Observations of recent mass movement

In the mid to late 1960s a landslip occurred in the Leraback Brugs, below the Leraback north kail yard (Leraback means ‘clay slope’). An area of about 200 square yards, two to three feet thick, slumped in folds down to the Ham Burn. The exposed area of clay has now regrown with grass except for the upper few yards. This part is now a still eroding vertical clay bank and will probably in time erode back to the kail yard dyke. In the early 1990s a very much smaller part of the Brugs, some 50 yards further west, also slumped exposing the clay.

Towards the end of July 1986, when 86 mm of rain fell within 24 hours in a strong north-easterly wind, a landslide occurred in the east face of Soberlie. This was an area about 50 yards south east of the Logat house and at about 250 to 300 feet high on Soberlie. An area of about 100 to 150 square yards slid downhill about 100 feet before starting to separate out, with some of the material going on to flatten the Logat fence. This was a mixture of turf (not peat), coarse sandy sub-soil, clay and stone. The upper face of the hollow left behind (distinctly saucer-shaped) is still eroding and is over six feet high.

In the mid 1990s a similar but smaller landslide took place on the north face of Tounafeld at about 900 to 950 feet leaving a round hollow in the steep hillside. All the material slid down into Ouvrafandal.

JGH 19/04/05