11thJuly - Huntsman's and Hornsleasow Quarries

This field trip is organised by Bath Geological Society and will be led by David Glenn of Huntsman's Quarries. Both quarries are SSSI sites in the middle Jurassic. Huntsman’s Quarry is famous for its exposure of ‘Cotswold slate’ (Eyford Member). It yields a rich and diverse collection of fossils - turtles, crocodiles, dinosaurs, pterosaurs, fish, starfish, insects, ammonites and many more. Footprints of Megalosaurus have been found. A geological leaflet will be available. Hornsleasow Quarry is a microvertebrate site and fossiling here requires sieving. However, effort is rewarded as salamanders, frogs, turtles, crocodiles, pterosaurs, dinosaurs, lizards, Sterognathus, mammals and more can be found.
Meet at 10.00 a.m. at Huntsman’s Quarry, Buckle Street, Naunton, Cheltenham GL54 3BA, SP124255. From here we shall travel to Hornsleasow Quarry, SP133323. Strong boots are essential. We can provide hard hats and reflective jackets but please bring your own if have them. A packed lunch will also be required.
Please let the field secretary know if you will be present.

Fussell's Balance Lock Excavation

I know that many of you are interested in the Somerset Coal Canal. This link may also be of interest. If you wish to use the site, the author requests that you acknowledge the source. More information about the Dorset and Somerset Canal can be found here.

Neanderthals in Doggerland

Click here to find out what this is all about!
WEGA suggest this link will help you with your homework for the group's February lecture.

Late notice - Pembrokeshire 3 - 10 August

Harrow and Hillingdon GS is running a trip to Pembrokeshire 3-10 August and we have two rooms available; they are a double and a twin.
The trip will be led by Roger Suthren of the University of Derby and will be based at the Broadmead Hotel (as in photo) in Tenby.
Transport between sites will be by car.
The cost is £585 per person (or £560 if 19 or more go). This includes a field guide compiled by Roger. Single occupancy may carry a supplement.
Can you please email by 19th June to let the organisers know if you're interested in going.

Climate through time - new poster from BGS

Have you seen this fantastic new poster Climate through time produced by The British Geological Survey? It really is extremely interesting and thought-provoking. Do have a look at the details on the website.

More dates for your diary - June 11th and 13th

Bath Geological Society is organising the following events for June -

June 11th: Geology of Bath's Water Supply by Luke De Vial, Head of Water Resources, Wessex Water
Bath gets most of its water from aquifers. They provide a good supply of drinking water, but its abstraction is not without its difficulties, in particular the need for careful considerations of the impact on river flows. Luke will explain how supplies to Bath are maintained without drying up of surface flows.

June 13th: Geological Ramble through the Quantocks led by Charles Hiscock, Bath Geological Society and Avon RIGS Group
Our ramble will take us over rocks of the eastern Quantocks, examining them in outcrop where we can, and using the best alternative where there are no exposures - the parish churches of the area. We will look at Devonian slates, Permian and Triassic conglomerates and sandstones and many others besides. We will finish by visiting Hestercombe House to see the exquisite Lutyens gardens and, hopefully, some lovely flowers, and the exposure and use of the Hestercombe diorite.
Meet at North Petherton cemetery ref. ST295335 at 10.30 a.m. From junction 24 of the M5, join the A38 by turning left (south) towards North Petherton. After just over 0. 75 miles, turn right - the cemetery is on the right after about 100 yds. Bring a packed lunch, hand lens and wear stout footwear. The localities will be approached by car but we will need to walk over rough ground for short distances. Please contact the field secretary of Bath Geological Society if you wish your name to be added to the list.

Sea Dragons of Avalon

Do you associate sea dragons with Street in Somerset? It seems you should - click here to view the details. The Sea Dragons of Avalon seminar will be held at the modern Strode Theatre in Street, on the edge of the marshes forming the Somerset Levels, opposite King Arthur’s legendary Isle of Avalon on July 31st 2009. It will offer a fresh look at the Street area, one of the classic source localities for marine reptiles during the 19^th century alongside Lyme Regis. The seminar will be set in the wider context of the latest Triassic and early Jurassic faunal turnovers, and topics will include assessment of the Triassic-Jurassic marine reptile fauna together with contemporary changes in land reptiles, marine fishes and marine invertebrates. This is highly topical in light of interest in the end-Triassic mass extinction and recent resurvey of the Street area by the British Geological Survey. New vertebrate finds, together with posters by workers and institutions in the south-west of England, will be on display and we plan to visit the Alfred Gillett Collection of local fossil reptiles by kind courtesy of the archives of the Alfred Gillett Trust.