A prominent but remote summit in Glen Coul in the Assynt district of the NW Highlands, the Stack of Glencoul lies a mile (1.6 km) southeast of Loch Beag at the head of Loch Glencoul. Rising the a height of 494m / 1620 feet, this towering summit presents a shear rock face to the west. The Stack of Glencoul provides one of the finest exposures of the Moine Thrust, a significant geological discontinuity which cuts across NW Scotland, with older Lewisian Gneiss having been pushed over younger Cambrian Quartzites. Here the ductile shear zone, which represents the contact between these rock units, is marked by a broad band of shattered mylonites. Cylindrical burrows (known as Skolithos) produced by marine organisms have been spectacularly deformed, recording successive shears and extensions of the rock in a west northwesterly direction.
Use the tabs on the right of this page to see other parts of this entry
If you have found this information useful please consider making
a donation to help maintain and improve this resource. More info...
