of the road. Follow the lane and sign “Lake Trail” to the parking lot on the lake shore (Stop 4b). A trail descends to the lake shore. Follow the shore upstream (to the east) to the sandy shores of the Thompson River delta. Follow the shore downstream to the west to the gravel beaches of the Tranquille River delta. 14
Page 1 and 2: GeoTour Guide for Kamloops, BriTish
Page 3 and 4: Figure 2. View to the north of Kaml
Page 5 and 6: hoW did all These GeoloGiCal maTeri
Page 7 and 8: leT’s sTarT The GeoTour of Kamloo
Page 9 and 10: hoW Would a GeoGrapher desCriBe Kam
Page 11 and 12: Figure 12a. The stream has cut a de
Page 13: Figure 15. Layers of dark mudstone
Page 17 and 18: Tracing the North and South Thompso
Page 19 and 20: disaster on the North Thompson and
Page 21 and 22: Figure 30a. An artistic rendering o
Page 23 and 24: (sTop 8) laC du Bois Grasslands pro
Page 25 and 26: An orebody is an unusual concentrat
Page 27 and 28: (sTop 10) lafarGe limesTone quarry
Page 29 and 30: (sTop 12) peTro-Canada peTroleum sT
Page 31 and 32: (sTop 13) Where does our WaTer Come
Page 33 and 34: (sTop 14) Where does our WasTe WaTe
Page 35 and 36: (sTop 16) Where does our GarBaGe Go

GEOTOUR GUIDE - City of Kamloops

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