West Yorkshire Geology Trust

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The rocks of the Baildon area are Carboniferous in age, about 310 million years old.  The crags and quarries of Shipley Glen and Baildon Bank are made of sandstone.   This particular sandstone is called Rough Rock by geologists.  It forms a natural exposure 500m long in crags overlooking the wooded eastern slopes of Loadpit Beck.   Scattered exposures of the Rough Rock Flags and the mudstones below occur in the beck itself.  There are many fallen rocks in the slopes below the crags.  The rock is a medium to coarse grained sandstone with some beds containing sub-angular to sub-rounded pebbles of quartz.

The rocky crags at Shipley Glen contain structures which tell geologists how the rock was formed.   There are prominent sets of cross bedding indicating the direction of the rivers which deposited the sand, which has been hardened and cemented into sandstone.   Weathering features include potholes, differential and biological weathering and the widening of joints, which are weaknesses formed by tectonic action.

Adjacent to the crags above Shipley Glen, areas of rock pavements (catten stones) have been exposed by the erosional effects of ice.  The fallen blocks of rock probably moved down the slope during periglacial times, after the last glacial period.

Baildon Green and Baildon Bank quarries show the Rough Rock structures clearly.  As the faces are unstable because the jointing patterns weaken the rock, it is best to keep well away from them, but features like cross-bedding and bedding planes, can be clearly seen from a distance.

Baildon Moor is made from sandstones and mudstones and also contains coal seams and ironstone nodules, which have been exploited from very early times.  From Bracken Hall we have a clear view of the Moor sides and can see how the landscape is related to the geology.

Bracken Hall, Shipley Glen & Baildon Moor

A Walk around Bracken Hall countryside centre to look at the rocks and landscapes of Shipley Glen, Baildon Moor and Baildon Bank
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Cross section to show the geology of Baildon Moor and Shipley Glen

Image produced from the Ordnance Survey Get-a-map service. Image reproduced with kind permission of Ordnance Survey and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland.

Grid Reference
SE 130 391