How to move a mountain with a wheel barrow

[gus]

Roadbuilder, Interesting post.  The red rock mentioned is dead soft and it is along side some rotten basalt which adjoins some hard rock.  I'm lucky that the basalt on my side of the canyon is soft and fractured.  On the other side of the canyon, it is hard and requires blasting.This photo shows what happens when you don't quite finish.  I had loosened the last dig but it started raining before I got it dug out.  It is the final bail out to break out the other end.  We got 2" in about 8 hours.


On Sun a friend with a large loader/backhoe and a 12 yd dump truck came over.  He removed 8 loads!!  All hauled out from behind the shop with a 2 wheel barrow loader.  He couldn't believe I had done that in 17 hours (hours on my JD hour meter).While he was there, I decided to try to get the last dig out or bury the little JD.  If he was there, I had a chance to have some help getting me out.  I was surprised that I did not get stuck.  I will not post a photo of that poor little Jonny after that mud bath.      I haven't cleaned it up totally yet!!This cleared from end to end!!      After things get really dry, I'll go back in there and do some grading and get drainage pitch.

[Tigerhaze]

Is the red layer kind of shale-like? We have the same layer in one of our rock pits just before we contact a rotten layer of basalt which overlays the good basalt. We also in the same pit, have a layer of red that reminds one of a bright red brick. Soft enough it isn't ’good enough for rocking but hard enough requiring blasting. Something happened between the basalt flows either chemically or metamorphically. Ideas Tigerhaze?

I haven't had much time lately to think about it, but my initial guess is the red layer is a layer of volcanic ash- it can be loose and clayey in spots where it was not otherwise subjected to intense heat after placement. I am guessing where it is hard that the ash was fused through intense heat as a volcanic tuff, with the heat dervied from an overlying basalt flow.

I am not totally up on my igneous petrology in that area, so it could be something else entirely. A good geologic map for your quadrangle or region would help make the determination easier.

[joeturner1977]

Gus, How close is the landslide to you. I heard about it from relatives that live in Yakima, and for some reason thought this post. I hope all is well by you.

Here is a link to check out.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/wastatednr ... 570021278/

[gus]

A bit over 100 miles from here. My back slope is fine We shall see in the spring