million year time gap. time year million Orogeny. the unconformity. Thus, this unconformity represents about a 65 a about represents unconformity this Thus, unconformity. the episode called the Variscan the called episode the Permian and deposition resumed in the Lower Triassic above Triassic Lower the in resumed deposition and Permian the in a mountain building mountain a in down to the Lower Westphalian / Upper Namurian level during level Namurian Upper / Westphalian Lower the to down were then uplifted and folded and uplifted then were during the Variscan Orogeny. The sequence was then eroded then was sequence The Orogeny. Variscan the during continent Pangaea. The rocks The Pangaea. continent tilted gently westwards at the end of the Carboniferous Period Carboniferous the of end the at westwards gently tilted south to form the super- the form to south In the Churnet Valley the Carboniferous rocks were uplifted and uplifted were rocks Carboniferous the Valley Churnet the In continent of Gondwana to the to Gondwana of continent Laurussia collided with the with collided Laurussia younger ones. younger Late in the Carboniferous the in Late folded and then exposed to erosion before the deposition of the of deposition the before erosion to exposed then and folded 19 Goniatite concretion Goniatite have been uplifted, tilted and/or tilted uplifted, been have Printed by MC Print Services Tel: 01782 370080 01782 Tel: Services Print MC by Printed Cover photograph: Star Wood Star photograph: Cover ‘Coal Measures’. ‘Coal rocks below the unconformity the below rocks containing more coal and ironstone belongs to the Westphalian the to belongs ironstone and coal more containing Keep dogs under close control and consider other people. other consider and control close under dogs Keep rocks unconformity is where the older the where is unconformity as you find them; protect plants and animals and take your litter home. litter your take and animals and plants protect them; find you as sequence; the upper muddier part muddier upper the sequence; Carboniferous Goniatites 18 one below. An angular An below. one older surfaces. Be safe, plan ahead and follow any signs; leave gates and property and gates leave signs; any follow and ahead plan safe, Be surfaces. of the Namurian ‘Millstone Grit’ ‘Millstone Namurian the of 1cm Remember to follow the country code and please do not hammer the rock the hammer not do please and code country the follow to Remember sequence above from an older an from above sequence coarser sand units forming part forming units sand coarser surface separates a younger a separates surface This trail is dedicated to the memory of Ken Rout, founding member of SRIGS. of member founding Rout, Ken of memory the to dedicated is trail This sequence contains thicker and thicker contains sequence surface gap in the geological record. The record. geological the in gap into coal. The lower part of the of part lower The coal. into Triassic rocks Triassic unconformity www.staffs-wildlife.org.uk - Trust Wildlife Staffordshire surface which represents a time a represents which surface Later this was buried and turned and buried was this Later younger www.esci.keele.ac.uk/nsgga - Association Geologists' Group Staffordshire North An unconformity is a geological a is unconformity An www.staffs-rigs.org.uk - RIGS Staffordshire new land formed peat in swamps. in peat formed land new UNCONFORMITY geomorphological sites in Staffordshire. For more information contact: information more For Staffordshire. in sites geomorphological emerged. Plants colonising this colonising Plants emerged. responsible for the conservation of regionally important geological and geological important regionally of conservation the for responsible delta. Eventually the delta surface delta the Eventually delta. A member of UKRIGS, the Staffordshire RIGS Group is a voluntary organisation voluntary a is Group RIGS Staffordshire the UKRIGS, of member A ancient rivers and winds. and rivers ancient and then sandier material in the in material sandier then and • Staffordshire Moorlands District Council District Moorlands Staffordshire • direction can be used to determine the direction of the flow of flow the of direction the determine to used be can direction fell and rivers deposited muds deposited rivers and fell • Staffordshire Moorlands Community & Volunteer Services Volunteer & Community Moorlands Staffordshire • determine the ‘way up’ of sedimentary rocks, and the slope the and rocks, sedimentary of up’ ‘way the determine • Landmark Publications (LP) Publications Landmark • • National Trust National • Froghall Ironstone Froghall Erosion of the tops of these sloping layers can be used to used be can layers sloping these of tops the of Erosion ice caps to grow again, sea-level again, grow to caps ice • WBB Minerals Ltd Minerals WBB • • Forestry Commission Forestry • downcurrent side of dunes and ripples in either air or water. or air either in ripples and dunes of side downcurrent Global cooling then caused the caused then cooling Global • North Staffordshire Railway Staffordshire North • • British Geological Survey Geological British • 1cm deposition of sediment on the on sediment of deposition marine fossils such as goniatites. as such fossils marine The Staffordshire RIGS Group gratefully acknowledge the support of: support the acknowledge gratefully Group RIGS Staffordshire The foresets surfaces. It is formed by the by formed is It surfaces. the delta depositing muds containing muds depositing delta the up beds Rosie Duncan. Rosie by Design stated. otherwise unless Waller normally flat, bedding plane bedding flat, normally way sandstone ice cap. Sea-level then rose, flooding rose, then Sea-level cap. ice Richard and Stimpson Ian Reynolds, John Floyd, Peter Cossey, sloping layers between the main, the between layers sloping Patrick by photos and Text . 2007 Scheme Grant Levy Aggregates rocks. It consists of a series of series a of consists It rocks. melted the southern polar southern the melted the Staffordshire RIGS Group with financial support from the Staffordshire the from support financial with Group RIGS Staffordshire the surface) 0 100 km 100 0 sediments and sedimentary and sediments Rising Variscan mountains Variscan Rising (erosion change. Global warming Global change. on behalf of behalf on Stimpson Ian and Waller Richard by managed project A bedding plane bedding within layered (bedded) layered within current cycles due to global climate global to due cycles ripple/dune Cross-bedding is a feature found feature a is Cross-bedding Uttoxeter sands were laid down in down laid were sands CROSS BEDDING CROSS km 5 0 Laurussia. Muds, silts and silts Muds, Laurussia. B5053 a continent called continent a with the opening of the Atlantic Ocean. Atlantic the of opening the with Wales - London - Brabant High Brabant - London - Wales Uttoxeter upon Trent upon on-Trent on the southern margin of margin southern the on fractured and faulted by late Triassic earth movements associated movements earth Triassic late by faulted and fractured from south from from west from Burton Stoke- A522 Early local rivers local Early in a low-lying muddy delta muddy low-lying a in meandering and the sands finer grained. The rocks were later were rocks The grained. finer sands the and meandering Later rivers Later NSB Alton A521 B5053 equator, close to sea-level, to close equator, As the highlands were gradually lowered, the rivers became more became rivers the lowered, gradually were highlands the As 0 5 3 3 B a Great Industrial Past Industrial Great a Cheadle on-Trent were deposited near to the to near deposited were south-west England and Brittany. and England south-west northeast Ashbourne 34 Earl’s Rock Earl’s rivers from rivers Stoke- Carboniferous sediments Carboniferous eroding Variscan mountains in mountains Variscan eroding Oakamoor True Grits and Ghosts of Ghosts and Grits True Major A521 A522 These rivers flowed from the fast- the from flowed rivers These A520 Kingsley Uplands Whiston next to the map overleaf. map the to next unconformity diagram below). diagram unconformity Trent Southern Cotton Froghall on- years old). See the column the See old). years Carboniferous rocks (see rocks Carboniferous Derby A52 Stoke- Ashbourne Triassic (250 - 245 million 245 - (250 Triassic unconformably over the eroded the over unconformably Foxt Geotrail Basin years old) and the Lower the and old) years sands and pebbles and sands Ipstones Staffordshire - North - NSB about 318 - 313 million 313 - 318 about B5053 deposited rivers braided Large A523 Winkhill Upper Carboniferous (here Carboniferous Upper northern hot desert latitudes. desert hot northern Churnet Valley Churnet Leek Carboniferous geological time periods, the periods, time geological Triassic, the region was at was region the Triassic, Upper GEOTRAIL B Valley belong to two to belong Valley 5 the During uplift. that to due here Macclesfield 0 5 Britain in the in Britain 4 The rocks of the Churnet the of rocks The Rocks of Permian age are missing are age Permian of Rocks Leek, Buxton & Buxton Leek, The N Bakewell Hartington, LOCATION MAP LOCATION GEOLOGY GEOLOGY GEOMORPHOLOGY INDUSTRIAL HERITAGE INDUSTRIAL HERITAGE INDUSTRIAL HERITAGE The Churnet Valley is renowned for its steep-sided and dramatic From the 16th to The last use of Lead character and this has led to the area being nicknamed “Little 19th centuries iron ore was for For a short time in the mid 1700s, lead mined at Ribden, near Switzerland”. the Churnet the production of Farley, was smelted at the smelting mill in Ousal Dale 33. Today, its sheer Valley was the ochre pigment size is at odds scene of intense for paint and Limestone with the placid industrial activity, dyes at Froghall In 1775 the Caldon Low misfit river with furnaces, 48. quarries were leased to meandering forges, mills and Caldon Lime Co. A across its mines. The tramway from the picturesque floor. underlying quarries to the Caldon However, during bedrock of the Canal 1 at Froghall Churnet Valley Railway 48 48 Colour works, Froghall Bridge the last Ice Age valley contained Wharf was part of the 18,000 years ago, ores of iron, copper and lead, as well as coal, limestone and Canal Act.