Mess Creek Escarpment
Mess Creek Escarpment | |
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False colour image of the Kitsu Plateau; the cliff forming the western edge of the plateau is the southern portion of the Mess Creek Escarpment | |
Mess Creek Escarpment Location in British Columbia | |
Location in Mount Edziza Provincial Park | |
| Coordinates: 57°34′35″N 130°47′58″W / 57.57639°N 130.79944°W | |
| Location | British Columbia, Canada |
| Range | Tahltan Highland |
| Part of | East-central side of Mess Creek valley and west-central side of the Mount Edziza complex |
| Defining authority | BC Geographic Names office in Victoria, British Columbia |
| Elevation | Above 1,700 m (5,500 ft) |
| Topo map | NTS 104G10 Mount Edziza |
| Designation | Mount Edziza Provincial Park |
| Formations | Oldest to youngest: Raspberry Formation, Armadillo Formation, Nido Formation, Spectrum Formation, Ice Peak Formation, Big Raven Formation |
| Rocks | Comendite, trachyte, hawaiite, alkali basalt |
The Mess Creek Escarpment is a long, discontinuous cliff along Mess Creek in Cassiar Land District of northwestern British Columbia, Canada. It forms the east-central side of Mess Creek valley and consists of two segments separated about 5 kilometres (3.1 miles) by Walkout Creek valley. The northern segment extends about 8 km (5.0 mi) southeast along the southwestern side of the Big Raven Plateau, whereas the southern segment extends generally south along the northwestern, western and southwestern edges of the Kitsu Plateau for about 10 km (6.2 mi). With an elevation of more than 1,700 metres (5,500 feet), the Mess Creek Escarpment rises more than 910 m (3,000 ft) above the floor of Mess Creek valley. The escarpment lies within the boundaries of Mount Edziza Provincial Park.
The Mess Creek Escarpment forms the west-central side of the Mount Edziza volcanic complex and consists of at least six geological formations, each being the product of a distinct period of volcanic activity over the last 7.5 million years. With the exception of the Armadillo and Spectrum formations which consist of basalt, trachyte and comendite, volcanic rocks of the Raspberry, Nido, Ice Peak and Big Raven formations exposed along the escarpment are mainly basaltic in composition. Underlying these geological formations are much older Paleozoic and Mesozoic rocks of the Stikinia terrane, as well as and Cretaceous and Paleocene rocks of the Sustut Group.