PIKE'S PEAK GRANITE
One of the most visited mountain peaks in the American
Cordillera is central Colorado's Pike's Peak (frequently & deliberately
misspelled “Pikes Peak”). The rocks of this mountain & surrounding
area represent the Pike's Peak Batholith, a fairly large, late
Mesoproterozoic-aged igneous intrusion that was emplaced 1.08 billion years
ago. Published research on the Pike's Peak Batholith has shown that
several igneous facies are present (e.g., Hutchinson, 1987).
Pike's Peak (looking W from between Colorado Springs and Manitou Springs).
All of the pinkish-red rocks are granites of the Pike's Peak Batholith
(1.08 b.y.).
Eastern side of summit of Pike's Peak (looking ~SSW) & granites of the Pike's Peak
Batholith (1.08 b.y.).
View from Pike's Peak summit (looking ~E toward the Great Plains & Colorado
Springs urban area).
Pike's Peak Batholith (looking ~ESE) - 1.08 b.y. coarsely-crystalline,
porphyritic granites (pgpm2 facies) a little east of the summit house of Pike's
Peak.
View from Pike's Peak summit (looking ~NNE toward the Front Range).
Pike's Peak Granite (pgpm2 facies) from a little east of the summit house
of Pike's Peak. This facies is coarsely- to very coarsely-crystalline and
porphyritic. It is dominated by K-feldspar, quartz, and biotite mica
Pike's Peak Granite (pgpf dike facies) (left: 6.0 cm across at its
widest; right: 6.1 cm across at its widest) from next to the summit
house of Pike's Peak, west of Colorado Springs, western El Paso County, central
Colorado, USA (38° 50' 29" N, 105° 02' 29" W). This facies is
finely-crystalline, porphyritic, and reported to be fluoritic.
Pike's Peak Granite (pgpm2 facies) (12.0 cm
across) from a little east of the summit house of Pike's Peak. This
facies is coarsely- to very coarsely-crystalline and porphyritic. It is
dominated by K-feldspar, quartz, and biotite mica.
Pike's Peak Granite (pgmc facies) (10.5 cm
across) from the parking lot for the Pike's Peak Cog Railway on the western
side of the town of Manitou Springs, eastern base of Pike's Peak, western El
Paso County, central Colorado, USA (38° 51' 20" N, 104° 55' 58"
W). This facies is coarsely-crystalline and porphyritic. It is
dominated by K-feldspar, quartz, and some biotite mica.
Reference cited:
Hutchinson, R.M.
1987. Granite-tectonics of the Pikes Peak intrusive center of Pikes Peak
composite batholith, Colorado. Geological Society of America
Centennial Field Guide 2: 331-334.