Unconformity

A few Blippers will know immediately where we were and what this is all about and most will not have a clue. 

We were heading for Jedburgh for three things - to see the Abbey, to have a nice birthday lunch . . . and to see Hutton’s Unconformity (no, I had no idea either!)

Well, we sort of found all three, but only lunch was a complete success. We had been warned yesterday that Jedburgh Abbey was in trouble - falling to bits to be precise!. And therefore there is restricted viewing inside. So, we had decided that we would not try to visit and in the end that mattered little as the Abbey dominates the town and, whenever you look up, there it is. A beautiful building and probably best seen from the outside (see extra).

James Hutton (1726 - 1797) was one of the first geologists and he discovered in the river in Jedburgh an Unconformity in the rocks. Now, I know no more than that this was very important and changed the course of geology for all time, so I am not going to say any more - look it up if you are interested. Gordon was disappointed to find (having talked at length with some very helpful guys in the Tourist Information Office), that the Unconformity could not be visited - it’s on private land, it is so overgrown as to inaccessible and most of it is underwater as the river has risen. There is however, on the opposite bank this impressive stone sculpture created by Max Howell and inspired by the rock formation.

So, here is the sculpture by the river, with the Abbey above and the beautiful blue sky - what a gorgeous day it has been. 

So, Gordon celebrated his birthday with a lovely lunch . . . and ‘An Almost Unconformity’.