Barron, H F, Gillespie, M R and Merritt, J W 2011. Geodiversity of the Cairngorms National Park. British Geological Survey Open Report, OR/10/019
A PDF of this report is available from the NORA, the NERC archive
Site no.: Q33
Site name: Dulnain Bridge Varves
Grid reference:
Locality: River cliff and landslide back-scar on the S bank of the River Dulnain, 600 m west of Dulnain Bridge.
GCR Status: N/A
GCR No.: N/A
Type: Natural section
Description: Rhythmically laminated sand, silt and clay with dropstones, capped by gravelly glacial deposits. The laminae are interpreted as glacial varves (formed annually) in a seasonally frozen ice-dammed lake.
Justification: An excellent and comparitively rare exposure of thick glaciolacustrine varves. Varved sequences such as this contains an important palaeoenvironmental record for research into palaeoclimate and for reconstructing the characteristics of the last ice sheet to cover the area, and the pattern of deglaciation.