...in which we set out from springtime Orton to explore the limestone scars of the Westmorland Dales in the company of husband-and-wife geologist / botanist team Syvia and Peter Woodhead. Alongside bubbling Chapel Beck, we encounter early flowers and a lively March hare as we learn about the geological origins of limestone - in distant coral seas some 350 million years ago. Arriving on Orton Scar, with its big-sky panoramas, we reflect on the industrial processing of lime – for agriculture and construction – and observe the 'lasagne' layering of different eras of deposition. Passing limestone pavement on the shoulder of Knott – grikes forming micro-climates for an abundance of rare plants – we encounter myriad fossils, of corals, gastropods and sponges, that record cycles of life and mass extinction. Chased by a storm that never arrives, we finish our walking circuit at Gamelands Stone Circle, where we reflect on the power and legacy of ice.
For more about the Westmorland Dales Landscape Partnership project, see friendsofthelakedistrict.org.uk/westmorland-dales-hidden-landscapes-partnership
The GeoTrail walks can be found at friendsofthelakedistrict.org.uk/westmorland-dales-geotrails-2022
For Cumbria GeoCoonservation see cumbriageoconservation.org.uk
123: Barrow-in-Furness – A tale of iron and ships, hair and shops
121: A history of paper-making on the River Kent
120: A history of boating on Windermere
119: The birth of Quakerism in Cumbria
118: James Forrest - Record-breaking round of the 214
#117: Above Great Moss: Stone axes of the earliest settlers
Countrystride #116: Review of 2023
Countrystride #115: A Cumbrian Christmas feast - With Helen Rebanks and Ivan Day
Countrystride #114: Fell Foodie - A feast on Silver How
Countrystride #113: Why we Run - Fell and trail running in the Lake District
Countrystride #112: Melvyn Bragg - Back in the Day
Countrystride #111: The Herdwick, with Will Rawling
Countrystride #110: Eliza Lynn Linton and The Lake Country
Countrystride #109: Aira Force - Lakeland pleasure ground
Countrystride #108: To the Lakes! The early days of tourism
Countrystride #107: Tales from Little Langdale
Countrystride #106: The lichens of Borrowdale
Countrystride #105: The Old Man and the slate
Countrystride #104: Eskdale - Living the Fisherground dream
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