Field Manual (Short Version) – Soil and Rock Field Identification, Description and Core Logging

A condensed field reference for site geologists and geotechnical engineers logging boreholes, trial pits and rock cores. It brings together, in one place, the descriptive terms, classification charts and field procedures needed to produce a consistent, defensible field log for soil and rock, together with the core recovery parameters (TCR, SCR, RQD, FI) and the Standard Penetration Test. Each table reproduces the wording of its own source and carries its own reference line. Sources include ASTM D2488, D2487, D1586 and D6032; BS 5930:2015; BS EN ISO 14688-1, 14688-2, 14689, 22475-1 and 22476-3; the Caltrans Soil and Rock Logging Manual (2022); the USBR Engineering Geology Field Manual; ISRM Suggested Methods; FHWA NHI-06-088; and other cited references. The manual includes a worked borehole log example. First Edition, October 2026. 71 pages. The author’s own content is licensed CC BY-NC-ND 4.0; tables and figures from cited standards remain the copyright of their owners and are reproduced in condensed form, with attribution, for non-commercial educational and field use. The manual does not replace the full standards.