Geology of Dana Point

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Take a virtual field trip of the geology of Dana Point (sorry about the audio!) or try it out yourself. Here are the stops:

Stop 1: Dana Point Headlands. 24200 Dana Point Harbor Dr, Dana Point, CA 92629. Park at the Ocean Institute ad walk out onto the beach at Dana Cove Park. Look up close at the schist boulders that form the San Onofre Breccia. If you’re feeling adventurous, continue walking around the point at low tide to find the Dana Point caves.

Stop 2: Dana Point Harbor. 34400-34524 Ensenada Pl, Dana Point, CA 92629. Park near Baby Beach and cross the street to check out the fault and turbidites of the Capistrano Formation. There’s an old elevator shaft here from the ruins of the failed 1920s Dana Point Inn https://www.kcet.org/history-society/...

Stop 3: Marine Terraces. Drive along Golden Lantern from PCH to Stonehill. The steep hill you’re climbing when you cross Selva used to be a sea cliff similar to the cliffs around Dana Point today from a 500,000+ year-old marine terrace. See the terraces in profile from Stop 4.

Stop 4: Capo Beach. 1850 Avenida Estacion, San Clemente, CA 92672. As you drive here, look at the several landslides and erosion controls built into the cliffs along PCH. Walk the San Clemente Pedestrian Beach Trail to San Clemente Pier. Look to the highly eroded cliffs from the weak Capistrano Formation mudstones. Once you’re done, have a day at the beach!

This video and recommended stops were inspired by “Reading the Geologic History of Doheny State Beach” by Rodger More https://www.dohenystatebeach.org/wp-c...

Further reading:
Ingle Jr, J. C. (1971). Paleoecologic and paleobathymetric history of the late Miocene-Pliocene Capistrano Formation, Dana Point area, Orange County, California.
Luyendyk, B. P., Kamerling, M. J., & Terres, R. (1980). Geometric model for Neogene crustal rotations in southern California. Geological Society of America Bulletin, 91(4), 211-217.
Stuart, C. J. (1973). Lithofacies in the San Onofre Breccia, Laguna Beach to Dana Point, Orange County, California: a preliminary report.

0:00 Introduction
0:07 GEOLOGY OF DANA POINT
2:25 Dana Point Harbor
3:57 Turbidites
4:18 Marine Terraces
5:36 Capo Beach