Details – CGS Meeting and Field Trip

2025 Carolina Geological Society Meeting and Field Trip – Updated August 26, 2025

November 7-9, 2025

Headquarter location is Morganton, NC.

River and Topographic Evolution in Western North Carolina: Evidence from Linville Gorge and the Laurel Creek Lineament, Spruce Pine, NC

Lead by Brad Johnson (Davidson College) and Jackie Langille (University of North Carolina at Asheville)

Meeting Description
This meeting will focus on the Blue Ridge over three very different time scales. First, we’ll examine the impacts of Helene on fluvial systems and hillslopes in the Wilson Creek area. Then we’ll look at Quaternary (?) stream capture along the Linvile River including downstream impacts. Lastly, we’ll look at linear fracture systems associated with Cenozoic topographic rejuvenation in the Spruce Pine area.

Schedule
Friday Evening: Annual CGS business meeting and dinner at the Morganton Community House (parking is available or walk from the meeting hotel)

Saturday full day field trip:

Helene had significant impacts on geomorphic systems in Western North Carolina. Within the Wilson Creek Drainage, we’ll look at debris flows, landslides, and flood impacts from the storm. Our focus will be on preliminary data collection from undergraduate researchers at Davidson College in the year following the storm.

In the afternoon, we’ll climb the escarpment and examine evidence for stream capture along the Linville River including stops at Camp Creek, Brushy Creek, and the Linville River.

Sunday half day field trip:

Sunday, we’ll depart from the meeting hotel and visit one of the QuartzCorp quarries in Spruce Pine to observe joints and faults of the Laurel Creek Lineament.
 
 By registering for the field trip and business meeting, participants agree to the Carolina Geological Society code of conduct

Accommodations
The Fairfield Inn & Suites Morganton Historic Downtown (400 N. Green St.) is the field trip departure point and few minutes’ walk from the Friday evening dinner and business meeting at the Morganton Community House. The field trip weekend is part of a busy tourist season in the NC mountains! A limited number of rooms for has been reserved for November 7-9 at a reduced rate of $189/night, if reservations are made by 9/20/2025 and while rooms in the block remain. Book ASAP because this weekend is still part of the tourist season for fall color! Several other hotels are within a few miles of downtown Morganton; parking will be available near the Morganton Community House and departure point for the field trip. Please call the hotel directly for help with or questions about reservations.

Two ways to reserve:
Call the hotel directly to reserve: 828-608-0900 (ask for the Carolina Geological Society group rate)
Use the link provided by Fairfield Inn & Suites Morganton Historic Downtown: link for CGS weekend

Parking Information

• Parking at the Fairfield Inn and Suites in Morganton is available for overnight guests only. For free public parking options nearby, please visit https://www.morgantonnc.gov/main-street/page/parking-downtown.
• For Friday night’s dinner and business meeting, public parking is available across the intersection of Queen Street and N King Street, diagonally across from the Morganton Community house. The meeting hotel is a 10-15 minute walk from the Morganton Community house. 
• Google Map Link – https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/viewer?mid=1gMkQm-gsiqPrK_mICtcGGGWztqlT_Uw&ll=35.7468313172657%2C-81.6903626&z=18