Welcome! A first post on why this blog exists, what it's about, who it's for, and where it's going.

Hi there and welcome!  I feel the need to write a short introduction before digging deeper into Wisconsin's geology.

Why did I create this blog?

I've had a lifelong fascination with Earth history, but I don't want to simply read about it -- I love to go  outdoors to see, touch, smell, and taste the Earth around me to see the evidence myself.  Also,  I like to map and document what I have seen, or hope to see in the future, and to try piece the evidence of the Earth's story together on my own.

And I happen to be living in Wisconsin.

Hence, this blog. And this app.

What's your reason for reading this? 

Most people are intrinsically interested about the Earth. As children, we examined rocks and wondered why they look the way they do.  Some are pretty. Some have interesting shapes.  Perhaps we visited state or national parks -- these are most always located near natural or geologic wonder.

As kids, we were given introductory lessons in Earth Science in school. Possibly, if we had a good teacher who really understood the subject and made it interesting, we learned something fascinating about the Earth.   Or, perhaps those early lessons didn't sink in.  Maybe we were distracted by other things (by adolescence, everyone is!).  Maybe we remained enthusiastic about Earth science, but by high school it just "wasn't cool" enough or "profitable enough" to take your studies in it further. 

Or perhaps you followed your passion for Earth science and became a geologist or related professional. Great!  I hope you continue reading too.  This project may not be for the professional geologist, but I hope even you find it useful.

Where is this going? 

I'm going to use this blog (and it's companion GIS mapping app) to dig deeper into Wisconsin's deep past.  My goal is to learn a lot myself as we go.   I hold a degree in this subject matter and I read as much as I can about it; However, I don't hold a PhD and I am not necessarily an expert in all of the topics this blog will explore.

 I hope you use this blog and the GIS mapping app as a guide to explore on your own.  If you are in Wisconsin, be sure to go outdoors!  I'll wrap up this post with one of my favorite quotes on geology:

"The best geologist is the one who has seen the most rocks".  Herbert Harold Read.