Glasnakille, Skye, fossils and fossil collecting

From Elgol, drive along the small road (not the B8083) to the East until you come to a junction where you can turn left or right.
Follow the road to the left and park on the verge just before its end (the very end is reserved for turning vehicles).
Carry on on foot through the gate and along the wooded path. You will pass through a couple of gates and after about 600m you will see a house. Walk just past this house and then head down to the beach along the path next to it. The path is overgrown in places but is easy enough to navigate. This beach is location 1. (More...)

GRID REF: 57.14802°N, 6.07024°W

Belemnites, bivalves

The Glasnakille stretch of coastline must be accessed in 3 different places to see its various bays and headlands. The sea here reaches the plunging cliffs even at low tide. The scenery is worth the effort even if the fossil finds are on the low side.

Low

Fossil finds are minimal, with a few belemnite sections being all that you can expect from here. The area is still worth a visit however as it is extremely tranquil and very beautiful.

Not for Children

Locations 1 and 2 involve fairly arduous walks to reach the beaches and as such are not suitable for children. Location 3 is much easier however and is suitable for all.

Poor Access

Access is difficult at locations 1 and 2 but is easy at location 3. All three beaches offer similar fossils, so if in doubt about whether you can manage the walks at 1 and 2 it is best just to visit 3.

Foreshore, Cliffs

Fossils can be found in section in the cliffs, on boulders and rock platforms and in cobbles and pebbles found on the beaches.

If you collect fossils in Scotland, the advice on best practice in the collection and storage of fossil specimens, set out in the Scottish Fossil Code, applies to you. The Code may be viewed and downloaded from www.snh.org.uk/fossilcode.

The beaches here and the walks to them, especially locations 1 and 2 are very remote. The path down to the beach at location 2 is steep and overgrown. If visiting this stretch of coastline do so in a group or at least a pair. Do not attempt it alone. Mobile phone signals may be lost here so it is especially important that you inform someone of where you are going and what time you expect to return.

Last updated:	2011
last visited:	2007
Written by:	Joe Shimmin

Other Locations similar to Glasnakille

There are a range of Jurassic Coastal sites in Scotland either on Skye or the North East Mainland especially near Brora which have been caused by the Helmsdale Fault. Other locations near to Helmsdale that are featured on UK Fossils are, Crakaig, Golspie, Portgower, Kintradwell, Lothbeg, Brora River, Balintore,Eathie and Brora Foreshore. Other locations on the isle of Skye include the popular Glasnakille Bearreraig Bay, Faoilean, Hallaig, Camustianavaig, Ardnish Point, Kilmarie and Elgol

Big hammer, the rocks here are large and very hard. Some smaller rocks can be found but at least a lump hammer is required, we took a sledge hammer.


The predominant fossils found are Belemnites but some rocks also contain bivalve fossils. Apart from the fossils there is a wealth of natural beauty to explore. The sea is crystal clear here and the bottom can easily be seen through meters of water. Sea life encountered includes little fish, crabs, anemones and sea urchins. If lucky an otter or a Killer Whale may be seen. Evidence of the activity of otters is plentiful – look out for broken sea-urchin shells on the rock ledges. There is no one area to look for fossils on these beaches. Belemnite partials can be seen just about anywhere – in the cliffs, on the rock platforms, in boulders and showing in the sides of pebbles and cobbles. They are not particularly abundant however so it may take a while to find some.

	Jurassic, 177mya
The rocks at Glasnakille are Bajocian and Aalenian age. The Bearreraig Sandstone Formation covers both stages with the Aalenian stage sub-divided into the Druim an Fhuarain Sandstone Member. It is this which most of the fossils from Glasnakille come from....[more] Druim an Fhuarain Sandstone Member


Location 3, belemnites...[more]

Stone Tumblers

Microscopes

Fossil Tools

If you are interested in fossil collecting, then you may also be interested in a stone tumbler (Lapidary). You can polish stones and rocks from the beach which will look fantastic polished using a stone tumbler.

You can polish rough rock and beach glass whilst collecting fossils, on those days where you come back empty handed. These are all high quality machines to give a professional finish to your samples. They can even be used for amber and fossils.

At most locations, you can find microfossils. You only need a small sample of the sand. You then need to wash it in water and sieve using a test sieve. Once the sand is processed, you can then view the contents using a microscope.

We have a wide range of microscopes for sale, you will need a Stereomicroscope for viewing microfossils. The best one we sell is the IMXZ, but a basic microscope will be fine. Once you have found microfossils, you will need to store these microfossils.

We are your market leader for Fossil Supplies and Fossil Equipment. Suppling Retail, Education and Trade in the UK, Europe and beyond. UKGE Online Store sells equipment worldwide.

We sell a wide range of geological hammers and geological picks as well as fossil tools, starter packs and geological chisels. UKGE is your geological superstore, selling a wide range of field equipment, rocks, minerals, fossils, geological and even microscopy!