Run Hill contains a buried paleosol that separates two packages of dune sediment, indicating a period of dune activity followed by a period of stabilization with vegetative cover and soil formation, then followed by a period of reactivation. Samples of tree stumps rooted in the paleosol were taken in four locations on Run Hill for C-14 dating. IR-OSL samples were taken above and below the soil, within sight of the soil, to ensure that appropriate packages of dune sediment were being sampled.
The photo above shows the Run Hill paleosol exposed in an area of deflation. As shown in the GPR lines above, this soil horizon has variable topography, not unlike the current dune surface. Four wood samples from stumps rooted in this paleosol were dated, and the conventional dates are listed above. The calibrated dates shown here are inclusive of the calibrations from all four dates. These dates indicate that the present phase of dune activity began sometime after 1655 AD, because the dated tree would have died prior to or during burial by dune sediment.