Banffshire coast – an excursion

Unpublished report prepared for the Edinburgh Geological Society Excursion to the Banffshire Coast. 14th – 21st May, 2005. Leaders: John Mendum, Douglas Fettes, David Stephenson and David Gould (British Geological Survey)

Itinerary

Day 1. Sat 14^th May Travel to Cullen, via Tomintoul, Dufftown and Keith. Ballachulish and Blair Atholl Subgroup (Tomintoul and Upper Glenrinnes). Keith Granite at Strathisla Distillery.

Day 2. Sun 15^th May Findochty – Portknockie – Cullen – Findlater Castle. Grampian Group – Lochaber Subgroup rocks.

Day 3. Mon 16^th May Garron Point – Sandend Bay West and East – Portsoy West Appin Group – Lochaber, Ballachulish and Blair Atholl Subgroup rocks. Argyll Group – Islay and Easdale Subgroup rocks. The Portsoy Shear Zone.

Day 4. Tue 17^th May Portsoy Central – Links Bay – East Head Easdale Subgroup – the Portsoy Shear Zone. Serpentinised ultramafic rocks – metagabbros – pegmatitic granites. Crinan Subgroup rocks.

Day 5. Wed 18^th May Boyne Bay – Whitehills – Inverboyndie – Macduff – Tarlair Tayvallich and Crinan Subgroup rocks – the Boyne Line – Southern Highland Group rocks – Buchan metamorphic zones.

Day 6. Thur 19^th May Fraserburgh – Inverallochy - Gardenstown – Boggierow Wood Crinan-Tayvallich Subgroup – Migmatites, diorites and granites – Early and Mid Devonian rocks – Portsoy Granite.

Day 7. Fri 20^th May Teindland – Ardwell Bridge – Cabrach – Clatt – Huntly Ipswichian palaeosol – Argyll Group metavolcanic rocks – Northeast Grampian Basic Suite (layered mafic and ultramafic plutons)

Day 8. Sat 21^st May Return to Edinburgh via Windy Hills, Collieston, Aberdeen. ?Neogene gravels - Southern Highland Group rocks – metadolerite sills – F₁, F₃ folding