WeiPoints #01: Walking with Giants
Hello and welcome to my newsletter WeiPoints, where I will be sharing irregularly timed tidbits about the wonders of our world.
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Seriously though, thank you for your interest and support of my work. Each edition will include peeks from behind the scenes of reporting, anecdotes about my latest articles, stories from my adventures, and info about future events and upcoming travels for anyone keen to join.
Coming up …
Worldly Wonders: Walking in the steps of geologic giants on the pillars of Giant’s Causeway
Rocks Reveal: Get the first look at the cover of my upcoming illustrated children’s book about rocks!
Adventures Ahead: A brief dip into what I’ve been up to and the travels that await in 2024
Worldly Wonders
On the coast of Northern Ireland stands a collection of some 40,000 columns of volcanic rock that boggles the mind. They look almost manufactured, too perfect for nature.
They come from, as the story goes, an Irish giant named Finn McCool, who used call this chilly coast home. His rival was a fellow named Benandonner who lived across the ocean in Scotland. Benandonner mercilessly taunted McCool from afar. And McCool, despite what his name might imply, had very little cool. One day his rage at Benandonner boiled over and he began to rip up chunks of the coast, lobbing the columns into the sea to create a causeway to Scotland. We know the remnants of that path today as Giant’s Causeway.
There’s more to this story, including a bit of subterfuge after McCool realized he was too puny to win a fight with the extra giant giant, Benandonner. But geologists tell an entirely different—and even stranger—tale.
More than 60 million years ago, voluminous amounts of magma burbled to the surface where the North Atlantic Ocean sits today. The molten rock flooded the landscape, incinerating forests, vaporizing water, and collecting as molten ponds on the surface. Scientists think that some of this lava may have collected in an ancient valley that now lies below where Giants Causeway sits today.
Layer after layer of lava filled the valley. Each additional layer insulated all that sat below, causing the thick unit of rock to cool very slowly.
This slow, steady cooling was the key to form the beautiful, almost impossibly perfect columns that make up Giant’s Causeway. As lava cools from a searing goo to solid rock it contracts and fractures; the more even and slow the cooling, the more likely the rock will fracture in perfect hexagonal columns.
Traveling to Giant’s Causeway has long been a dream of mine. So on a recent visit to England with my husband, we made a point to make it to the windy coast. And it didn’t disappoint.
Look at the random cluster of columns standing at the edge of the cliff! (My nose was in the rocks so all photo credits go to my husband, Travis Brown.)
What a Rock Can Reveal
After working on my first children’s book for more than a year and a half, it’s finally starting to feel real. The book, WHAT A ROCK CAN REVEAL, introduces young readers (ages 6-9 years old) to the world of rocks and the many stories they can tell. The book will be published at the end of February 2024 and should go on pre-sale everywhere soon.
In the coming months, I’ll share a bit more about the book, some peeks behind the scenes of its creation, potential book events, and maybe even a discount code!
For now, take a look at the cover with dazzling illustrations by Sonia Pulido:
Adventures ahead
I started freelancing in February of this year, and while I still feel like I’m figuring everything out, I’ve had some amazing opportunities so far. These include my first-ever story for the New York Times, which was an exploration of what drives the world’s weirdest volcanic eruptions that brought diamonds to Earth’s surface millions of years ago. (That story was soon followed by a few others at NYT!)
I also had the exciting chance to write a feature story for Atlas Obscura on a daring expedition into the new volcanic underworld of La Palma.
You can check out more of my recent writing on Authory.
I’m going to be the expert geologist for trips with both National Geographic Expeditions and Smithsonian Journeys this upcoming year. The first two trips are rapidly approaching! Here’s my current schedule:
January 13-24: Discover Patagonia with National Geographic Expeditions
March 2-13: New Zealand Journey with National Geographic Expeditions
June 28-July 7: Hiking the Alpe-Adria Trail with National Geographic Expeditions
July 10-17: Alaska: Denali to Kenai Fjords Expedition with National Geographic
July 25 - August 1: Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks with National Geographic
September 12-22 & September 26 - October 6: Adventure in Icelandwith Smithsonian Journeys
***Please note: Sometimes there are unforeseen changes in the experts/guides on these trips due to illness or other scheduling needs that are out of my control. But I am currently under contract to travel on the above scheduled trips and will do my absolute best to keep to the plan!
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