Today, you'll become a real detective. No, not like one in films or TV series, but a working-out-in-the-field one! You'll eventually solve the mystery of those strange bumpy hills in front of you that seem to be everywhere in this valley. You'll become a glacier detective!
But first you'll have to be briefed on the case!
Location: N 58° 08.078 W 004° 58.627 (a layby on A837 going north from Stromechrubie to Inchnadamph)
Additional Material: information board, own observations
Let's go back in time, about 20,000 years ago, when thick layers of ice covered this whole area. These glaciers were massive, but they were on the move. And they moved large amounts of sands, gravel, rock and boulders with them which left several traces behind. We won't bother with erratics in this Earthcache, they are way easier to spot and often obvious even to non-geologists.
The traces we're talking about today are called moraines. They are basically accumulations of rock, gravel and sands, depending on their age they can be loose hills or even be almost as hard as concrete and hidden in the landscape. We can differentiate between four types of moraines:
1 lateral - a moraine formed at the side of a glacier
2 medial - a former lateral moraine trapped between two glaciers
3 terminal - a moraine formed at the end of a glacier
4 hummocky - heaps of compressed gravel and rock beneath a glacier
But now let's head outside, where the real action took place some thousands of years ago! Here's a sketch of the valley in front of you, take a close look and please try to find the features onsite. Please take a look on the information board, too.
You can reach the cache by simply parking at the layby. Doesn't matter if going south or north, there's plenty of room.
Q1: On the information board, a specific moraine is mentioned. Which one?
Q2: Considering the sketch and the information you get onsite: Was it only one glacier that deposited all moraines here, or rather more than one. Please explain your answer.
Q3: Which of the types mentioned above do you think are deposited here?
Q4: Update 12 June 2019: With the change in EarthCache-Guidelines from 11 June 2019, photos as proof of being actually on site are again allowed (same as the new Virtuals). Please take a photo of yourself on site. You don't have to be recognisable, e.g. a part of your body, the GPSr, or a personal item also fulfils this requirement.
After sending me the answers to the questions you may log directly. I will contact you, if something is not correct. Please provide cache name (and/or GC7D4YK) and all visiting group members in your answers.
And as a reward here's a banner for your profile:
<a href="http://coord.info/gc7d4yk"><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/gs-geo-images/35695640-de24-4264-a264-1ef1c135c318.jpg" style="width: 230px; height: 87px;" /></a>
Sources
information onsite
Royal Scottish Geographical Society
http://slideplayer.com/slide/2510751/