Up early
Posted: Friday, 02 May 2008 |
Hi, how's it going? Been getting up and about early these days in an effort to get all fit and healthy - too much work not enough hills - makes mountainman a fat slob.... anyway, one of my favourite walks early in the morning is 'S Airde Beinn, the hill that rises above the Mishnish Lochs. Great views from here although it is pretty muddy underfoot in places.
SAB as you know from previous blog entries is a volcanic plug. The views on a good day are quite extensive so enough of the nonsense, here are a few pics:
Old ruined house where the path starts
SAB from the south.
Looking down on Lochan S Airde Beinn
Like a mirror, so it was...
Anther view, further round
Mist over Calve Island and the Sound of Mull
And another view of the same
This whin bush looked seriously yellow in the early morning sunlight...
So that was the early morning activity. For any of my students who are reading, I am hoping to have a geology trip to Iona on Monday, that's this Monday coming. Also, as part of Wild Isles Week, I am doing two talks at the Isle of Mull Hotel - on the 7th and the 14th. Both of these are introductory talks to the geology of Mull and Iona
Be back soon!
MM
SAB as you know from previous blog entries is a volcanic plug. The views on a good day are quite extensive so enough of the nonsense, here are a few pics:
Old ruined house where the path starts
SAB from the south.
Looking down on Lochan S Airde Beinn
Like a mirror, so it was...
Anther view, further round
Mist over Calve Island and the Sound of Mull
And another view of the same
This whin bush looked seriously yellow in the early morning sunlight...
So that was the early morning activity. For any of my students who are reading, I am hoping to have a geology trip to Iona on Monday, that's this Monday coming. Also, as part of Wild Isles Week, I am doing two talks at the Isle of Mull Hotel - on the 7th and the 14th. Both of these are introductory talks to the geology of Mull and Iona
Be back soon!
MM
Comments
MM, like one or two other IBs you just keep writing/illustrating more and more lovely blogs. The second one of the loch in stillness is just perfect! Would you be very upset if I pinched it for my screensaver?
Barney from Swithiod not Mull
thanks again for another good blog and great pics as usual!
carol from over here
Barney - thanks for the kind comments! Feel free - take any pic you like, any time. The loch looked great this morning -very still, very cold. A really nice spot. Funny actually, within 30 minutes of taking that pic I was sitting in front of a dead client's PC, scratching my head as to how to fix it. The contrast is remarkable - the wild beauty of the still morning up on a hillside and then the hi-tech horrors of Microsoft! Cheers! MM
MM from Mull
MM, was the PC or the client dead?
Barney from Swithiod morbidly curious
sorry MM,but didn't quite understand the comment you sent to barney""dead client's pc"" what was dead the guy or his pc??
carol from being in the dark
Hi MM - a lovely spot I agree - funny this morning I went to Loch Frisa before work and was thinking - how many jobs are there where you can go and watch sea eagles in a wonderful setting and then go to work looking after a great bunch of schoolchildren? Fantastic - hope to get to one of your talks!
Wild Freckle from Sunny Mull
MM you have not answerd my question on the formation of a gold bearing structure through the infusion of quartz .In this area it will be carried in the main seam or attatch itself to the external facecs. If scotland is devoide of gold that answers my question. To Barney I prefer a green wallpaper but pinkies will do just well.
roy from Sofala.Oz
Thanks for everything, MM. How many pairs of boots do you go through a year?! You are clearly an asset to your community, MM.
mjc from NM
realy good pics looks realy good
gregor from clydebank
Barney beat me to it - may I pinch a pic or two for my wallpaper, MM? Is that the ruined house on the road to Dervaig, MM? What a fabulous day to be out and about on Mull. Wonderful. I'm just watching David Tennant on "Who do you think you are" round on the west of the island. I am jealous.
Iz from Flintshire
Grammatically, the client died, probably from not being able to cope with the PC's hiccups. Whether MM took the PC out of its misery by bashing it with a stone, we are not told.
mjc from NM,USA
I'm sure the bashing with a stone option really really appeals to PC owners...
Flying Cat from Perfect Day
Dead Client? That was a good one wasnt it?! And yes, FC, the bashing with a stone appeals to a lot of folk I know! But please choose your stone with care - a fine piece of that garnet amphibolite would be neat as would a good chunk of what is called "big feldspar basalt" (BFB is a very odd looking rock - need to show you it some time... just think "would you like to come up and see my big feldspar basalt.....?!" That would be some chat up line... Anyway, roy asked about gold and I did mena to get back. Not a lot of gold in Scotland, but it does get found in stream deposits. Strath Kildonan is the most famous place for it. Lots of people do gold panning in several places. Never tried it myself though. As Roy pointed out gold is often found in association with quartz. It would be good if there WAS gold everywhere quartz veins are found in Scotland, but unfortunately thats not the case. I dont know of any location where gold has been mined in situ - there was certainly a plan some time back to develop it at Cononish near Tyndrum but I dont know what became of it. So most of the gold that is found is in flakes and little nuggets in streams. But, of course, it has to have come from somewhere, so who knows where the "mother lodes" are? Anyway, just back from Iona and hopefully got some new stuff for y'all. Bye for now! MM
MM from Mull
Hi mjc. Boots per year? Probably works out at one pair per year. In summer i always use soft boots, but for winter, it tends to be the traditional leather type. You need a firmer boot to take crampons in winter conditions. Of course, whether out geologising or going up hills, good ankle support is essential.
MM from Mull
Hi MM - great pics - I walked up SAB at the end of May whilst on holiday with the family, such an amazing place! The kids were amazed to find that the loch was full of frogs and also quite a few newts. The blogs from Mull are great reading - thanks!
sju from leamington spa
Exploring the hills and coasts of Mull and Iona and occasionally elsewhere, with a close eye on the geology
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