What could possibly prompt six teenagers to meet at school at 5 a.m. during their summer vacation to travel in a van for 22 hours straight?
The answer to that question for several Columbia Adventist Academy (CAA) students was a chance to study geology and obtain university credit from Loma Linda University (LLU).
“Six students chose to take 10 days out of their summer vacation to continue learning,” says Larry Hiday, science instructor at CAA. “I was proud of the way they threw themselves into this new and fascinating topic of geology. Very few of our schools cover geology in the science classes. For our students to be introduced to fossils, trackways and sedimentation was a great opportunity for them.”
The instructors were Aaron Kurtz and Jamey Hiday, graduate students from the Geology program at LLU. The class was taught in the Grand Canyon, Bryce Canyon National Park, Coral Pink Sand Dunes and Zion National Park.
The group also received a guided tour of the St. George Dinosaur Discovery Site at Johnson Farm in Utah, home to exceptionally well-preserved dinosaur tracks, some displaying skin impressions. These tracks, along with hundreds of other fossils and rare dinosaur remains show evidence that this site was produced along the western edge of a large, Early Jurassic freshwater lake now named Lake Dixie. Hundreds of tracks are enclosed under the museum building while others extend out in all directions. More are being excavated daily.
When asked if they would do the trip again, the students unanimously agreed they would.
All of the students were amazed at the beauty of the desert. While they saw a lot of evidence for the Flood they also realized that we have a lot to learn before we have all the answers to the methods and forces God used to create those incredible areas.
CAA participants stop for one last group picture with the LLU Instructors. (Larry Hiday)
Visiting the Virgin River, Zion National Park are, from left: Matt Anderson, Mike Morauske, Larry Hiday, Shari Booth, Micah Anderson, Crysti Wallace, Jamey Hiday, Candace Davis, Aaron Kurtz. (Larry Hiday)
The CAA student geology class visited a formation called the Narrows in Zion National Park. (Larry Hiday)
Several Columbia Adventist Academy students visited Angel's Landing in Zion National Park during a 10-day geology class. (Larry Hiday)
