 |
Old Lindley Moor, HuddersfieldWest Yorkshire Local Geological Site |
|
 |
|
Geological Sites | Leeds | Bradford | Calderdale | Kirklees | Wakefield
SITE DESCRIPTION: Rough Rock sandstones of Carboniferous age (Namurian Epoch) are exposed along a 400m length of natural scars and abandoned quarry workings at Old Lindley Edge. At the east end near the road the exposure consists of massively bedded sandstones with occasional siltstones. Towards the west are some exceptionally well-preserved weathered sets of cross bedded flaggy sandstones near the top of the exposure. The exposure contains a range of sedimentary structures and plant fossils including nests of 0.5-1cm rounded quartz pebbles in graded beds on the underside of one set of cross-bedded sandstone. The exposure allows the mineralogy, texture and changing environment of the Rough Rock strata to be studied. The quarry shows an excellent exposure of the junction of the Rough Rock above with the Rough Rock Flags below. This boundary bed which is up to 1m thick but which wedges out elsewhere, consists of broken sandstone, with many flakes of mudstone and some coal, in a sandy matrix. HISTORICAL ASSOCIATIONS: The site overlooks a rural landscape with an industrial heritage of stone and shale quarries, coal seams, brickworks, shafts, and drilling sites, with tracks and footpaths which originated to give access to these old working sites. A small stone monument records the enclosure of this common land in Victorian times, its purchase and later its donation to Huddersfield Corporation. EDUCATIONAL VALUE: The site is suitable for small groups of sixth-form geology students to study the rock structures at close quarters. It is also a suitable site for primary and secondary school students to study the geographical aspect (see below) of the view from Old Lindley Moor Edge. AESTHETIC CHARACTERISTICS: The old quarry is backed by a section of heather-covered moor and a fenced-in cricket field. This piece of Old Lindley Moor has public access and has extensive views of the Upper Carboniferous landscapes as far as Bolsworth Hill to the north. The Millstone Grit landscape with Huddersfield White Rock and Rough Rock sandstones is seen to the north and west; the Elland Flags escarpment of the Coal Measures (Westphalian) to the east, and in the far distance to the Midgeley Grits and Kinderscout Grits are seen up the Calderdale Valley. The geographical landscape is related to the underlying geological structures, with man’s imprint on the landscape, from the hilltop and ridge villages of Old Lindley, Greetland and Southowram to Halifax New Town on the Rough Rock platform, dipping gently below the Elland Flags escarpment. ACCESS AND SAFETY Access to the top of the site to see the views to the
north is from Old Lindley Road to the cricket ground and the flat moorland
behind the site. Plenty of parking for cars or a minibus is available
on the access road. The Edge is exposed to the elements with some rough
muddy ground caused by vehicles off-roading. Kirklees Council have blocked
this access with boulders and installed a new bench and bins. Access to
the rock faces below Old Lindley Moor Edge is by steep and narrow footpaths
on the slopes below the quarry face, which need to be investigated for
safety before a group is taken there. Access is easy at the east end for
the massive bedding, but becomes progressively more difficult through
the heather and tussocky grass growing over old quarry spoil. There is
fairly easy access to the top cross-beds immediately below the cricket
ground’s stone wall bordering the moor. There are footpaths to the
faces from Turley Cote Lane below. The rock exposure measures 400m in
length and is best visited in the summer with afternoon sunshine highlighting
the weathered cross-bedded exposures; walking boots are safest. School
geography groups observing from the top of Old Lindley Moor need to keep
away from the edge, which is sheer in places. |
|
|
STATUS:
Local Geological Site