2026 Field Excursion Course: Keweenaw Peninsula!

Our 2026 Field Excursion course is open to incoming students!

Application Form

The Beloit Geology Department offers the opportunity for incoming students to earn 0.25 units credit in the GEOL 172 Field Excursion course over the summer before their first fall semester at Beloit College.

In the summer of 2026 we will be traveling to the Keweenaw Peninsula of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan from 6/22 to 6/29/26. The trip will be led by Beloit Geology faculty and incoming students will be joined by current students. We will explore the spectacular geology of the Midcontinent Rift, a 3,000-kilometer-long failed rift system that began to split the North American continent about 1.1 billion years ago. As rifting progressed, the basin filled with voluminous lava flows, and subsequent sediments and rich copper deposits, all of which are now exposed in the rocks of the Keweenaw Peninsula. The region also preserves striking glacial features from the Pleistocene, making it an exceptional natural learning resource.

This trip is made possible through the Richard C. Stenstrom Trust, which generously funds geology field trips for Beloit College Students.

Questions? Contact the Geology Department Chair for more information: zambitoj@beloit.edu

Expenses covered and gear provided by the Geology Department

• GEOL 172 tuition
• Travel Expenses to/from Beloit, WI, including roundtrip airfare (ORD) if necessary.
• Transportation to/from Beloit and the Keweenaw Peninsula
• Cabin housing, sleeping bags, cookware, geology field gear, safety equipment, etc.
• All food while participating in GEOL 172 and traveling to participate

Incoming Student Eligibility

• Deposited students interested in pursuing any of the geology, environmental science, biology (ecology) or environmental studies degrees at Beloit College.
• Students who need to enter on a student visa are not eligible.
• Incoming transfer and first-year students are eligible.

Current Student Eligibility

• Prerequisite: Any Geology 100- or 200-level course AND permission of instructor.

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Each academic year begins with a day-long field trip that is open any Beloit College student interested in geology. This is an especially great chance to learn about the department and get to know Beloit geology students and faculty.

In May or June of each year, we also offer our extended Field Excursion course, which typically pairs a spring semester seminar with a one- to two-week field trip that takes students to see geology one can’t see around Beloit.

Recent Field Excursion course destinations

• Puerto Rico
• Finger Lakes of New York
• Catskill Mountains
• Badlands National Park and Black Hills, South Dekota
• Canyonlands and Arches National Parks
• Florida
• Death Valley National Park
• Grand Canyon National Park
• Southern Utah (multiple destinations)
• Big Bend National Park

Additional frequent trips include a weekend trip to explore the glacial landscapes of Wisconsin, a four-day Fall Break trip to explore the mineralogy and petrology of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, and trips throughout the Midwestern United States focusing on Paleozoic paleontology and stratigraphy.