Figure 67— Above: Size-distribution curves for typical samples of the deposits of the LoDaisKa Site, Square M11.
Below: Size-distribution Curves for typical samples of the deposits of the LoDaisKa Site, Square J8.
Local differences and variations in the parent rock and relief have a profound effect on soil characteristics (Thorp, 1941). In the present instance, there is no evidence of any appreciable change in the relief of the area immediately surrounding the site since the beginning of human occupation. The site is located towards one end of the relatively steep slope of outwash debris from the Fountain Formation which forms the overhang and extends upslope above the site. The deposits which make up the site are also the product of slope wash and of weathering of the overhang; they are some six feet above the level of the stream in Strain Gulch. The height of the deposits above modern stream level makes it seem most unlikely that the site was ever flooded in Recent times (Hunt, personal communication—Irwin and Irwin). Accordingly, the deposits would be a colluvium rather than alluvial in nature and would be derived from the overhang. Mechanical analyses of several samples of the Fountain Sandstone from the overhang suggest that the sandstone as it is found above the site is quite homogeneous, although it varies in color from white to maroon ([see pg. 99 of this report]):
| Diameter in mm. | Percent by weight |
|---|---|
| 2.00 | 19.33% |
| 2.00-1.00 | 16.51% |
| 1.00-0.71 | 8.64% |
| 0.71-0.50 | 8.33% |
| 0.50-0.351 | 8.61% |
| 0.351-0.25 | 8.89% |
| 0.25-0.177 | 5.51% |
| 0.177-0.125 | 5.68% |
| 0.125-0.088 | 4.69% |
| 0.088-0.062 | 3.37% |
| 0.062 | 10.40% |
| 99.96% |
These results compare closely with the analyses of the deposits making up the site, and suggest that weathering of the parent material was primarily dissolution, probably accompanied by some mechanical disintegration.
