The Great Limestone at Stanhope

Key Information

Event leads: Karl Egeland-Eriksen & Brenda Turnbull

Date/length: 1 session, Sunday 7 September, 10am-4pm

Event cost: £5 NHSN Members/£7.50 Non-Members

Meet at: Durham Dales Centre, Stanhope; NY996393, skim.actors.gurgling

Please do not use the automatic location given by Eventbrite. Find a grid reference: https://gridreferencefinder.com

About this Event

The Great Limestone is the most extensive limestone in northern England stretching from north Northumnerland to Cumbria and Yorkshire. It marks the boundary between the Visean and Namurian of the Carboniferous where basin evolution changed from rifting to thermal subsidence. It has been quarried in Weardale on a large scale with excellent exposures in Ashes Quarry and along the nearby Bollihope Burn. The limestone also hosts much of the mineralisation associated with the North Pennines and we shall look for some evidence of features related to the mineralisation. Fossils are also present.

Accessibility

This walk may may include slopes, rocky areas and areas of uneven or steep ground.

Essential equipment

Compass (clino), pen/pencil, clipboard if available. Sturdy footwear, outdoor clothing, lunch (there is a cafe at the Durham Dales Centre)