Revised excursion itineraries for three classic geological sites in Arran, prepared by Jim MacDonald, are now available. The itineraries can be viewed and downloaded if required by clicking on the following links:
Loch Ranza, North Newton and Cock of Arran
The preparation of these revised itineraries was stimulated by the society's wish to provide itineraries for each of the twelve sites featured in the new Local Rocks section of the website. Our original plan was to use material already published in the Glasgow and Girvan Guide, the Strathclyde Geoconservation Group leaflets and Macgregor's Guide to the Geology of Arran. Jim MacDonald is one of the co-authors of Macgregor's guide, and we approached him to ask his permission to use three of the itineraries from that guide. However, the guide was last revised in 1983, and Jim felt that he would like to update the itineraries before they were republished. He has worked tirelessly over the last few months on this task, and the revised itineraries are now complete.
Jim sees these itineraries as the first step in the preparation of a new edition of the complete Arran guide. You can read more about his plans here.
The society is very grateful to Jim for the enthusiastic manner in which he has embraced this task, and looks forward to the further fruits of his labours.
The picture at the top of this article is taken from the Corrie Shore itinerary. It shows the unconformity between the Carboniferous and the Permian at Corrie shore. The grey rocks to the left (north) with disturbed bedding belong to the Middle Coal Measures of the Carboniferous, while the smoothly weathered red rocks to the right (south) are dune-bedded sandstones belonging to the Brodick Beds series of the Permian.
(Photo: J.G. MacDonald)
Bill Gray