Sorcha McMahon is a third year PhD student in the School of Earth Sciences at the University of Bristol. Sorcha is investigating how strange igneous rocks called carbonatites may have formed, using both natural samples and high-pressure experiments.
Dramatic view of Nash Point on a Winter’s Day. Photo credit: Sorcha McMahon.
Nash Point is a picturesque headland along the coastline of the Vale of Glamorgan, consisting of near-vertical cliffs of limestone and mudstone. Strata are of Blue Lias age, and at low tide the exposed shore platform reveals indicative fossils including tiny ammonites.
Local towns of St. Donats or Llantwit Major are convenient bases for the short walk along the coastline, and the walk covers part of the impressive Glamorgan Heritage Coast path. The site itself can be accessed from the cliff tops, and is a short distance from Nash Point lighthouse. This was the last manned lighthouse in Wales (it became automated in 1998), and is now open to the public.
Fossil hunting provided entertainment during the day trip to Nash Point, just 40 minutes drive from Cardiff.
Photo credit: Sorcha McMahon.
Biologist friends enjoyed the geological site of interest!
Photo credit: Sorcha McMahon.