Field Trips
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Field Trips

General Information

Do check with this website and/or the organiser before leaving for any trip.  We will also try to contact anyone who has registered an interest in a trip in advance. 

Always check the latest issue of "London Platform" for up to date information on any event, or check with the event's organiser. Details of events more than two months ahead are provisional.

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Registering Your Interest In An Event

Now there is a new and convenient way of registering for or asking questions about any or all of our events online, using the Registration Form.

Simply select the events you are interested in, enter your contact details and press the button. The organisers of the events you have selected will contact you and confirm your interest. You can use the form as many time as you like and you are not committed to anything by registering an interest - you are saving the LOUGS money and the organisers' time by registering in this way. Go on, give it a go.

 

Thursday 16 February

VISIT: Cross Rail's Tottenham Court Road Station & Canada Water

Contact: John Lonergan

 

Sunday 4 March

VISIT: Bignor and Duncton with David Bone

The day will start with a review of the local geology of Duncton (from the top of Duncton Hill) then a look at the ancient quarry site at Duncton mill pond and (via the greensand bench, Gault Clay/Lower Greensand) the little ‘tufa’ church in Burton Park followed by a stop for lunch. The afternoon will comprise a guided tour (and some free time) of the Roman villa at Bignor, possibly followed by a talk about the adjacent vineyards and finish with a sunset drive to the top of Bignor Hill (time permitting).

Provisional itinerary/approximate timings:
10.30 Start at Duncton viewpoint. 30 minutes to gather, and discuss view and local geology.
11.00 Drive down and reassemble at bottom of Duncton Hill. Walk 2 km to Burton Park church via millpond. Walk back approx 1 km to pub.
1.00 Arrive for lunch at The Cricketers in Duncton or the White Horse in Sutton. Walk 1 km back to cars.
2.30 Drive to Bignor and reassemble at Roman villa. Guided walk and free time at Roman villa. Possible additional talk. Possible drive up Bignor Hill.
4.00 Finish.

We can arrange lifts from Pulborough railway station (please note when booking and confirm time nearer the event).

Contact: John Lonergan

 

Saturday 21 April

VISIT: Chalk Quarries in the Dunstable area with Haydon Bailey

Contact: Di Clements

 

Sunday 13 May

VISIT: Faringdon and Abingdon (Oxfordshire) - Fossil Sponge Reefs and Jurassic Bahamas with Graham Williams

This field trip is about Porifera – Sponges – perhaps the simplest of the multi-celled animals. A souvenir field guide will be provided on the day. More information to follow

This trip is car based; car parking is free at all localities except Oxford. If you need a lift, or can offer one, please contact the event organiser.

Contact: Gavin Mair

 

Sunday 20 May

S276 Revision Day

Royal Holloway College, Egham, Surrey

The revision day addresses the 'practical' aspect of the exam which is worth 50% of the marks. Hence you can pass by working hard at Egham, without worrying about the rest! The day is divided into three sessions and a lunch break. It has been running for over twenty years and is led by experienced tutors.

The problem map in part II of the exam requires a knowledge of geological maps and field relations. In this session you will work through a number of examples using models and a well tried procedure which has been found to be a great help to those having difficulty with this aspect of the course.

The rocks session revises the classification of rocks and provides rock samples for identification. Hands on experience of identifying rocks is the best way of gaining the experience to do well in the exam. The best geologists are those who have handled the most rocks.

The fossil session gives students an opportunity to examine a variety of 'real' fossils which complement those in the Home Experiment Kit. The session concentrates on the compulsory part of the paper where students are asked to draw and label a given specimen and make deductions about its mode of living and fossilisation potential. The session will finish with a short tutorial on the graphic log element of the course.

All this is provided for £7.50 - which includes free tea/ coffee/ soft drinks.
You can also take the opportunity to talk to tutors and graduates regarding future course choices.
A fun and worthwhile day in the company of other students and tutors.

Contact: Geoff Barton

 

Sunday 3 June

VISIT: Boxgrove Priory and Bracklesham with David Bone

Contact: John Lonergan

 

Thursday 12 July

EVENING WALK: London Building Stones in the London Bridge area with Diana Smith

Contact: Sue Vernon

 

Sunday 15 July

VISIT: Ramsgate with Geoff Downer

Contact: Gavin Mair

 

Sunday 23 September

VISIT: Reigate and Godstone caves with Andy Belcher

Contact: John Lonergan

 

Sunday 7 October

GEOWALK: Wander up the Wandle and Merton Priory

Contact: Yvonne Brett

 

Sunday 11 November

S276 Student Day to Herne Bay

Welcome to geology! Your LOUGS committee is offering a hands-on experience to get you started. We are organising a field trip to Herne Bay on the north Kent coast where you can see REAL rocks to supplement your virtual field trips. You will quickly learn that rocks, even when they are 55 million years old, do not have to be hardened. The cliffs at Herne Bay are particularly interesting as you can see the layering of 3 different rock-types in the cliff face. They are an SSSI.

bulletWe will examine the sandy Thanet Formation and compare it to the overlying Lambeth Group and London Clay
bulletWe will look for clues as to how they were formed and what they consist of
bulletWe will look at modern beach processes for comparison
bulletWe will look for clues to help us understand the ancient environments
bulletWe will discuss what might have happened in the intervening years
bulletWe will look for evidence of the more recent Ice Ages
bulletWe might even find evidence of deep heat within the Earth

In any case, we hope you will join us!

Brian Harvey and Di Smith and Barbara Cumbers, all experienced OU tutors, will mastermind the trip and you will be ably assisted by other tutors and members of the Committee.

 

Meet in the Beltinge Car Park at 10.30 am

Grid ref TR 205 686.

Click here to see on Streetmap

 

To get there by car (and coming from the west), turn off the main A299 road AFTER the turning to Herne Bay.  It is signposted to Beltinge.  After the roundabout, the road crosses the railway and very soon you need to turn off on a sharp right towards Beltinge and Reculver.  After driving through the village of Beltinge the road makes a very sharp right-hand bend, but instead, go straight on up Reculver Drive to the car park at the end.  (By rail, we can pick up passengers arriving at Herne Bay station).

 

Bring

·         Packed lunch (and thermos!).  Be warned, there is no snack bar and no loos at Beltinge.  We will go to the King Ethelbert Inn at Reculver at lunch time for further discussion and a look at the building stones in the remains of the Saxon Reculver towers.

·         Walking boots or wellies; hard hats (available from builders' merchants); warm, waterproof clothing; hats.

·         Grain-size chart and handlens from your kit.  Notebook and pencil

·         Trowel, margarine pots and kitchen paper for collecting fossils (they can be quite delicate).

·         £2.50 to cover the cost of handouts, insurance and communications.  If you have recently joined the OUGS and been given a voucher, this would be a good trip to use it on.

 

Problems on the day: Ring Di Clements’ mobile: 0777 344 2141

 

Contact: Iain Fletcher

To register for this event or to ask questions use the Registration Form.

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Page updated: 14/05/2010