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 CONTENTS
Geology underlies everything in the Cumbrian
fells and dales. Rock is not only the foundation of the landscape
shaping the scenery, it is a resource - a source of riches
to be exploited.
SCENERY
Rock type determines the
shape and appearance of the Fells and Dales area of Cumbria.
The beauty of the natural landscape, fashioned from a huge
diversity of rock types, is often regarded as our greatest
asset.
Hard slates, tough volcanic lavas and ancient granites make
up the core of the Lakeland Fells. Flat-lying grey limestones
form the Westmorland Dales and the low scars and hills in
the south around Morecambe Bay. Rugged gritstones and dark
shales stamp their character on the flat moorlands of Upper
Edenside and on the fringing northern fells around Caldbeck.
In contrast, mellow red sandstones and glacial drift give
us the rich agricultural lowlands of the Eden Valley and the
coastal plain around St Bees.
EARLY USE OF ROCK
To early humans, rock was a source of building stone as well
as a material to create tools and ritual monuments. The flinty
volcanic lava known as hornstone found in the Langdale Pikes
and central Lakeland fells was particularly valuable. It could
be chipped and flaked using stone hammers or antlers into
axes and cutting tools (examples at Kendal Museum and Keswick
Museum). These early people also left their mark on the landscape
in a number of stone circles (Castlerigg, Swinside), ring-cairns
and stone henges (such as Mayburgh, near Penrith).
ROCK FOR BUILDING
 Building
stone is plentiful in this landscape. From earliest times
rock was hewn from hillsides or riverbanks or cleared from
the land and taken to where it was needed locally. Thus, the
built character of Cumbrian towns, villages, farmsteads and
walls is often reflected in the local rocks.
Kendal is a grey limestone town, Penrith and Kirkby Stephen
are rich in red sandstones, Keswick is dominated by the green
Lakeland slates, Ambleside is built of dark Brathay Flags,
and villages like Dent reflect the local gritty Pennine materials.
As transport improved, rock could be quarried commercially
and traded from the region. Slate mining became an important
industry and still exists today. Commercial quarries can be
found at Broughton Moor (Burlington Slate), Kirkstone Pass,
Elterwater and Honister. The distinctive granite from Shap
is a nationally recognised product of Cumbria. Red sandstones
from the Eden Valley and St Bees are still quarried for building
stone, and limestone is exploited for road materials and metallurgical
uses.
GETTING TO KNOW THE ROCKS
There are many self guided trails on geology to be found in
the area. The following guides provide a good introduction
to five different areas:
1. Tarn Hows Geology
A 3 km (2 mile) 'look and touch' trail around this well known
beauty spot in the south Lakes. Details from National Trust
outlets.
2. Landscapes Around Keswick
Illustrates a series of easy walks around Keswick, Bassenthwaite,
Derwentwater and Borrowdale. From booksellers or Rigg Side
Publications (www.riggside.co.uk).
3. Geology Scenery and History - A walk in Yewdale, north-east
of Coniston
A beautifully illustrated guide looking at rocks, building
stones and interesting historical features of this area (www.cumbriarigs.org.uk)
4. Sedgwick Geological Trail
A well-marked 1.5 km trail explaining the fascinating geology
around the Dent Fault in Garsdale, near Sedbergh. Published
by the Yorkshire Dales National Park.
5. Ancient Rocks in South Cumbria
A simple illustrated guide to the varied geology of the south
of the region (www.cumbriarigs.org.uk)
MODERN ROCK SCULPTURES
Rock has long been an important medium for artists and sculptors
- from prehistoric rock art to the intricate carving on stone
crosses and the ornate stone-masonry on ecclesiastical buildings.
Today, local rocks are still used to create modern pieces
of art in the landscape.
 Eden
Benchmarks
A series of ten sculptures in local stone (also functioning
as seats) are placed on public paths along the length of the
River Eden. A leaflet by the East Cumbria Countryside Project
tells their story and gives their locations.
 National
Trust Centenary Stone, Derwentwater
A large split boulder of local Borrowdale volcanic lava placed
on the boulder strewn shore to mark 100 years of the National
Trust in the Lake District. Located by the lake at Broomhill
Point (NY 26721).
 The
Eden Millennium Monument
A huge inscribed boulder of Shap Granite overlooking the ancient
archaeological site at Mayburgh Henge at Eamont Bridge near
Penrith. This was erected to mark the millennium. Pamphlet
from local Tourist Information Centres.
 Sheepfolds
and Pinfolds
The internationally renowned artist Andy Goldsworthy has created
a series of 11 sheepfolds and 6 cone pinfolds mainly throughout
south Cumbria. Leaflet from Tourist Information Centres.
LIMESTONE PAVEMENTS
 Some
important examples of limestone pavements can be found in
Cumbria. Not only are the 'pavements' unique geological formations,
they also provide special habitats for plants and wildlife.
Good places to see limestone pavements are at Gaitbarrows
(between Arnside and Silverdale), at Whitbarrow (four miles
SW of Kendal on the A590) or at Holme Barton and Hutton Roof
(near Burton-in-Kendal). All are National Nature Reserves
with waymarked trails and good interpretive literature. Leaflets
from Tourist Information Centres.
LIME KILNS
Lime has long been an important material in the Fells and
Dales. Apart from its use to bind and render stonework and
decorate walls, it has been invaluable for improving the fertility
of acidic soils. Limestone was burnt in kilns wherever fuel
and raw limestone could be brought together easily. Today
hundreds of these old limekilns are still to be seen in the
landscape.
Four excellent and easily accessible examples are at:
- Aughertree Fell, near Caldbeck (NY 268381)
- Mungrisdale - a good explanatory board at the site (NY
363302)
- Long Sleddale - a ramped kiln from the 18th century (NY
492054)
- Broad Oak, near Crosthwaite - a classic kiln (SD 435895),
easily accessible from the road.
A free leaflet on lime kilns is available from Lake District
National Park Centres.
Alternatively, visit Rheged on the A66 at Penrith (just west
of Jct 40). This is one of Cumbria's newest visitor attractions,
built into an abandoned limestone quarry. The remains of an
old limekiln lie at the heart of the centre along with a fully
illustrated explanation of how it functioned.
SKIDDAW ROCKS OF THE NORTHERN FELLS
The Skiddaw Group, by far the oldest rocks in Cumbria, collected
on the floor of an ancient ocean about 500 million years ago.
They are mostly dull grey mudstones, siltstones and sandstones,
now compressed into slaty materials.
 1.
Typical Skiddaw rocks seen in a forest trackside cutting in
Dodd Wood, near Keswick (NY 239270). The dull grey
slates easily weather into small platy fragments.
 2.
Tightly folded Skiddaw rocks in the bed of the River Caldew.
Geologically, the Skiddaw rocks are very complicated. They
have been heavily folded and compressed into slate since they
were deposited as muds and silts on the ocean floor. The rocks
do contain fossils (mainly graptolites) but they are very
difficult to find. Keswick Museum has some fine specimens.
 3.
Skiddaw from Latrigg. The scenery of the Skiddaw rocks
reflects the way the rocks break down into fine materials
- steep slopes with rounded outlines covered with expanses
of grass and heather moorland.
 4.
The Old Mission Room, Threlkeld. Skiddaw rocks generally
do not provide good building materials - the slates are too
fissile and weak as roofing slates, and often too thin and
irregular for walling stone. However, they do appear in some
vernacular buildings like this 1885 Mission Room. Note how
the stone has a brown weathered cast to it. There are many
other buildings of Skiddaw rock in Threlkeld.
VOLCANIC ROCKS OF THE CENTRAL FELLS
Volcanic rocks form the heart of the rugged central Lakeland
Fells - thick beds of lava, rocks made up of fragments shattered
by violent volcanic eruptions and thick layers of compressed
volcanic ash. This is the true heart of Lakeland, a landscape
of rough mountain tops, steep crags, trough-like valleys,
waterfalls, deep ravines and rock strewn terrain.
5. Most of the volcanic lavas lie in thick sheets in the
central fells and form prominent crags as at Little Stand,
above Wrynose Pass.
6. In places, like this example from Mardale Ill Bell,
lavas have cooled into hexagonal columns.
7. Fine volcanic ash lying in horizontal beds at Sourmilk
Gill, Seathwaite, Borrowdale.
8. Green Lakeland slate is widely used as a building material
in Keswick.
9. Riving green slate at Honister.
ANCIENT GRANITES AND HARD IGNEOUS ROCKS
At least 2 km below the Lake District there is a huge mass
of granite. Geologists call this feature a batholith - an
appropriate description as it is shaped like an up-turned
bath. Some of this granitic material, when still molten, rose
upwards and penetrated the rocks above. Subsequent erosion
of the overlying layers exposed the granite in a number of
places, particularly in the west and north of the Lakeland
Fells.
 10.
Eskdale Granite is usually pink/red in colour with
a coarse texture. It is used extensively for building - the
village of Eskdale Green is a good place to see it.
 11.
Skiddaw Granite. This distinctive, speckled granite
occurs beneath the Skiddaw Fells and can be seen in three
patches along the upper Caldew valley.
 12.
Carrock Fell. The dark brooding mass of Carrock Fell
is a distinctive landscape feature. It is formed of a complex
set of dark igneous rocks (not granites) that are related
to the great batholith. Dark green/black gabbro forms the
main part of the fell.
 13.
Ennerdale Granite. This fine-grained salmon-pink rock
is seen here in the walls of a barn at Crag Farm in Buttermere
village.
 14.
Threlkeld Microgranite. This fine-grained igneous rock
was quarried for roadstone and railway ballast. The old quarries
at Threlkeld Mining Museum now house an interesting collection
of rock and mineral specimens.
 15.
Shap granite pillars in Penrith. This is one of the
most familiar granites of the British Isles, long used as
a polished decorative stone. It is also a robust building
stone and can be seen in many prestigious buildings throughout
the country. It has a very coarse texture with huge tabular
crystals of pink feldspar.
SANDSTONES AND SILTSTONES OF SOUTH LAKELAND
These rocks were originally deposited in an ocean that covered
the southern part of the region after the volcanic episode.
Here the terrain is lower and more subdued with irregular
ridges and gentle hills.
16. View westwards over the low ridges of South Lakeland
with the higher volcanic fells behind.
17. Broughton Moor Quarry. The rich green slates are used
throughout the South Lakes for walling, landscaping and flooring.
18. Brathay Flags Quarry in the Troutbeck Valley. These dark-grey,
finely layered rocks make good roofing slates and wall building
stone. They can be seen extensively in the villages and towns
of the area - notably in Ambleside and Troutbeck.
SANDSTONE LOWLANDS
Red Permo-Triassic sandstones underlie the Eden Valley in
the east and the coastal lowlands of the west. These are desert
deposits - huge wind-blown sand dunes and material formed
in an arid environment. Most of these rocks are fairly soft,
producing low-lying ground that is suitable for agriculture.
19. Red sandstone cliffs at St Bee's Head.
20. Red sandstone at Hartley Quarry near Kirkby Stephen.
21. Sandstone stonework at Furness Abbey showing dune bedding
22. Furness Abbey near Barrow-in-Furness was built in the
12th century from red Triassic sandstone hewn nearby.
THE GRITSTONE MOORLANDS OF THE UPPER EDEN VALLEY AND THE
CALDBECK FELLS
Thick beds of Carboniferous gritstones, coarse sandstones
and black shales form the hills of the Upper Eden valley and
around Caldbeck. Gritstone crags stand out on many valley
sides, above which are expanses of open, poorly drained peat
moorland.
Millstone made of gritstone from the Pennines.
23. Swarth Fell from Wild Boar Fell - the gritstone moorlands
of the Upper Eden valley.
24. Hellgill Force in the Upper Eden Valley. A typical stepped
cascade over variable horizontal strata - a layer of limestone
cut into by the stream, a sandstone bed forming the falls,
with underlying shales being eroded by the stream.
LIMESTONE LANDSCAPES
An almost complete girdle of Carboniferous Limestone encircles
the Lakeland Fells. These rocks were deposited in warm tropical
seas to form grey limestone, rich in fossil corals and shelly
remains.
Most of the limestone lies in near-horizontal sheets producing
classic 'karst' scenery. The level plateaux consist of broad
expanses of limestone pavement. Prominent limestone crags
are seen on the valley sides and dry valleys dissect the surface.
Rainwater has dissolved some of the limestone to form surface
depressions and sink holes. Below ground, percolating water
and underground streams have created extensive cave systems.
25. Horizontal beds of Carboniferous limestone are clearly
seen in the wall of this old quarry at Raisbeck.
26. Gently sloping limestone pavement on Farleton Fell.
27. Lime kilns at Shap. Limestone is quarried nearby and
burnt in the kilns to form lime. The lime is then transported
to steel works to be used in the process of making steel.
28. Dent marble. A black, highly fossiliferous limestone
much prized by the Victorians for fireplaces and decorative
items. It was quarried in Upper Dentdale and used in the construction
of the Artengill Viaduct on the Settle-Carlisle railway.
MAP
For a map outlining
the different bands of rock in the Cumbria Fells and Dales
area, please click here (200kb).
FURTHER INFORMATION
Keswick Mining Museum
Otley House, Otley Road, Keswick, CA12 5EP
Tel: 017687 80055
Email: coppermaid@aol.com
Website: www.keswickminingmuseum.co.uk
Threlkeld Quarry and Mining Museum
Threlkeld, Keswick, CA12 4TT
Tel: 017687 79747
Keswick Museum
Fitz Park, Station Road, Keswick, CA12 4NF
Tel: 017687 73263
Website: www.allerdale.gov.uk/keswick
museum
Kendal Museum
Station Road, Kendal, LA9 6BT
Tel: 01539 721374
Email: info@kendalmuseum.org.uk
Website: www.kendalmuseum.org.uk
The Hamer Collection of rocks and minerals was recently donated
to the museum, which is creating a special exhibition area
for the collection.
Honister Slate Mine
Honister Pass, Borrowdale, Keswick, CA12 5XN
Tel: info@honister.com
Website: www.honister.com
National Trust
The Hollens, Grasmere, Ambleside, LA22 9QZ
Tel: 015394 35599
Email: hollens.recep@nationaltrust.org.uk
Website: www.nationaltrust.org.uk
Burlington Slate
Cavendish House, Kirkby-in-Furness, LA17 7UN
Tel: 01229 889661
Website: www.burlingtonstone.com
Kirkstone Quarries
Skelwith Bridge, Ambleside
Tel: 015394 33296/32066
Website: www.kirkstone.com
Lake District National Park
Murley Moss, Oxenholme Road, Kendal, LA9 7RL
Tel: 01539 724555
Email: hq@lake-district.gov.uk
Website: www.lake-district.gov.uk
Yorkshire Dales National Park
Yorebridge House, Bainbridge, Leyburn, DL8 3EE
Tel: 08701 666333 or 01969 652300
Email: info@yorkshiredales.org.uk
Website: www.yorkshiredales.org.uk
Cumbria RIGS
c/o Cumbria Wildlife Trust, Plumgarths, Crook Road, Kendal,
LA8 8LX
Tel: 01539 816300
Website: www.cumbriarigs.org
For more information on the industrial heritage of Cumbria,
go to
www.cumbria-industries.org.uk.
GETTING AROUND
For details on public transport, please contact Traveline
on 08700 608 2608.
Email: info@traveline-cumbria.co.uk.
Website: www.traveline.org.uk.
CREDITS
Produced by Anna Gray at Voluntary Action Cumbria for LEADER+
(Cumbria Fells & Dales)
Text by Alan Smith
Designed by Andrew Lathwell Design Ltd.
Layout by Eden Graphics
Printed by Reeds of Penrith, 2005.
Front cover photograph supplied by Bulington Slate Ltd &
Alan Smith
Other photographs supplied by Alan Smith, Val Corbett, Keith
Wood, Barry Stacey, Gordon Longworth, Adrian Banford, Anna
Gray and Bulington Slate Ltd.
LEADER+ (Cumbria Fells & Dales)
The Old Stables,
Redhills,
Penrith,
Cumbria,
CA11 0DT
Tel: 01768 869533
Email: info@fellsanddales.org.uk
Website: www.fellsanddales.org.uk
Fells and Dales LEADER+ Programme is based at Voluntary Action
Cumbria, a company limited by guarantee, Charity No. 1080875,
Companyh No. 3957858.
This is one of a series of themed trails being produced
by LEADER+ (Cumbria Fells & Dales) to promote the area
and its local products.
Whilst every effort has been made to ensure that the content
of this trail is accurate and up to date at the time of writing,
no liability can be accepted for any errors, omissions or
misrepresentations of fact contained herein.
 
This project is being part financed by the European Agriculture
Guidance adn Guarantee Fund of the European Union and the
Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs through
the Cumbria Fells and Dales LEADER+ Programme.
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