Fingal's Cave (Staffa)
A
cache
by chizu
Hidden:
10/1/2007
Size:
 (Not chosen)
Difficulty: 
Terrain: 
(1 is easiest, 5 is hardest)
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This is an Earthcache located on the island of Staffa,
approximately 6 miles (9 kilometres) north of Iona on the west
coast of Scotland.
'Fingal's Cave' on the Isle of Staffa is internationally famous,
having been the inspiration for musicians, artists, poets and
writers for many years. Sea swells racing into Fingal's Cave and
cascading down basalt steps create
rhythmic, eerie music made famous by composer Felix
Mendelssohn. The columnar basalt formations evident on Staffa
emerged as lava flows some 60 million years ago. The island's name
came from the Viking or Norse word for building stave, column or
pillar. The island and cave was brought to the attention of the
scientific world by Sir Joseph Banks (1743 - 1820) who was on route
to Iceland on a natural history trip. In his writings he compares
the island's appearances to lava, and it should be noted that this
came before Hutton's 'Theory of the Earth'. The island is composed
of columnar basalt and overlying 'slaggy' basalt, erupted as lava
flows from the Teritary Mull volcanic centre, and it is basalt
pillars that form the spectacular entrance to the cave itself.
Once lava erupted from fissures in this vast volcanic field and
spread across the landscape, travelling several kilometres from the
source. Although the columns within the basalt may look like
colossal crystals, they developed after the lava solidified. As the
rock cooled and contracted, cracks formed in the most efficient
pattern - hexagonal from the bird's-eye view. The resulting columns
vary from one to three meters across but appear remarkably uniform.
Because the cracks grew perpendicular to the cooling surface, the
columns tend to be vertical.
To claim this cache, please post a photograph of yourself at
Fingal's Cave cave with your GPSr. In addition, email me your
estimate of the height, width and depth of the cave. Please do
not go beyond the barrier in the cave.
Details of boat trips to the island can be found
here.
Alternatively, private boats can moor at the published
coordinates.
Kind permission for this cache has been granted by The National
Trust for Scotland.
Additional Hints (
No hints available
)
(Decrypted Hints)
Find...
 boat to Staffa
Plaque on the island
Staffa and Fingal's Cave
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1 user(s) watching this cache.
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Logged Visits (
36 total. Visit the Gallery (61 images)
)
Warning.
Spoilers may be included in the descriptions or links.
Cache find counts are based on the last time the page generated.
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 October 16 by mailboxmonty (1005 found)
Wow! Mr MBM has wanted to visit Staffa for as long as he can remember so when we were making a day trip to Iona it was a definite that we should take in Staffa as well. It was a beautiful day, calm sea, clear skies and hot sunshine. MBM (the dog) didn't much enjoy the trip and had to be shoved onto the boat in rather undignified fashion. The rest of us thought it was fabulous and thorougly enjoyed our hour ashore exploring the island and the extraordinary cave. What an amazing place! TFTC!
[view this log]
| September 14 by RaF MUC (830 found)
Well on our Mull-trip going to Staffa and Iona just was a fixed thing to do...especially since I already have seen the "opposite" side in Northern Ireland. So with a bit of luck (and due to some ppl being late) we just suceeded in getting into a trip there just in the process of leaving.
And def. had loads to look at on that small island afterwards...the hour flew by like nothing. But enough time to answer the questions and take some pictures (which somehow all tend to be a bit too bright though) :). Thx for log-approval :)!
TFTC!
RaF MUC
[view this log]
| September 8 by 3fatties (202 found)
...wow!!!! Great place, only spent 30 mins on the island but well worth the rocky ride. Photos etc will follow shortly - tftc :)
[view this log] | August 26 by cooknbull (629 found)
We come to Mull at least every summer (sometimes more often) and have been to Staffa on several occasions in our pre-caching days. However, the winds nearly prevented us from visiting the Cave this year, but fortunately, the morning was calm (preceding an incredibly violent night in which virtually every tent on the field was destroyed) and we had a lovely trip on the Iolaire. An inspiring cave in a glorious part of the country - whatever the weather. We love it!
[view this log]
| August 24 by mr-c (209 found)
We did the "3 island tour" - highly recomended. A great day, great views...TFTC
[view this log] | |
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Current time: 11/21/2009 11:56:28 AM
Last Updated: 10/16/2009 6:24:21 PM
Rendered: From Database
Coordinates are in the WGS84 datum
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