Editing Deep Springs Valley (section)

==Geology==
On the hillsides of the southwestern end of the valley, lie the [[Poleta Folds]], a distinctly visible example of [[Fold (geology)|crustal folding]] frequently studied by [[geology]] students from the [[University of California]] and [[California State University]] educational systems. The intensely folded and clearly visible layers comprise the [[Cambrian]]-aged Poleta formation.{{cn|date=January 2025}} Several complex fault systems add to the challenge for geology students to unravel the area's history. The Poleta Folds field area is revered as one of the most complexly folded and faulted in California, and has been used by generations of undergraduate-level geology students around the [[United States]] and [[Canada]].{{cn|date=January 2025}} During a typical summer one can often find near-established trails leading to the best [[outcrop]]s.{{cn|date=January 2025}}

Also easily visible at the base of the [[Inyo Mountains]], in the southwestern end of the valley behind Deep Springs Lake, is a sizable dip-slip [[Fault (geology)|fault]]. Researchers showed that the most recent [[fault scarp]] had an average displacement of {{convert|2.7|m|sp=us}} along a {{convert|20|km|abbr=on}} section of the fault. With an estimated rupture area of {{Convert|345|km2|sqmi|abbr=on}}, the event was calculated to have a moment magnitude of 7.0 and was estimated to have occurred about 1,800 years ago.<ref>{{citation|title=Quaternary faulting history along the Deep Springs fault, California|url=http://www.geology.cwu.edu/facstaff/lee/publications/pdf.papers/DSF.GSAB.pdf|first=J.|last=Lee|first2=C. M.|last2=Rubin|first3=A.|last3=Calvert|year=2001|journal=GSA Bulletin|publisher=[[Geological Society of America]]|volume=113|number=7|pages=855–869|doi=10.1130/0016-7606(2001)113<0855:qfhatd>2.0.co;2}}</ref> The fault is still active, but studies suggest that it slips about every 4000 years. Deep Springs Lake<ref>{{GNIS|259197|Deep Springs Lake}}</ref> is at {{Coord|37|16|35|N|118|02|37|W|display=inline}}. At {{convert|4905|ft}} in elevation, the lake is intermittently filled and actively precipitating [[Dolomite (mineral)|dolomite]], understood to rarely occur in such conditions.