Orielton

Pembrokeshire Coast

Outdoor Classroom

Geology

Pembrokeshire is one of the classic areas for the study of geology & geomorphology. There is a greater variety of geology & scenery here than any equivalent-sized area within the British Isles. Orielton Field Centre is conveniently placed for all the fieldwork locations to the south and east of the Milford Haven Cleddau providing an opportunity to study unrivalled coastal exposure of Old Red Sandstone, Carboniferous Limestone, Coal Measures, Variscan structures. The amazing variety of Precambrian to Silurian rocks and Quaternary deposits/landforms in north Pembs and the Marloes Peninsula are all within 1 hour drive.

The tutor, Sid Howells,is a former FSC peripatetic geology/geography fieldwork tutor, currently Area Earth Scientist (Pembs, Carms) for Countryside Council for Wales (the Welsh equivalent to Engish Nature and Scottish Natural Heritage). Sid has over 30 years geological fieldwork experience in Britain & overseas, and has had a varied career in industry, research, education and conservation; so students will receive expert guidance and even their teachers may learn something new. A wide variety of carefully designed field maps and other supporting materials (eg. oblique air photos) in full colour are provided for each student.

Exercises generally begin at a suitable viewpoint with students making their own observations and development of one or more hypotheses with supporting diagrams. Students then write down the methods they propose to use to test their hypotheses.

If time is critical, or if the syllabus requires it, a certain amount of work (eg. planning/logistics element) can be done in class prior to the field course, based partly on study of photographs and background reading lists that will be provided on request once the deposit has been paid.

Quality of the fieldwork generally improves if the students have been thoroughly prepared for the field course ie. if they can be given a few special lessons to cover/revise all the necessary background knowledge.

Some suggestions for content (based on the most popular choices) are given below but there are many other possibilities - please state your requirements.

Description	Time *minimum	Main theme	Additional aspects
Basic Techniques loc 1	1 day	Short exercises (c. 1 hour)	dip & strike, palaeoenvironments, fossils, mineral veins, basalt, tuff
Field Mapping 1 loc 2	½ day	Igneous intrusion	compare any alternative hypotheses that are suggested
Field Mapping 2 loc 3	½ day	Sedimentary sequence	palaeoenvironments (shallow marine), dip & strike, faults
Field Mapping 3 loc 4	½ day	Unconformity Precambrian / Cambrian	deduce geological history, marine transgression over eroded volcanics
Field Mapping 4 loc 5	½ day	Lavas (acid & basic)	may also be covered as one of three locations in Ordovician Palaeoenvironments
Logging 1 loc 6	½ day	Short log through ORS	palaeoenvironments (rivers)
Logging 2 locs 6, 7 & 8	1 day	Comparative logs in ORS	palaeoenvironments (rivers)
Logging 3 locs 6, 9 & 10	1 day	Comparative logs ORS, Carboniferous Limestone, Coal Measures	palaeoenvironments (rivers/deltas/carbonate shelf)
P.environments 1 locs 5 & 11	½ day	Ordovician	deep water marine with underwater volcanic activity
P.environments 2 loc 1	1 day	Silurian	shallow marine & terrestrial (rivers) with volcanic activity
P.environments 3 various locs in South Pembs poss some on MOD range	1 day	Carboniferous Limestone	different facies of carbonate shelf/ramp
P.environments 4 loc 2	½ day	Pleistocene	glacial (ice sheet), terrestrial facies
P.environments 5 locs 2 & 12	1 day	Pleistocene	glacial (ice sheet), comparative logs, fabric analysis
Applied Geology 1 various locs Carmarthen Bay	1 day	Coastal Management	coastal defence, coastal protection, cliff stabilisation, mapping
Applied Geology 2 loc 13	½ day	Quarrying (limestone)	quarrying method, processing, products
Structural geology 1 loc 14	½ day	Folds & faults	mainly descriptive
Structural geology 2 loc 14	1 day	Folds & faults	structural mapping exercise and Coal Measure sedim./p.environ

Most locations are within 30 minutes drive from the Field Centre although those in North Pembrokeshire take around 60-80 minutes to reach, depending on road conditions.

Each day starts with a short briefing at 08.45 followed by prompt departure at 09.00. Return is usually just before evening meal so fieldwork is maximised. All the necessary base maps, air photos and supplementary information sheets for fieldwork are provided the evening before they are required so students have an opportunity to look through these in advance.

The basic techniques refresher is recommended as the first day of any field course to identify any weaknesses and build confidence. Full support is given on this day and on other days as necessary unless the fieldwork is being assessed as coursework. Relationships between geology and scenery are usually discussed during the fieldwork with reference to oblique air photos.

Follow up sessions in the evenings usually take around 1.5 - 2 hours. These are intended to reinforce and extend the themes covered during the day. Students read through their notes, study their field maps and analyse any other data collected. A variety of additional resources will be produced at this stage and where appropriate, students may be asked to produce annotated diagrams as a summary of the geological history of the area/s they have been studying during the day. Other follow up exercises include production of graphic logs or appropriate diagrams to illustrate any data that has been collected.

A similar service is available for geography and environmental science fieldwork tuition and training courses for teachers can also be provided.

You are welcome to contact any of the teachers or other individuals/organisations who have used these tuition services to satisfy yourself that you will be getting excellent value for money.