Rob Knipe

Rob Butler

Taija Torvela

<h2>Highlights</h2>
<p><span style="color: rgba(255, 0, 0, 1)"><strong>STOP PRESS</strong></span>: Tour now starts and finishes in Edinburgh. First class rail travel to and from Inverness plus overnight in Central Edinburgh Hotel.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Also, new option to start and finish your trip from London with first-class rail ticket from London to Edinburgh and return, for a small additional cost at checkout. You choose the time of your train, too. Ticket price includes reserved seat and breakfast, light lunch or dinner served at your table.</p>
<ul>
<li>Experience the superb scenery of the North West Scottish Highlands, including Loch Ness, and the location of amazing history and conflicts</li>
<li>Visit the dramatic Scottish landscapes and world class geology that changed early theories of continental collision and relive the science controversies that dominated Victorian ideas of earth history</li>
<li>Stay in atmospheric Scottish hotels including a country house with links to the Jacobite rising</li>
<li>Visit key sites in Scottish history associated with battles and castles, take a new look at the impact of the Clearances, and learn how geology influenced the Scottish landscapes as well as the events of the Second World War</li>
<li>See the evidence of a newly discovered large meteorite impact that hit long before life appeared on earth</li>
<li>Enjoy local seafood, traditional music and a visit to the world-famous whisky distillery at Glen Ord</li>
<li>The activity level is rated as EASY (see our definitions <a href="https://www.geoculturaworld.com/about/health-and-safety" target="_blank">here</a>)</li>
<li>The tour begins and ends in Edinburgh, Scotland</li>
</ul>
<h2>Overview</h2>
<p>This tour to north-west Scotland visits some of the world's most famous landscapes and provides new and informative insight into the geology, history and culture of this dramatic setting. Among the geoscience highlights will be the visit to one of the most renowned geological structures in the world, the Moine Thrust Zone. The area was key to the ‘Highlands Controversy’, a significant Victorian scientific debate, which revolutionised the understanding of mountain building and pitted amateur geologists against the establishment. The tour will also visit locations linked to a meteor impact dated to over 1200 million years ago.</p>
<p>The tour has both classic archaeological and historical themes and includes visits to review recent evidence of life in an Iron Age Broch; to the famous Culloden Battle site of 1746; to locations of the late 18th to early 19th-century Clearances, where subsistence farmers were evicted by the landowners to make way for commercial sheep farming. We will also see where the crew of a World War II battleship shifted rocks to create graffiti in the Scottish landscape. The final morning will include a visit to Loch Ness to hear stories of the mythical monster.</p>
<p>All this together with the opportunity to sample local seafood, traditional Scottish music; to stay in hotels with fascinating historical links and lastly, to explore the skills behind creating a Highland malt Whisky at the Glen Ord distillery, and samples the results!</p>
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<p><iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/bYevI8lfM8w" height="350" width="100%"></iframe></p>

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<h3>Tour Map</h3>
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<p><img title="Itinerary Map" alt="Itinerary Map" src="https://geocultura.arlo.co/content/img/T001%20SC%20w%20Edinburgh%20Location%20Map%20KB.jpg"></p>
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<h3>Day 1 - Arrival and introductions</h3>
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<p><img title="Edinburgh Skyline" alt="Edinburgh Skyline" src="https://geocultura.arlo.co/content/img/T001%20SC%20Edinburgh%20Skyline%20KB.jpg"></p>
<p>Meet fellow participants in a central hotel in Edinburgh.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Overnight at hotel just off the Royal Mile in Edinburgh.&nbsp; Free evening.</p>
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<h3>Day 2 – Inverness and Strathpeffer</h3>
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<p><img title="Coul House Hotel" alt="Coul House Hotel" src="https://geocultura.arlo.co/content/img/T001%20SC%20Coul%20House.png"></p>
<p>Journey by rail through spectacular scenery to Inverness, then transport to Coul House Hotel, a splendid Country House featured in the Good Hotel Guide and with links back to the Jacobite rebellion.</p>
<p>Overnight in Coul House, Strathpeffer.&nbsp; Group dinner.</p>
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<h3>Day 3 - Culloden and Cromarty&nbsp;</h3>
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<p><img style="font-size: 9pt" title="Culloden" alt="Culloden" src="https://geocultura.arlo.co/content/img/NTS.Culloden%20(40).jpg" height="552" width="829"></p>
<p>The day starts with a visit to the site of the battle of <strong>Culloden</strong>, the final face-off battle between the British Government troops and the supporters of Bonnie Prince Charlie in their attempt to win back the British Crown for the Stuarts. The interactive visitor centre is a ‘must-see’ and the group will have a private tour of the battlefield with one of the National Trust for Scotland experts.</p>
<p>We then travel north-east to Cromarty for lunch and to visit the home of Hugh Miller – one of the great Scots of the 19th century. Run by National Trust for Scotland Hugh Millers Cottage and Museum tells the fascinating story of this fossil hunter, folklorist, man of faith, stonemason, geologist, editor, writer, and social justice campaigner.</p>
<p>On the return journey to Coul House we will have a brief stop at some spectacular, 400-million-year-old boulder beds, studied by Hugh Miller and now known to represent the erosion of a massive ancient mountain belt, created by the continental collision, which we will investigate on the west coast of Scotland.</p>
<p>Overnight in Coul House, Strathpeffer. Group dinner.</p>
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<h3>Day 4 – Loch Maree, Gairloch and, Gruinard Bay and Loch Broom</h3>
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<p><img style="font-size: 9pt" title="Loch Broom" alt="Loch Broom" src="https://geocultura.arlo.co/content/img/T001%20SC%20Across%20Loch%20Broom.jpg" height="599" width="799"></p>
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<p>Today the tour will drive around the dramatic landscapes of Loch Maree, Gairloch and via Gruinard Bay to Loch Maree. This is classic Highland scenery and home to Britain’s oldest rocks. Called the Lewisian, these rocks are 3200 million years old – so around 70% of Earth’s history has happened after their formation! We will have stops to appreciate the remarkable mountain landscapes, the underlying geology, which includes some exhumed billion-year-old valleys, and the striking glacial scenery formed a mere 12,000 years ago.</p>
<p>Lunch will in Gairloch and followed by a visit to the new community museum, telling the story of Wester Ross. This includes the strategic importance of the area for the North Atlantic Convoys in World War Two. The tour will also review the role of Scotland in later aspects of British-US cooperation, including the deployment of US submarines equipped with nuclear missiles.</p>
<p>The tour then drives around Gruinard Bay and along the shores of Loch Broom and we will explore the stories of the Highland Clearances, the impact on local people, many of whom emigrated to North America.</p>
<p>Overnight at the Ceilidh Place, Ullapool. Group dinner.</p>
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<h3>Day 5 – Knockan Crag and the famous Moine Thrust</h3>
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<p><img title="The Geopark Visitor Centre" alt="The Geopark Visitor Centre" src="https://geocultura.arlo.co/content/img/T013%20SE%20Geopark%20feature.jpg" height="524" width="786"></p>
<p>Today the focus will be on exploring the highly charged, Victorian ‘Highland Controversy’ that contributed so much to our understanding of the way all mountain belts form. The tour visits some of the internationally celebrated sites. In explaining the origin of NW Scotland, Sir Roderick Murchison, along with his then apprentice Archibald Geikie, giants of the establishment, suggested in the 1850’s a simple rock sequence passing up into ‘younger’ Moine rocks above the Cambrian (~500-million-year-old) rocks. Professor James Nicol suggested an alternative, but controversial, idea: that the area contained evidence of major earth upheaval along a major fault. We now know this to be the world famous Moine Thrust, a fault that has moved rocks tens of kilometres from the east.</p>
<p>The tour will visit the UNESCO Geopark visitor centre at Knockan Crag, just north of Ullapool, and see the wild terrains surveyed by the early pioneer geologists, Ben Beach and John Horne, when sent to prove the establishment’s hypothesis. Their efforts produced superb maps and drawings of the landscapes, fossils and geology.</p>
<p>The tour will visit a location above Glencoul where, in 1883, Charles Callaway reached a ground-breaking conclusion: that a slab of the old deep earth’s crust hundreds of metres thick had been thrust up and over the younger Cambrian rocks, a feature now called the Glencoul Thrust. The interpretation, now considered one of the most important in world tectonic geology, forced Geikie (who by then had assumed Murchison’s place as the UK’s leading establishment geologist) to reconsider his hypothesis.</p>
<p>The itinerary will also assess a more recent scientific debate on the hunt for a massive, 1200-million-year-old impact crater. Do the rocks of the Glencoul Thrust Sheet show any evidence (a ground zero) of this immense meteorite collision?</p>
<p>Lunch is at Kylesku Hotel and Restaurant, famous for its seafood. This former coaching inn has spectacular views along the Loch and to the mountains.</p>
<p>The tour then moves on to the Clachtoll area to see some previously enigmatic rocks – now agreed to be part of the ancient “ejecta blanket” blasted out by the meteor impact. The site, much more recently, was once home to an Iron-Age family. We will explore the exceptional archaeology and review life in an Iron-Age broch. The site is the setting of an award-winning trilogy, The Stone Stories, by local author Mandy Haggith, and based on the Iron-Age travel of a famed Greek explorer, Pytheas of Massalia, who roved the icy northern lands of Celtic Britain and beyond.</p>
<p>The tour will also review the local Clan intrigues and clashes at the Ardvreck Castle on Loch Assynt, including a betrayal in 1650 with national consequences.</p>
<p>Overnight at Ceilidh Place. Free evening.</p>
<p>The day will end with a late evening of traditional Scottish Music from local artists.</p>
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<h3>Day 6 – Durness and the shores of Loch Eriboll and Tongue</h3>
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<p><img title="The Tongue Hotel" alt="The Tongue Hotel" src="https://geocultura.arlo.co/content/img/T001%20Tongue%20Side%201.jpg" height="543" width="724"></p>
<p>Today the tour heads north, to the spectacular northern coastal scenery and another set of world-class historical and geological sites. The first stop is the enormous, cathedral-like Smoo Cave, a 30m (100 ft) high cavern carved (in the Durness Limestone) by the sea and an inland underground stream. Then back to Durness village to visit the stunning sandy coves of Sango Bay and to view the strange “oystershell rock” – pivotal in unlocking the earth history here.</p>
<p>Lunch in Durness, a review of the local history (John Lennon spent childhood holidays here) and then a visit to the Highland Clearance trail at Ceannabeinne, where the villagers of Durness rioted to avoid eviction.</p>
<p>Drive to Loch Eriboll, the World War II base for HMS Hood. This British warship was later sunk during the World War II battle for domination of the North Atlantic with the famous German battleship, the Bismark. There are dramatic views south into what was the ~400-million-year-old Caledonian mountain belt that now exposes classic mountain building structures – thrust faults. This ground was mapped by Henry Cadell in the mid-1880s. The structures he found there inspired him to conduct some amazing early experiments to illustrate how such thrust faulting could shorten continents – he used a vice and a clay filled wooden box!</p>
<p>The day ends on the eastern shore of Loch Eriboll, with a visit to the remote cottage base of Charles Lapworth’s pioneering geological mapping in the 1880s and and the very rock outcrop where Geikie finally saw the light, resulting in the final demise of the Murchison-Geikie establishment ideas. This, for many, is the birthplace of a new global tectonics.</p>
<p>Overnight Tongue. Group dinner.</p>
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<h3>Day 7 – Tongue to Strathpeffer</h3>
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<p><img title="Glen Ord Distillery" alt="Glen Ord Distillery" src="https://geocultura.arlo.co/content/img/T001%20The%20Singleton%20of%20Glen%20Ord%202.jpg" height="534" width="800"></p>
<p>The tour now explores the stunning coves and rocky headlands of the north Scottish coast around Melness with the backdrop of the spectacular north Scottish coastline and a distant Orkney.</p>
<p>The Portvasgo area is an isolated, picturesque community of crofts and fishing communities that may soon become one of Europe’s first rocket launch sites! The tour will examine a 900-million-year-old boulder bed that has been folded and the boulders streaked out, like warm toffee, into rods and layers by the deep, high temperature, slow geological flow that occurs below mountains.</p>
<p>Lunch in Tongue.</p>
<p>Drive south down Loch Hope via Altnacaillich and then on to visit to the malt whisky distillery of Glen Ord, the last stop of the tour, before heading back to Strathpeffer.</p>
<p>Overnight in Coul House, Strathpeffer. Final group dinner.</p>
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<h3>Day 8 – Loch Ness and Tour End</h3>
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<p><img title="Loch Ness" alt="Loch Ness" src="https://geocultura.arlo.co/content/img/T001%20SC%20Loch%20Ness%20KB.jpg"></p>
<p>The last day of the tour takes us on a visit to one of Scotland’s most famous locations: Loch Ness.</p>
<p>As well as perhaps encountering the mythical Loch Ness Monster, our leaders will explain that the sixty mile-long ‘trench’ that divides Scotland here marks the trace of the Great Glen Fault. This famous and massive geological fault has a fascinating history that moved the rocks now on the north side, first 80 miles to the SW, then nearly 20miles back towards the NE. The resulting damage to the rocks has been exploited and carved out by ice to form the trench that Loch Ness now occupies.</p>
<p>Participants will return by first class rail to Edinburgh, where the tour ends.</p>
<p>Note: this provisional itinerary is subject to change as specific locations and accommodations release more information regarding access in the coming year.</p>
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<div><img title="Loch Eriboll" alt="Loch Eriboll" src="https://geocultura.arlo.co/content/img/T001%20SC%20Loch%20Eriboll%20KB.jpg">
<p>For many, Loch Eriboll is the birthplace of modern global tectonic theory.</p>
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<div><img title="Arkle is a stunning peak of white quartzite" alt="Arkle is a stunning peak of white quartzite" src="https://geocultura.arlo.co/content/img/T001%20SC%20Arkle%20Peak.png">
<p>Arkle is a stunning peak of white quartzite above picturesque Loch Stack in the northern Highlands (Source: R. Butler).</p>
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<div><img title="Assynt" alt="Assynt" src="https://geocultura.arlo.co/content/img/T001%20Assynt_edited.jpg">
<p>Coastal Assynt boasts beautiful white sand beaches and turquoise waters.</p>
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<div><img title="Coul House Hotel" alt="Coul House Hotel" src="https://geocultura.arlo.co/content/img/T001%20SC%20Coul%20House.png">
<p>The Coul House Hotel is a welcoming Georgian country house set amid gardens and woodlands a half hour from Inverness (Source: Coul House Hotel).</p>
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<div><img title="Culloden Monument" alt="Culloden Monument" src="https://geocultura.arlo.co/content/img/G03-T001%20SC%20Culloden-3742337.jpg">
<p>Monument marking the site of the 1746 Battle of Culloden.</p>
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<div><img title="Ceilidh Place Hotel" alt="Ceilidh Place Hotel" src="https://geocultura.arlo.co/content/img/CeilidhPlace.MK4_6513_1.jpg">
<p>Ullapool’s Ceilidh Place is a hotel, café/bar/restaurant, bookshop and music venue in the epic and beautiful surroundings of Wester Ross.</p>
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<div><img title="Smoo Cave" alt="Smoo Cave" src="https://geocultura.arlo.co/content/img/T001%20SC%20Smoo%20Cave%20KB.jpg">
<p>Main entrance to the Smoo Cave in Sutherland. The name derives from the Norse 'smjugg', meaning 'hiding place'.</p>
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<div><img title="Examining a multi-coloured outcrop of gneiss" alt="Examining a multi-coloured outcrop of gneiss" src="https://geocultura.arlo.co/content/img/T001%20SC%20Oldshoreman%20Outcrop.png">
<p>Examining a multi-coloured outcrop of gneiss with igneous intrusions, Oldshoreman Beach (Source: R. Butler).</p>
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<div><img title="Roderick Murchison section" alt="Roderick Murchison section" src="https://geocultura.arlo.co/content/img/G10-T001%20SC%20Murch%20section.jpg">
<p>A profile of Knockan Crag by Roderick Murchison, c. 1862.</p>
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<div><img title="A profile of Knockan Crag by Ben Peach and John Horne" alt="A profile of Knockan Crag by Ben Peach and John Horne" src="https://geocultura.arlo.co/content/img/G09-T001%20SC%20PH%20Knockan.jpg">
<p>A profile of Knockan Crag by Ben Peach and John Horne, 1907</p>
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<div><img title="Strathpeffer" alt="Strathpeffer" src="https://geocultura.arlo.co/content/img/T001%20SC%20Strathpeffer%20KB.jpg">
<p>The Victorian spa town of Strathpeffer.</p>
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<div><img title="Tongue Hotel" alt="Tongue Hotel" src="https://geocultura.arlo.co/content/img/CR%20Tongue%20Front%20(1).jpg"><br>
<p>Built in the mid 1800s and steeped in history, the Tongue Hotel has an enchanting feel which delights and excites all who enter. (Source: Tongue Hotel).</p>
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<div><img title="Quintessential Scotland" alt="Quintessential Scotland" src="https://geocultura.arlo.co/content/img/T001%20Whiskey_edited.jpg">
<p>Quintessential Scotland.</p>
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<h3>Single Supplement</h3>
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<p>There is a charge of £380 / $475 for solo travellers.</p>
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<h3>Rail Ticket</h3>
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<p>There is a charge of £250 / $313 for a first-class rail ticket London-Edinburgh-London per person.</p>
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<h3><span><span>Activity Level and Transport</span></span></h3>
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<p>The activity level is rated as EASY (see our definitions <a href="https://www.geoculturaworld.com/about/health-and-safety" target="_blank">here</a>) and is suitable for occasional walkers. The tour will include walks of up to 1.6km (1mi) on country paths and on rocky beaches (with a maximum and optional-walk is 5km (3 mi) with a steady climb up to 300m (1000 ft)). Sturdy waterproof footwear is essential. September weather is typically mild, with daytime highs of 15-18°C (60-65°F) and night-time lows of 5-7°C (40-45°F). Rain is always possible, and participants should be prepared with warm and waterproof clothing.</p>
<p>Transport will be by small luxury coach and first class rail.</p>
<p>If walking is an issue, alternative arrangements can be made during the scheduled longer walks, so please let GeoCultura know in advance.</p>
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<h3>The Tour Includes/Excludes</h3>
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<h4>The Tour Includes:</h4>
<ul>
<li>The services of your Tour Leaders who will be with the group throughout the tour</li>
<li>Local Historians to guide the tour on selected days</li>
<li>Transportation costs from the start to the end of the tour (Edinburgh city centre)</li>
<li>All accommodation costs for the eight nights, all rooms double. Some rooms available for a single supplement.</li>
<li>All breakfasts and lunches, plus 5 dinners (with one free evening in Edinburgh and one in Ullapool).</li>
<li>Entry fees, local guide fees and activity fees, where arranged as part of the tour</li>
<li>All service charges and most gratuities</li>
</ul>
<h4>The Tour Excludes:</h4>
<ul>
<li>Extra or optional activities not described in the tour</li>
<li>Personal expenditures, any alcoholic or soft drinks with meals, and extras at the hotel such as laundry bills</li>
<li>Transportation to the start venue or from the end venue of the tour. However, at extra cost we can arrange transport and pick-up from other locations. Please contact us for details +44 2081 451001 or use our <a href="https://www.geoculturaworld.com/contact" target="_blank">Contact Form&nbsp;</a></li>
<li>Extra or optional activities not described in the tour</li>
<li>Passport and visa fees</li>
</ul>
<p>Participants are required to carry their own health and travel insurance in case of accident or unforeseen circumstances.</p>
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<h3>Alternate Activities</h3>
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<p>The tour leaders can provide suggestions for alternate activities for individuals who prefer not to participate in certain of the tour walks or visits.</p>
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<h3>Accommodation</h3>
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<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Night 1: Central Hotel in Edinburgh</p>
<p>Nights 2, 3 and 7: <a href="https://coulhousehotel.com/" target="_blank">Coul House Hotel</a>, Strathpeffer<br>"Set amid gardens and woodlands, this Georgian country house first opened to guests in 2003. Our inspectors have found much to like, from the ‘warm, inviting’ atmosphere, to a ‘large bed with crisp sheets’ in a ‘lovely room’." <a href="https://www.goodhotelguide.com/review/scotland-highland-contin-coul-house-18/" target="_blank">Good Hotel Guide 2022</a></p>
<p>Nights 4 and 5: <a href="https://www.theceilidhplace.com/" target="_blank">Ceilidh Place</a>, Ullapool<br>"It is more than 50 years since actor Robert Urquhart opened a café in a boatshed and invited musicians to play in exchange for a meal. This lively social hub is still a place for music gigs, but now with gallery space, bookshop, restaurant and bar, having spread itself across adjoining whitewashed cottages. Bedrooms have a pleasing simplicity, no TV but a retro radio, and an eclectic mix of books chosen by customers." <a href="https://www.goodhotelguide.com/review/scotland-highland-ullapool-ceilidh-place-134/" target="_blank">Good Hotel Guide 2022</a></p>
<p>Night 6: <a href="https://tonguehotel.co.uk/" target="_blank">The Tongue Hotel</a>, Tongue<br>"This traditional Lodge is a charming, contemporary Inn which retains its authentic heritage with antique furniture, taxidermy, wood panelling and log fires. This is a place to spend a few nights with its homely bedrooms (tweed fabrics, armchairs, sherry decanter) and cosy lounge in which to relax and read." <a href="https://www.scottishhotelawards.com/hotels/tongue-hotel.154.html" target="_blank">Scottish Hotel Awards, 2020</a></p>
<p>Note: If required for reasons beyond our control, GeoCultura reserves the right to substitute alternate accommodations of equal or higher quality.</p>
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<h3>Deposit and Payment Terms</h3>
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<p><strong>Deposit:</strong> A deposit of 10% of the tour price is due upon registration for a tour.</p>
<p><strong>Final payment:</strong> Full payment is due 60 days before a tour begins, or upon registration if within the 60-day window.</p>
<p><strong>Cancellation by participant:</strong> A participant may cancel a registration after securing a confirmed place on a tour for any reason. The following refund terms will apply:</p>
<ul>
<li>Greater than 60 days before tour begins: Any monies paid plus half of the deposit will be refunded</li>
<li>30 to 59 days before tour begins: 35% of tour price will be refunded</li>
<li>15 to 29 days before tour begins: 25% of tour price will be refunded</li>
<li>Within 14 days of tour or during the tour: No monies will be refunded</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>Cancellation by GeoCultura:</strong> GeoCultura reserves the right to cancel any tour due to low enrolment, inability to run the tour or concerns about the safety, health or welfare of participants. If a tour is cancelled before it begins, all monies paid will be refunded (including any deposit).</p>
<p>Please refer to our <a href="https://www.geoculturaworld.com/terms-and-conditions" target="_blank">Terms and Conditions</a> page for additional details.</p>
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<h2>Rob Butler&nbsp;</h2>
<p><img title="Rob Butler" alt="Rob Butler" src="https://geocultura.arlo.co/content/img/Rob%20Butler.png"></p>
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<p>Rob Butler is Professor of Tectonics at Aberdeen University; he is active in the Geological Society of London and is on the Board of the Scottish Geology Trust.&nbsp;</p>
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<p>Rob is an enthusiastic&nbsp;and&nbsp;captivating spokesman for&nbsp;the&nbsp;earth’s geology. He delivers frequent talks on the landscapes and history of the Scottish Highlands (and other topics). Some of these may be viewed on his educational YouTube page,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIUYjr1yPCZQWYl9cJCO1mA" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Shear Zone</a>. He has also appeared in the BBC’s&nbsp;Men of Rocks&nbsp;series.</p>
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<p>As an expert tectonic geologist, Rob’s best-known research is on the structural geology of mountain belts (NW Scotland, the Alps, the Himalayas, the Apennines and Arabia), and he has worked extensively on the "Salinity Crisis" in the central Mediterranean.</p>
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<p>Rob has won a number of awards from the Geological Society of London, most recently the first Dewey Medal (2018), awarded for significant contributions to geology through field work, leadership and promoting geoconservation.</p>
<p><span style="color: rgba(51, 51, 51, 1); font-size: 1.4em">&nbsp;</span></p>
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<h2>Rob Knipe</h2>
<p><img title="Rob Knipe" alt="Rob Knipe" src="https://geocultura.arlo.co/content/img/Rob%20Knipe2px.png"></p>
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<p>Rob Knipe is the Chairperson at GeoCultura and an Emeritus Professor of Structural Geology at the University of Leeds; he splits his time between homes in Yorkshire and Wales and revels in engaging the public in the history and application of science. He also created and led ‘Rock Deformation Research Ltd’, a leading structural geological consultancy.</p>
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<p>Rob has immersed himself in the Scottish Highlands for more than 40 years, during which time he has developed a passion for its geology and landscapes that almost rivals his passion for his native Wales!</p>
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<p>Rob has won awards for his work, including the prestigious William Smith Medal from The Geological Society of London, and is a Fellow of the Learned Society of Wales.</p>
<p>Rob is currently involved in Energy Transition, and works with local and national groups promoting changes towards a carbon neutral society. He is also part of the World Heritage Site team working to raise awareness of the slate landscapes in North Wales.&nbsp;<span style="color: rgba(51, 51, 51, 1); font-size: 1.4em">&nbsp;</span></p>
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<h2>Taija Torvela</h2>
<p><img title="Taija Torvela" alt="Taija Torvela" src="https://geocultura.arlo.co/content/img/Taija%20Torvela_1.jpg"></p>
<p>Taija is an Associate Professor at The University of Leeds and an expert in earth structures and mineral resources. Taija has worked in the Universities of Abo Akademi University in Finland, Aberdeen, Helsinki as well as Leeds, and has also spent time in industry, including working on the geological repository for containment of spent nuclear fuel in Finland.</p>
<p>Taija is passionate and experienced at communicating the complexities and uncertainties of interpreting earth processes. At present Taija is committed to promoting the understanding of how earth processes underpin societal needs for the energy transition, particularly the future challenges for stewardship of the required mineral and metal resources.</p>
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Visit the dramatic landscapes of the Scottish Highlands: sites of famed geological discoveries, Iron Age brochs, the Battle of Culloden and the Clearances; and learn about the skills behind making a Highland malt Whisky

NW Highlands of Scotland: Geology, Landscapes, History and Controversies