Untitled Document

Spring 2000 Field trip to Ireland

GEOL 2500

last update 3/6/Y2K

Rationale for trip: We take a geology field trip every spring for the simple reason the field is the best place to learn geology. Past field trips have been to Iceland, Lake Superior region, the Grand Canyon area, Wyoming to name a few. We choose Ireland this year because of its geologic richness and diversity, because it is well studied, because the logistics are relatively straightforward, and to imbibe the culture. There are no prerequisites and the field trip typically has students from a range of backgrounds, and we have found this to be very beneficial to the learning process.

Major Geologic features to be seen and possible topics for student reports (they are going fast):

Caledonian mountain belt structural architecture. Mark claims this one.
'Caledonian' stratigraphy.
Caledonian granites. Shawn claims this one.
Old Red Sandstone (Devonian). Shannon claims this one.
Stratigraphy and sedimentology of Carboniferous limestones. Becky claims this one.
Karst and landscape development in the Carboniferous limestones. Gabrielle claims this one.
Tertiary volcanics and tectonism (including Giant's Causeway). Sheryl claims this one.
Quaternary glaciation (the Ice Age). Troy claims this one.
Coastal features and processes (geology in action). Lisa claims this one.
Geoarcheology of Ireland. Janet claims this one.
Economic Geology of Ireland.
Geology of bog peat deposits. Brenda claims this one.

Lecture notes:

Caledonide Orogeny and Devonian basins.

Grades and responsibility:

students need to sign up for GEOL 2500 under my name.
we will meet three times before the trip (see below), and attendance is mandatory for two out of the three.
there will be assigned readings, and individual students will be given a topic to concentrate on.
during the field trip students will keep notebooks and give a presentation on assigned topic at the appropriate time.
pre-trip meeting times:
- Jan. 19th, W, 12 noon, Rm 280 or Jan 26th, W, 12 noon.
- Feb. 16th, W, 12 noon, Rm 280.
  - will lecture on Caledonian and Carboniferous geology.
  - will collect money ($250 a person) for cars and housing (Gabrielle Collins is collecting it).
  - finalize logistics.
- March 8th, W, 12 noon, Rm 280.
  - will lecture on Tertiary volcanism and on glaciation.
  - coordination of packing, and logistics (e.g. transportation to the airport).

Readings and information sources: Brenda, out kindly and efficient secretary at the front desk has copies of Gabrielle's paper on the Geology of Ireland for every one. She also has one copy of the more detailed reading that you can take out overnight. I also have a lengthy printout of recent journal publications dealing with the geology of Ireland that people are free to peruse at request.

Students who have signed up for the requisite credit:

Brenda Bell *
Shawn Broadhead*
Gabrielle Collins*
Brandon D'Andrea*
Lisa Gard*
Mark Gutchewsky*
Shannon Grogan*
Troy Hayes*
Sheryl Kelly*
Janet Pol*
Becky Zimmerman*

Students who have paid the first $250 installment to the joint account are marked with an asterisk. Others need to get a check to Gabrielle or Janet ASAP. Thanks.

Logistics:

leave March 10th, 2:35 PM -> arrive Dublin 9:10 AM on the 11th.
leave March 20th, 2:55 PM -> arrive Omaha 8:54 PM.
We will make a large clockwise circuit from Dublin across to Galway and then along the excellent coastal exposures focusing in on Galway, Donegal and Antrim counties. We will try to work out of one hostel in the area for 2-3 days
9-passenger rental vans will be used for transportation so it will be important to pack lightly.

Proposed itinerary (of course this is a plan, and then there will be the unfolding of reality):

March 11th, Saturday: Arrive in Dublin in morning. Get rental vans and drive west and stay at Clonbur at Petersburg OEC (353 092-46483).
March 12th, Sunday: Drive to Burren area south of Galway bay and spend the day looking there (Cliff of Moher, Balck Head, etc.). Return to Petersburg OEC for the evening.
March 13th, Monday: Drive to Connemara area, N of Galway and look at Caledonide rocks. Return to Petersburg OEC for the evening.
March 14th, Tuesday: Look at Caledonide, coastal and glacial geology along western coast. Return to Petersburg OEC for the evening.
March 15th, Wednesday: Drive in the morning to Donegal area, mainly looking at sites on the way in Sligo area. Arrive in evening at Dooey Hostel, Glencolmcille, Donegal area (353 073 30130).
March 16th, Thursday: Look at geology of Donegal granite and country rocks. Return to the same hostel. Depending on driving distance, return to same Dooey Hostel.
March 17th, Friday: Work along Antrim coast looking at Tertiary volcanics and intrusives including Devil's causeway. Hope for some sun for the photo opportunity. Stay at Downhill Hostel, 12 Mussenden Rd., Downhill, Castlerock (44 28 70 84 90 77)
March 18th, Saturday: Drive to Dublin area looking at sites along the way, including New Grange. Stay in hostel in Dublin (still to be arranged).
March 19th, Sunday: Free day in Dublin, or place of your choosing. You are responsible for getting yourself to the airport if you don't stay with one of the vans (still to be arranged).
March 20th, Monday: return to U.S. from Dublin.

Passports: You need one. Apply immediately! The post office at Crossroads is a good place to do it. University Audiovisual can take the photos for a modest fee.

Economics: These are estimates!

$640 round trip airfare. Need to take care of immediately. Tru Travel (see below).
$1000 plus gas for car rental: $200-$300 a piece.
$5-30 a night for lodging, 9 nights: $100-$300.
Food. Breakfasts and lunches out of grocery mart. $20/day
Total: $1140 to $1400. Plus tuition.
Money for lodging and food will be spent during the trip. We need to pay for rental cars up front.

Health issues: Each student must have some type of health coverage. Travel policies can be purchased for a reasonable price. Any students with health concerns that require or might require medication or a doctor's visit must inform me.

You may buy your air ticket from anywhere you please. The idea is simply to meet us in Dublin at the airport at the prescribed time. Tru Travel is handling most of the arrangements so there are advantages of going through them. The contact person at Tru Travel, 153 North 72nd street, 558-8715, Michelle.

List of references:

Anderson, J. G. C., 1983, Field Geology in the British Isles, Pergamon Press, 324 p.
Holland, C. H., 1981, A geology of Ireland, Scottish Academic Press, Edinburgh, 335.
Long, C. B., MacDermot, C. V., Morris, J. H., Sleeman, A. G., Tietzsch-Tyler, D., 1992, Geology of North Mayo, Geological Survey of Ireland, 50 p.
MacDermot, C.V., Long, C.B., & Harney, S.J., 1996, Geology of Sligo-Leitrim; Geological Survey of Ireland, 100 p.
Morris, J. H., Long, C. B., McConnell, B., & Archer, J. B., 1995, Geology of Connemara, Geological Survey of Ireland, 66 p.
McConnell, B. & Philcox, M. E., 1994, Geology of Kildare-Wicklow; Geological Survey of Ireland, 70 p.
Naylor , D., and others, 1980, Ireland; in Geology of the european countries; Graham & Trotman, p. 133-181.
Whittow, J. B., 1974, Geology and Scenery in Ireland, Pelican Books, 301 p.

Links to sites on geology of Ireland.