|
Field trip guides
Yamirka Rojas-Agramonte,
Heidelberg University, Germany (yamirka.rojas@geow.uni-heidelberg.de).
Manuel
Antonio Iturralde-Vinent, Empresa de Tecnologías de la
Información y Servicios Telemáticos Avanzados (CITMATEL), Cuba (maivcu@gmail.com).
Antonio Garcia-Casco, University of Granada, Spain (agcasco@ugr.es).
Kenya Núñez-Cambra, Insituto de Geología y Paleontología,
Cuba, and President of the Cuban Geological Society (kelvira62@gmail.com).
Haoyu Hu, Heidelberg University, Germany (haoyuhu@asu.edu).
Agenda
The seven-day Thompson
Field Forum will begin in Havana, Cuba, and then travel to Pinar
del Rio in western Cuba. For the first two days, the group will
visit localities around Viñales (a UNESCO World Heritage Site).
The group will then move to central Cuba for a traverse across
the Cuban orogenic belt, spending three nights in Santa Clara
and one in Trinidad (another UNESCO World Heritage Site and one
of the best-preserved colonial cities in the Caribbean).
April is typically dry, with temperatures ranging
from 26-32°C. No special fitness is required, and outcrops will
be easily accessible from the road.
Cuban Geology
For an overview of Cuban geology, take a look at:
Iturralde-Vinent, M.A., Garcia-Casco, A., Rojas-Agramonte,
Y., Proenza, J.A., Murphy, J.B. and R.J. Stern (2016). The geology of Cuba: A brief overview and synthesis. GSA Today 26, 10, 4-10. DOI: 10.1130/GSATG296A.1.
The Earth Sciences literature on Cuba is full of papers
published in sources that are not easily found, neither in
libraries nor in internet. However, Yasmani Ceballos Izquierdo
and Manuel Iturralde-Vinent have gathered since 2011
thousands of papers that are offered in pdf format in the "Biblioteca
Digital Cubana de Geociencias", which is frequently actualized.
Click
here for inspection.
See list of
selected references relevant for TFF 2025 Cuba.
Below. A) Tectonic map of the northern Caribbean
region. B) Generalized geologic-tectonic map of Cuba modified
from
Iturralde-Vinent et al. (2016)
with indication of field areas.
Below:
Geological map of Cuba (1:250000) with indications of field
areas.
Click here for a high-resolution version.
Click here for
legend.
Click below for daily details of the trip and
photographs of the outcrops at the stops.
It should be noted that the selection of the
outcrops has been conditioned by several criteria, including a)
transportation on a big bus for 40 persons, b) accessibility
(close to roads) and, importantly, c) road safety in a context
of small roads with heavy traffic.
[Home]
[TFF2025Cuba » April 12]
[TFF2025Cuba » April 13]
[TFF2025Cuba » April 14]
[TFF2025Cuba » April 15]
[TFF2025Cuba » April 16]
[TFF2025Cuba » April 17]
[TFF2025Cuba » April 18]
Day 1, April 12. Leaving Havana convention Center at 8.00 AM and transfer to Viñales (Pinar del Rio) along the Havana-Pinar
Highway. Western Cuba. Guaniguanico terrane (Mesozoic passive margin
sequences).
April 12, stop 1.
Parador las Barrigonas. 22°30'25.08"N, 83°27'16.43"W.
See
on 1:250K geologic map. See
on geologic sketch map.
See on
Google Maps.
April 12, stop 2.
Viñales Geopark visitors center. 22°35'48.30"N, 83°43'10.99"W.
Overview of the Viñales valley and general geology and
geomorphology of the region.
See
on 1:250K geologic map. See
on geologic sketch map.
See on Google Maps.
April 12, stop 3.
Puerta de Ancón scenic view. 22°38'31.86"N, 83°42'43.97"W. Late
Jurassic Jagua Fm and San Vicente member of the Guasasa Fm.
See
on 1:250K geologic map. See
on geologic sketch map.
See on Google Maps.
See on
stratigraphic chart.
April 12, stop 4.
Palenque Cave area. 22°39'14.14"N, 83°42'55.60"W. Jurassic
limestones.
See
on 1:250K geologic map. See
on geologic sketch map.
See on Google Maps.
See on
stratigraphic chart.
April 12, stop 5.
El Indio Cave parking area. 22°40'15.53"N, 83°42'27.24"W.
Jurassic-Cretaceous section.
See
on 1:250K geologic map. See
on geologic sketch map.
See on Google Maps.
See on
stratigraphic chart.
April 12, stop 6.
Km 13 of the Viñales-La Palma road. 22°43'13.47"N,
83°39'27.44"W. San Cayetano sandstones and shales (Lower? To
Upper Jurassic early Oxfordian).
See
on 1:250K geologic map. See
on geologic sketch map.
See on Google Maps.
See on
stratigraphic chart.
Day 2, April 13. Western Cuba. Guaniguanico terrane (Mesozoic passive margin sequences).
April 13, stop 7. Prehistoric Mural and Viñales Stonehenge. 22°37'7.59"N,
83°44'20.80"W. Scenic views.
See
on 1:250K geologic map. See
on geologic sketch map.
See on Google Maps.
April 13, stop 8. Entronque Moncada section. 22°33'14.21"N, 83°50'42.66"W. K-Pg boundary.
See
on 1:250K geologic map. See
on geologic sketch map.
See on Google Maps.
April 13, stop 9. Manacas Formation.
22°34'58.47"N, 83°48'6.93"W.
See
on 1:250K geologic map. See
on geologic sketch map.
See on Google Maps.
April 13, stop 10. Ichthyosaur
Cave. 22°36'30.02"N, 83°45'41.94"W. See
on 1:250K geologic map. See
on geologic sketch map.
See on Google Maps.
Day 3, April 14.
Leaving Pinar del
Rio to Santa Clara, arriving at 2.00 pm. Central Cuba.
Sedimentary sequences of the Mesozoic passive Bahamian margin
and ophiolites.
April 14, stop 11. Santa Clara
airport-Minerva road. 22°29'54.95"N, 79°53'14.13"W. Sediments of
the Bahamian borderland.
See
on 1:250K geologic map. See
on geologic sketch map.
See on Google Maps.
April 14, stop 12.
Santa Clara airport-Minerva road. 22°28'58.23"N, 79°50'42.10"W.
Serpentinite mélange with blocks of veined amphibolitized
eclogite.
See
on 1:250K geologic map. See
on geologic sketch map.
See on Google Maps.
April 14, stop 13.
Santa Clara airport-Minerva road. 22°28'4.55"N, 79°49'26.84"W.
Serpentinite mélange with tectonized low-P mafic intrusives (amphibolite). See
on 1:250K geologic map. See
on geologic sketch map.
See on Google Maps.
Day 4, April 15. Central Cuba. Ophiolites
and high-pressure serpentinite-matrix mélange.
April 15, stop 14.
Santa Clara-Placetas road. 22°19'49.99"N, 79°42'55.71"W. Banded
gabbros of the oceanic lower crust, underlying serpentinized
peridotites and late intrusive diabases.
See
on 1:250K geologic map. See
on geologic sketch map.
See on Google Maps.
April 15, stop 15.
Santa Clara-Placetas road. Pelo Malo Quarry. 22°23'25.89"N,
79°52'9.04"W. Ophiolite mélange. Megablock of HP foliated
(±dolomite) antigoritite sorrounded by "normal" (regional)
serpentinte. See
on 1:250K geologic map. See
on geologic sketch map.
See on Google Maps.
April 15, stop 16.
Santa Clara-Encrucijada road road. Las Delicias. 22°32'21.98"N,
79°54'18.89"W. Ophiolitic mélange. Eclogite blocks within
serpentinite.
See
on 1:250K geologic map. See
on geologic sketch map.
See on Google Maps.
Day 5, April 16. Central Cuba. Cretaceous
volcanic arc (from youngest to oldest formations).
April 16, stop 17. Hilario Formation. 22°19'13.05"N, 79°57'57.72"W. See
on 1:250K geologic map. See
on geologic sketch map.
See on Google Maps.
See
on stratigraphic chart.
April 16, stop 18.
Brujas Formation. 22°17'33.83"N 79°59'6.04"W.
See
on 1:250K geologic map. See
on geologic sketch map.
See on Google Maps.
See
on stratigraphic chart.
April 16, stop 19.
Mataguá Formation. 22°12'48.69"N, 79°59'29.74"W.
See
on 1:250K geologic map. See
on geologic sketch map.
See on Google Maps.
See
on stratigraphic chart.
April 16, stop 20.
Los Pasos Formation. 22°10'35.21"N, 79°58'42.06"W.
See
on 1:250K geologic map. See
on geologic sketch map.
See on Google Maps.
See
on stratigraphic chart.
Day 6, April 17. Central Cuba.
Low-to-intermediate pressure arc-related Mabujina Amphibolite
Complex (MAC) below the Cretaceous arc, plutonic rocks of the
Manicaragua batholith and subducted Mesozoic
passive margin of the Escambray Complex below the MAC.
April 17, stop 21.
Agabama River. 22° 2'49.20"N, 79°50'36.01"W. Amphibolite of the
Mabujina Complex.
See
on 1:250K geologic map. See
on geologic sketch map.
See on Google Maps.
See
age relation to stratigraphy of the Cretaceous volcanic arc.
April 17, stop 22.
Agabama River. 22° 4'0.77"N, 79°47'39.89"W. Amphibolite and
granitic rocks of the Mabujina Complex.
See
on 1:250K geologic map. See
on geologic sketch map.
See on Google Maps.
See
age relation to stratigraphy of the Cretaceous volcanic arc.
April 17, stop 23.
Carbonates of Boquerones lithodeme (Upper Jurassic) of the
Escambray Complex.
See on map.
See on sketch map.
See on Google Maps.
See on
stratigraphic chart.
April 17, stop 24.
Güinia de Miranda-Trinidad road. El
Algarrobo village. 21°58'29.50"N, 79°52'42.77"W.
Graphitic schists and muscovite+calcite-bearing schists of the Loma
La Gloria lithodeme (Jurassic) of the Escambray Complex.
See on map.
See on sketch map.
See on Google Maps.
See on
stratigraphic chart.
April 17, stop 25. Güinia de Miranda-Trinidad road.
21°54'10.23"N, 79°51'27.00"W.
Muscovite+calcite±graphite schists of the Cobrito lithodeme
(Upper Jurassic-Lower Cretaceous) of the Escambray Complex.
See on map.
See on sketch map.
See on
Google Maps.
See on stratigraphic chart.
Day 7, April 18. Farewell and back to Havana.
|
