the last post from Scotland 2018

The last three sites we visited are each interesting for their scientific variety and historic context:

Just North of Stonehaven we explored Barrow's metamorphic isograds (biotite in, garnet in, staurolite in) within just over 1 km on Pertumie Bay. The reason this change in petrology occurs on such short distance is due to movement along the Highland Boundary Fault which we visited just to the South at Creageven Bay.
 (fold structures at the North end of Pethumie Bay where we also found staurolite)
(view SE across Creageven Bay and along strike of the Highland Boundary Fault which juxtaposes rocks of the Highland Border Complex on the left with Dalradian metamorphic rocks on the right)


Siccar Point is probably the most famous geology outcrop on this planet; it is here that James Hutton found proof for the idea of deep geologic time. Red Devonian sandstones rest unconformably on near vertical Silurian sedimentary rocks.
(measuring strike and dip of the two units exposed at Siccar Point)
(group photo with the famous unconformity)


Dob's Linn in the Southern Uplands is the GSSP (Global Stratotype Section and Point) for the boundary between the Ordovician and Silurian. This boundary is based on graptolite biozones; the idea of biozones was developed in this area. And yes, we found a lot of graptolites though even without the fossils this would be a spectacular spot.
(Silurian? graptolites picked up from the ground at Dob's Linn)
(part of the folded and faulted section at Dob's Linn)
(group photo with waterfall at Dob's Linn)


Over the past three weeks our UofT group criss-crossed Scotland to learn about its varied geologic history and follow in the footsteps of many generations of geoscientists. We had less midges than expected, more sunshine than hoped for, and are leaving with notebooks full of descriptions, bags heavy with rocks, stronger friendships, and memories which will certainly draw most of us back.

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