The geology of Skye in Scotland is highly varied and the island's landscape reflects changes in the underlying nature of the rocks. The Torridonian on Skye comprises two conformable sequences, the older Sleat Group and the younger Torridon Group. ! [1], During this period the island was affected by the Quaternary glaciation, with the development of an ice cap centred on the Cuillin and Red Hills. https://www.theskyeguide.com/.../27-natural-wonders/177-kilt-rock The Old Man of Storr, a pinnacle of rock that adorns many a landscape picture, is just as magnificent in real life. The geology of the Isle of Skye in Scotland is highly varied and the island's landscape reflects changes in the underlying nature of the rocks. All pre-Quaternary rock types on the island are affected by a major swarm of dykes, which forms part of the North Britain Palaeogene Dyke Suite. WikiMili. Lives have been lost here. They are hidden beneath Palaeogene volcanic rocks over most of this area, being exposed only on the eastern and northern coasts of the Trotternish peninsula, on the Strathaird peninsula and between the Red Hills and Sleat. Volcanic Sills on Jurassic Sedimentary Rocks 14th January 2014 . Gently dipping lavas from the volcanoes cover most of northern Skye, giving a stepped trap type landscape. Inspired designs on t-shirts, posters, stickers, home decor, and more by independent artists and designers from around the world. Kilt Rock Kilt Rock is another geological wonder with vertical basalt columns creating the pleats and intruded sills of dolerite carving out the kilt’s pattern. Mention Scotland and, for many, the image of a kilt-clad Mel Gibson is immediately evoked. The Lewisian and Moine sequences are thrust over another sequence of unmetamorphosed Neoproterozoic sediments, the Torridonian, along the Moine Thrust Zone. These coarse-gr… The Isle of Skye isn’t just coastal beaches, it has its fair share of jaw-dropping cliffs, as well. Image of kilt, skye, coastal - 28357088 Image of kilt, skye, coastal - 28357088 Image of kilt, skye, coastal, geology - 28357088 However it was extremely windy and cold as hell. The Isle of Skye is, after all, rich with faerie lore. To the south, similar relationships can be seen, although in this case the lower sill forms the middle portion of the cliff-face. Here astonishing pinnacles, columns and cliffs adorn the landscape. The lowest unit is the Ghrudaidh Formation, followed by the Eliean Dubh Formation the Sailmhor Formation and the Sangomore Formation, all consisting of dolomites with chert. The two main exposures of Cambro-Ordovician sediments are the "Ord Window" (a gap in the Kishorn Thrust sheet through which the sequence beneath the thrust can be seen) on the northern coast of Sleat and the area between Broadford and Loch Slapin. Another feature which involves these Jurassic and Lower Tertiary rock-types is extensive areas of landslipped material, which developed during Quaternary times. Kilt Rock with the distinctive pillars and beautiful waterfall with views across to the Torridon hills on the mainland, this weird landscape is used as a film location for many Sci-Fi movies, and is known for it’s amazing rock formations. High quality Kilt Rock gifts and merchandise. A wide range of rock types are exposed on the island, sedimentary, metamorphic and igneous, ranging in age from the Archaean through to the Quaternary. [1] The Red Hills are formed of granite and have a more rounded topography. It is just off the main road so well worth stopping for. Lower Jurassic rocks near Broadford have provided building stone for local use whilst aggregate for road construction is sourced in a Torridonian sandstone quarry near Sconser. Kilt Rock, named because its sides resemble a kilt, is a beautiful cliff, with waterfalls that plummet into the ocean - just be careful not to get too close to the edge. The main ice sheet that flowed westwards from the Scottish mainland was diverted around this upland area. Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.5 UK: Scotland License. Image of geologically, water, edge - 43781403 While few countries are more closely identified with their national dress, I found that the thread that binds the fabric of life for the Scottish people I met is the land itself. [1], Sedimentary rocks of Mesozoic age underlie most parts of the island north of the Sleat Peninsula. Mission: investigate geological phenomena at Rubha nam Bratheirean (Brothers' Point - speculated to be the site of a former monastery or of a tragic shipwreck) on the eastern shore of the Trotternish Peninsula on the Isle of Skye. These coarse-grained igneous rocks are relatively resistant to erosion and now form the Cuillin hills. Exploratory drilling for oil has taken place within the strata of the Great Estuarine Group in the north. Return to the road. It is the variety of rock types that underlies, literally and metaphorically, the very different sorts of terrain and scenery to be found on the island. Its end use was in dynamite manufacture and later as a filter and insulator. Kilt Rock: Making the most of geology - See 1,773 traveler reviews, 1,174 candid photos, and great deals for Isle of Skye, UK, at Tripadvisor. You have to look north up the coast to see the Kilt Rock. The impact of successive ice sheets passing over, the last as recently as 11,500 years ago, adds to the mix. During the Tertiary geological period, the continental crust began to rift and eventually the Atlantic Ocean opened up. [1] Triassic rocks of the Stornoway Formation are found near Broadford, a sequence of sandstones and conglomerates deposited by rivers. The angle that you view the waterfall from makes it look like it appears from the rock. These beds are affected by thrusting in both areas and by contact metamorphism from Palaeogene granite intrusions in the northern outcrop, locally forming marble, such as at Torrin. And on the other, the Mealt Waterfall. The famous Kilt Rock is a sea cliff in north east Trotternish. The massive columns of dolerite have the appearance of pleats in a tartan kilt & traditionally form the basis of the Skye tartan pattern. Today, the cliff edge is pretty well fenced, but do take particular care and keep to the designated viewpoint. One's can only imagine living nearby. [1] These gneisses outcrop on the southeastern coast of the Sleat peninsula and were originally granitic igneous rocks. These beds are overlain by the lower Jurassic Lias Group with the Broadford Beds at the base, passing up into the Pabay Shale Formation, the Scalpay Sandstone Formation the Portree Shale Formation and the Raasay Ironstone Formation. The Pipe Rock is overlain by the Salterella Grit, a coarse sandstone, and the Fucoid Beds, a sequence of calcareous sandstone and siltstone. The most famous example of this occurs on the east coast of north Skye, 2km south of Staffin, and is referred to as the Kilt Rock. Let's discover one of the most famous features on the Isle of Skye: Kilt Rock and the Mealt Falls. U3A Skye Geology Saturday, 8 February 2014. The waterfall was in full raging flow and didn't disappoint. Looking west to part of the Trotternish Hills. North again brings you to the main settlement on the east side of the peninsula, Staffin, overlooking Staffin Island and Staffin Bay, an unusually sandy bay for this part of Skye. The island is covered by large areas of glacial till, left behind when the ice melted.[1]. All orders are custom made and most ship worldwide within 24 hours. The oldest rocks on the Trotternish Peninsula are 190-150 million years old, and were laid down in the waters and on the shores of relatively shallow and warm seas during the Jurassic period. Kilt Rock is one of the most iconic sights on Skye’s awesome coastline.Geologists have their theories on how the crinkly cliffs were created, but everyone here at HAGGiS knows that the rock was shaped by the kilt of a famous Scottish giant – obviously!Just to add to the magic, Mealt Falls cascade from the clifftop down to the translucent water which hugs the shore below. Part of the magma chambers for the volcanoes are exposed at the surface as major intrusions of gabbroand granite. The overlying Durness Group comprises a series of dolomites of Upper Cambrian to Middle Ordovician in age. [1] The dominant lava type is basalt, with subsidiary hawaiite and mugearite derived from silica-poor magma and minor amounts of trachyte from a silica-rich magma. The Skye Marble Company works the Cambro-Ordovician limestones at Torrin, metamorphosed through contact with the adjacent granite and gabbro intrusions. Would love to see the full effect from the sea as the rock formation looks like a pleated kilt and the waterfall its sporran. Website: Kilt Rock I will show you, that there are other worthy stops to enjoy on the east coast, on top of Kilt Rock Skye. The Quiraing is a spectacular series of rock pinnacles on the eastern side of the main spine of the peninsula and further south is the rock pillar of the Old Man of Storr . It is said to resemble a kilt, with vertical basalt columns to form the pleats and intruded sills of dolerite forming the pattern. The stunning geological formation of Kilt Rock is a beauty in any weather. the guide told us that the weather changes a lot anytime… Natural Feature. Some of this early activity took place on Skye. The wind roars above your head and on a clear day, you can see all the way to the mainland of Scotland from Kilt Rock. Graphite and coal are also present in small quantities, near Portree and at Loch Sligachan respectively, but neither has been economical to work. This is also a great spot for spotting dolphins and seals in the right season It is 200 foot high sea cliff. Kilt Rock. Below is my guide with many photos. The geology of Isle of Skye is highly variable, ranging in age from Archaean to Quaternary, with sedimentary, igneous and metamorphic rocks all present, leading to a wide variety of landscapes, depending on the rock type. On the one side of this lookout point, you’ll find the enormous Kilt Rock, so named because it looks like a pleated kilt. Quiraing. Sand and gravel have been extracted from the raised beach deposits west of Kyleakin with local use made of gravels from the mouth of the river in Glen Brittle. Most of the dykes are basaltic in composition but a minority are trachytic. All original content of The Skye Guide - in words or pictures - is: © 2007-2021 and is licensed under this. Sometimes, when the wind is strong, the water is blown away and it doesn't reach the bottom at all. The Kilt Rock is named after the columnar structure of the 105 metres (344 ft) cliffs, said to resemble the pleats in a kilt. Fissures spewed layers of lava, volcanic ash and debris on top of the soft sedimentary Jurassic rocks. This is a popular stopping point on the road between Portree and Staffin and there is a large car park by the waterfall at NG508655, at Ellishadder. A wide range of rock types are exposed on the island, sedimentary, metamorphic and igneous, ranging in age from the Archaean through to the Quaternary. The sequence continues with the Lower to Middle Jurassic Bearreraig Sandstone Formation followed by Middle Jurassic Great Estuarine Group, comprising the Cullaidh Shale Formation, Elgol Sandstone Formation, Lealt Shale Formation, Valtos Sandstone Formation, Duntulm Formation, Kilmaluag Formation and the Skudiburgh Formation. Address: A855, Portree IV51, UK. And I'd rather hear the music When my time may come to die, Of the wind among the corries In the far off Isle of Skye. The only Cretaceous unit exposed on Skye is the Strathaird Limestone Formation, thought to be either Turonian or Campanian in age, which lies unconformably on the Jurassic and is overlain unconformably by Palaeocene lavas. Geology The geology of Skye is complex. Best of all is Kilt Rock, 200ft high cliffs marked in an almost tartan-like pattern by the rock strata, and with a waterfall tumbling sheer to the pebbled shore below. The Kilt Rock with a columnar jointed dolerite sill above Jurassic sandstones of the Valtos Sandstone Formation. Kilt Rock is situated 1.5 miles to the south of Staffin on the Isle of Skye on its east coast. [2], During the Paleocene to Early Eocene Skye formed one of the main volcanic centres of the North Atlantic Igneous Province. [34] Kilt Rock, Trotternish. A sequence of Cambrian to Lower Ordovician sediments of the Eriboll and Durness Groups lie above the Torridonian with an angular unconformity. Diatomite was worked at Loch Cuithir prior to 1914, the works being connected by tramway to the coast at Invertote. The geology of Skye in Scotland is highly varied and the island's landscape reflects changes in the underlying nature of the rocks. The Isle of Skye ("Skye") lies off the west coast of Scotland and forms part of the Inner Hebrides island chain. There is a free car park so just pull in and walk over to the viewing area where you can see Kilt rock itself and a beautiful waterfall too. Visited Kilt Rock at the weekend on our tour around Skye. Kilt Rock. The name ‘Kilt Rock’ comes from its resemblance to the folds in a kilt and is adorned by the Mealt Waterfall. On the Trotternish peninsula, mafic magma was intruded along the bedding planes of the Jurassic sedimentary rocks beneath the lavas to form sills that are up to 90m thick. The Upper Jurassic is represented by the Staffin Shale Formation. However, the unique geological formations are actually the result of a landslip, similar to the one that created the nearby Quiraing. Closer by is the Mealt Waterfall, which freefalls off the cliff for 60m into the Sound of Raasay below. Both groups consist dominantly of sandstones and were deposited mainly by alluvial fans and rivers. Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.5 UK: Scotland License. Hornfelsed lava has been worked near Sligachan and dolerite quarried from a sill near Invertote for a similar purpose. Skye displays an incredibly wide range of rocks comprising : Igneous (granite, gabbro and volcanic) from the Tertiary Age of 65m to 2.4M years ago. This was about 15 miles north of the town of Portree on the east coast of the Isle of Skye (roughly 10 miles north of the Bride’s Veil Waterfall and the Old Man Storr).. Kilt Rock was a wonderful place to visit in Scotland. The view is simply breathtaking and you can see the endless ocean far away. These shallow seas were very different to the waters of the North Atlantic that erode Skye’s shores today. The almost-vertical columnar jointing within the upper sill gives rise to the name 'Kilt Rock', in reference to the similarities with pleats in a kilt. The striking rock formation, composed of massive columns of dolerite, has been compared to the appearance of pleats in a tartan kilt. Near Tarskavaig, Neoproterozoic metasediments of the Moine Supergroup are found above strongly deformed Lewisian rocks. After some Saturday night festivities and a day off on Sunday, Monday brought an exploration of the Tertiary igneous geology for which Skye is perhaps most geologically-renowned. A former quarry at Strath was linked by tramroad to Broadford where the marble was exported, prior to the quarry's abandonment. If you're not a big geology fan it's still a must see on any Isle of Skye tour and the views out over the sound of Raasay are truly majestic! The Black Cuillin are formed of gabbro, which erodes to form the characteristically jagged outlines, although this is in large part due to the many minor intrusions, such as dykes and cone sheets that cut the gabbro. This is one of those places you will recognise from the big screen, as it’s … The signposted car park was on the right side of the A855 road. Located on the east coast of Skye's Trotternish Peninsula, the striking rock formation known as Kilt Rock is a 180 foot high sea cliff giving several main climbing arenas of geographical & style segregation. Photo about The landmark Kilt rock seen on the east coast of the Isle of Skye. You’ll also see the iconic geological landslip of the Quiraing and Kilt Rock; a 90-metre tall basalt tower much like our national dress! During the Paleocene to Early Eocene Skye formed one of the main volcanic centres of the North Atlantic Igneous Province. Kilt Rock on the Trotternish Peninsula on The Isle of Skye, Scotland. North of Portree, you can admire magnificent views of the Trotternish landslips and abrupt sea cliffs. 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