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This institution reserves the right to refuse to accept a copying order if, in its judgment, fulfillment of the order would involve violation of copyright law. 1 g 6 •19 GEOLOGICAL SURVEY RESEARCH 1968 QUARTZ DIORITE-QUARTZ MONZONITE AND GRANITE PLUTONS OF THE PASAYTEN RIVER AREA, WASHINGTON- PETROLOGY, AGE, AND EMPLACEMENT By R. W. TABOR, J. C. ENGELS; and M. H. STAATZ, Menlo Park, Calif.; Denver, Colo. ibstract.-Quartz diorite to granite plutons intrude Lower of plutonic igneous and metamorphic rocks. On the Cretaceous sedimentary and volcanic rocks lying between two blocks of metamorphic and granitoid rocks. As indicated by west is the core of the North Cascade crystalline block, K-Ar dates, the large Pasayten and Rock Creek dikes were and on the east is the Okanogan Highlands crystalline emplaced about 86 m.y. ago (based on dating of biotite and block (fig. 1). The Mesozoic strata, include andesitic hornblende). The Castle Peak stock was emplaced about 49.5 m.y. ago (biotite and hornblende), and the Monument Park pyroclastic rocks and ininor flows (member A of the stock about 48 m.y. ago (biotite). A concentration of rhyolitic dikes between the granite Monument Peak stock and the granitic Golden Horn batholith of the same age suggests that the stock 121°00' CANADA is a satellite of the batholith. The stock domed up the beds of f &,ri• · •·•,S•I»;• •Area of WASHINGTON the country rock and deflected regional fold axes. The Pasayten 1 and Rock Creek dikes parallel trends of concordant plutons in , - '211 11. .1 111 1 1 1%,1,12 .1 HIGHLANDSOKANOGAN the metamorphic block to the southwest, suggesting that the £6 \:::.:t ...t..... CRYSTALLINEBLOCK [likes may be the shallow extensions of a concordant pluton in 48°45' NORTH 0 metamorphic rocks beneath the sedimentary terrane. CASCADECORE ···· 0\· · ·XPA· ··· kcl· .. 0 CRYSTAILINE /r+ I'\'e..':Vi.'··: · 'k•/Goot'7 Pe"k BLOCK llc,·•\w·······.4lilI\·· Geologists working in the Pasayten River area, of lillI,·3 +''I:•+.-•'•¥':8· · · •»I · · northern Washington have found the geologic history ,--. 't-'r/)74.J ++++./·······»GOLDEN HORN · dimcult to interpret for many years. Early workers in- ..x9731 : . :BATH94'It' : . cluding Russell (1900), Daly (1912), and Smith and • fLACKJ'EAK-»''i•w : BATHOLITH ••\•--•• .•11•1.••. Calkins (1904) briefly described the Mesozoic sedimen- 13/ <, tary and volcanic rocks and noted the presence of in- TAN trusive plutons. J. D. Barksdale and geologists with the f»,-12./ •»$1Area of • • • Washington State Department of Conservation first A-'rlei3 eGEJ mapthis mapped the granitic rocks of the area, and showed their Glacier•-•13pea•,1•-7'/9>1 WASHINGTON work in simplified form on the Washington State geo- «........ logic map (Huntting and others, 1961). The present report stems from reconnaissance map- 0 10 20 MILES ping by the U.S. Geological Survey in 1965 and 1966 as part of a mineral evaluation of the North Cascade FIGUREreport.1.-SketchRandom mapdashesshowingUpper'theCretaceousgeologic settingand Tertiaryof this Primitive Area, under the directive of the 1964 Wilder- quartz diorite to quartz monzonite intrusions; crosses, granite intrusions; dots, Mesozoic volcanic and sedimentary ness Act. Potassium-argon ages were determined by rocks (including minor Tertiary rocks) ; and blank areas, Joan C. Engels. predominently gneiss, sehist, and granitoid plutons. Heavy lines are faults, and letters show relative up or down move- GEOLOGIC SETTING ment of rocks. Data are from J. D. Barksdale, Peter Misch, The plutons described in this paper were emplaced fiedand othersin thecompiledGlaeier Peakby Hunttingarea accordingand othersto (1961)Crowder; modi-and iii Mesozoic sedimentary and volcanic rocks exposed in others (1966), west of the area of figure 2 according to a northwest-trendingblock that lies between two blocks Mischto Libby(1966b(1964),) andandGrantnortheast(1966of). Glacier Peak according U.S. GEOL. SURVEY PROF. PAPER 600-C, PAGES C45-C52 C45 046 MINERALOGY AND PETROLOGY. Pasayten Series of Daly, 1912, p. 481 ) along the east- nite is of intermediate composition ( CI=7-11). The ern initrgin of the central block, separated from the most silicic of the group is the Monument Peak stock of Okanogan I-Iigliltillds by a large fault. The volcanic graiiite ( CI = 2-4). rocks are overlain by tlie Pasayten Formation ( Smith Iii additioii to tliese large bodies tliere are numerous nrid Cal kins, 1904, p. 28-30 ), 11 thick sequence of inter- porphyritic aphanitic dikes. Hornblende-plagioclase bedded feldspathic to volcanic sandstone, black argillite, porpliyry dikes, mostly of dacitic composition, are par- and 11 few congloinerate beds ( members B to K of the ticularly abundant throughout the area. Sonic of these Pasayten Series of Daly, 1912, p. 481 ). Folds in the may be related to the quartz diorite-quartz inonzonite 3Iesozoic rocks are steel) ] imbed, subparallel, and trend plutons, but none were found connected to them. In nortliwest. Along tlie western margin of the sedimen- the Many Trails Peak area, biotite dacite dikes are tary block, iii fault contact witli tlie sandstone and argil- particularly abundant. lite, are greeiistone and cliert of probable Paleozoic age Quartz porphyry dikes of rhyodacitic to rhyolitic ( I-Iozonieen Series of Daly, 1912, p. 508 ). This unit com- composition are ·also abundant, and, since some of these poses the upper plate of tlie Jack Mountain thrust of stem from the Monument Peak stock, tliey will be dis- Miscli ( 1966b, p. 133-134). The Jack Mountain thrust cussed witll the stock. plate is iii part bordered 011 tlie west by the Ross Lake The ages of the plutons as based on field relations fault zone ( Misch, 1966b, p. 133-134)-a zone analogous and K-Ar analysis are, from oldest to youngest: to tlie fazilt separatiiig tlie eeiitral block from the crys- Pasayten dike and Rock Creek dike tal]ine Okanogan I-Iiglilands block on the east. How- Lost Peak stock ( age relative to tlie Pas:tyten and ever, the Ross Ltike fault zone lias been intruded by Rock Creek dikes zinknown) elongate plutons. To tlie soutli, tlie B] ack Peak batho- Monument Peak stock and Castle Peak stock. lit.li ( Adams, 1964; Miscli, 1966b, p. 134 ) has come up Pasayten dike and Rock Creek dike 111011% tliis sallie zoiie. In tlie sozithern part of the area The Pasayten dike has an avera (re widtli of 1 mile ( fig. 2 ) near Robiipson Afountain, Cretaceous red beds and a probable length of 1216 miles: The lithologically ( saiidstoiie, sliale, and conglomerate ), wliicli interfinger similar Rock Creek dike to the nortli-northwest is about witli over]ying massive :indesite breccia, are exposed in 036 016 miles long and lies along tlie saine trend as the 11783jor folds. Tliis is tlie Midniglit Peak Formation of Barksdale ( 1948, p. 173-174 ). Pasayten dike. The two dikes are the same age ( table 1 ) and may be connected at deptli. We did ilot deteriniize the exact stratigraphic se- The contacts of tlie Pasayten dike and Rock Creek quence or age of all the sedimentary rocks in the central dike are sliai·p, and near tliein the country rocks have block. Several fossil collectioiis, however, from the been tliermally inetamorphosed, commonly to ]iornfels satidstone-argillite sequence near Hurts Pass ( south of spotted with glomeroblastic biotite. Locally hornfelsed Slate Peak) indicate that the rocks are Early Creta- beds contain cordierite, andalusite, or garnet. Most rocks ceous in age ( D. L. Jones, written commun. 1965 ). Fos- at tlie contact are in the hornblende liornfels facies. A sils collected from similar rocks to tlie south have also few contacts along the Pasayten dike show coinplex been reported ( Barksdale, 1960, p. 2049 ) to be Early penetratioii of magma into ]iost rocks. For example, Cretaceous. Collections from a different part of this se- quence iii Canada ( Rice, 1947, p. 19 and 23; Coates, tlie nortliern border of the dike south of Wildcat Moun- tain is a migmatite consisting of narrow dikes and il·reg- 1966, p. 55 ) have been dated as Late Jurassic to Early ular masses of quartz diorite and pegmatite injected iiito Cretaceous. a hornfels spotted witll porphyroblasts of feldspar. DESCRIPTION OF THE INTRUSIVE ROCKS Along the southern margin of the Pastlyten dike in Eureka Creek the wallrocks are crisscrossed witli quartz The plutons of the Pasayten River area ( fig. 2 ) are diorite dikes and tlie pluton contains swarnis of hornfels of tliree principal types: quartz diorite to granodiorite, xeiioliths. Xeiiolitlis are abundant iii the Rock Creek granodiorite to quartz monzonite, and granite ( fig. 3 ). dike aloiig tlie western contact on the edge soutli of Rock The most mafia are the large nortliwest-trending Pasay- Creek. Such features would suggest :issimilation of ten dike ( extending from tlie Lost River to Pasayten tlle country rock in these areas; iii otlier areas, however, Peak) and Rock Creek dike (extending from the West as along the northeastern border of the Pasayten dike Fork of tlie Pasayten River to Chucliuwaiiteeii Creek ), iiortlieast of Robinson Mountain, the contact is sharp small pods and dikes of quartz-diorite to granodiorite aild the country rocks are overturned.