Field observation is about much more than "observing fossils". Anyone can observe fossils. If that is all there was to it, anyone could do it. Did you know that geology is actually one of the most difficult scientific disciplines? It is true. Geology encompasses all of the natural sciences, and engineering and even astronomy. It is truly multidisciplinary. You could live your entire professional life as a physicist and never have to touch a rock. You could live your entire professional life as a biologist and never have to draw a map. You could live your entire professional life as a chemist and never walk twelve miles plotting strikes and dips. But you cannot conduct geology without intimate knowledge of all of the natural sciences.
For instance, and since you claim to be in the mining business, can you tell me what this is, and the rocks in which this is occurring?
Or this?
Or this?
Or this (this occurs in your state so you should be able to identify it)?
Or this?
Or this?
Or this? What kind of rock is this and why is it important in the mining industry?
Finally, and you should know this structure if you are, as you say, in the mining business: