Programme of Events

 
Black Country Geological Society’s indoor meetings will be held during the winter months at the Abbey Room at the Dudley Archives, Tipton Road, Dudley, DY1 4SQ.

Unless otherwise stated, the Abbey Room and Zoom meetings will normally open at 7.30pm and lectures commence at 8.00pm.

Those wishing to attend field or geoconservation meetings please contact our Field Secretary (email address on the Contacts page).

Any non-members wishing to attend our virtual meetings should contact our Meetings Secretary for instructions (email address on the Contacts page).

Other contact details are also available on our Contact us page.

Updated 9 February 2024.

Members please check your email for any last minute changes.

Recordings of some of our virtual talks can be found on our YouTube channel.


Events in March–April 2024

Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday
26 February
27 February
28 February
29 February

March

1 March
2 March
3 March
4 March
5 March
6 March
7 March
8 March
9 March(1 event)

Geoconservation Day at Saltwells National Nature Reserve


9 March

Saturday 9 March 2024 (Geoconservation Day): Saltwells National Nature Reserve. TBC whether these works will be undertaken under the guidance of the reserve wardens or on our own. It is therefore imperative that you inform the field secretary of your intention to attend these works. Meet at the Nature Reserve car park (grid ref: SO933869) on Saltwells Lane, 9.45 for a 10.00 start. Wear old work clothes, waterproofs and stout footwear or wellies. Please bring gloves and garden tools: hand brushes, trowels, loppers, secateurs, forks and spades if you have them. Either bring a packed lunch or hot food can be obtained from the Saltwells Inn adjacent to the car park. Finish at 2.30.
Click here for a Google map of the location.

10 March
11 March
12 March
13 March
14 March
15 March
16 March
17 March
18 March(1 event)

NB start time. Indoor Meeting - AGM followed by 'Deep geological disposal of radioactive waste in the UK'.


18 March

Monday 18 March (Indoor Meeting): AGM followed by: 'Deep geological disposal of radioactive waste in the UK'. Speaker: Rachel Burgess.

Click here for a Google map of the location.

19 March
20 March
21 March
22 March
23 March
24 March
25 March
26 March
27 March
28 March
29 March
30 March
31 March

April

1 April
2 April
3 April
4 April
5 April
6 April(1 event)

Field Meeting to Castleton, Derbyshire looking at the limestones in Cave Dale and the sandstones and landslip on Mam Tor


6 April

Saturday 6 April (Field Meeting): Castleton, Derbyshire looking at the limestones in Cave Dale and the sandstones and landslip on Mam Tor. Led by Albert Benghiat (Shropshire Geological Society). Meet at 10.30 outside Castleton Visitor Centre, Buxton Road, Castleton, S33 8WN where there are toilets and a large pay and display car park. The morning walk will be around 4km through Cave Dale along good paths but sometimes uneven ground. Please wear suitable clothes and footwear. Some of the sites are quite exposed. Bring a packed lunch. There are pubs in in Castleton for refreshment at the end of the day. Finish around 4.00.
Click here for a Google map of the location.

7 April
8 April
9 April
10 April
11 April
12 April
13 April
14 April
15 April(1 event)

'Geology of the Chiltern Hills; new data & new interpretations'


15 April

Monday 15 April (Indoor Meeting): 'Geology of the Chiltern Hills; new data & new interpretations'. Speaker: Dr. Haydon Bailey (Geological Adviser, The Chiltern Society).
The Chiltern Hills are underlain by Chalk, predominantly lithostratigraphic units traditionally called the Lower and Middle Chalk (the latter now the lower part of the White Chalk Group) capped by the Top Rock - Chalk Rock complex. It is this series of chalk hardgrounds which effectively forms the spine of the Chiltern Escarpment. The Chalk dips gently into the London Basin, and the overlying basal Tertiary succession provides minor outliers around this northern rim of the basin. The other major geological event we have to recognise in this area is the re-routing of the Proto-Thames River during and following the Anglian glaciation, some 450,000 years ago. This created the landscape we currently see in much of the southern parts of the Chilterns. Geological mapping of the region by the BGS over the last ten years and ground investigations resulting from the ongoing construction of the HS2 High Speed rail link have greatly added to our knowledge of the regional geology. Add to this the recognition that subsurface movement of water through the chalk is far more prevalent than previously identified, then this means that we're still learning a whole load more about the geological development of the hills which form the northern margin of the London Basin.
Click here for a Google map of the location.

16 April
17 April
18 April
19 April
20 April
21 April
22 April
23 April
24 April
25 April
26 April
27 April
28 April
29 April
30 April

May

1 May
2 May
3 May
4 May
5 May