A MINERALOGICAL ANALYTICAL INVESTIGATION OF THE BOX SPRINGS MOUNTAINS

The Box Springs Mountains, located in northwestern Riverside County, are an igneous pluton containing several mafic intrusions. The mountains are located on a block of bedrock that is called the Perris Block, which is bordered by the San Jacinto fault and is located in the Alquist-Priolo special fault zone. The purpose of the project is to analyze the rocks exposed along the Box Springs trails to give hikers relevant information about the surrounding geology. Due to metamorphic outcroppings in the mostly igneous rock, this project also attempts to discover the cause of these outcroppings of metamorphic rocks. Samples were collected from eleven localities along the “M,” “C,” and Two Trees trails. After using thin sections to identify the composition of the mountain, we discovered that the most common rock type observed was granodiorite, with metamorphosed granodiorite and pegmatite being less common. The mineralogy component of the project is completed but a different aspect of the geology of the Box Springs Mountains will be analyzed next year.