A Journey to Conistone Old Pasture EarthCache

This Earth Cache has been placed with the approval of Natural England & Yorkshire Dales National Park. According to their guidelines for Caches placed in SSSI’s PLEASE be aware that it is STRICTLY PROHIBITED to Remove Plants or Rocks from the site

A Journey to Conistone Old Pasture

Conistone Old Pasture is of importance not only for its limestone grassland communities and the flora of its limestone pavements, but also for a range of impressive physio-graphic features. The site occupies a bench of Carboniferous Limestone on the eastern flank of Wharfedale, and includes the scars on the scarp-slope of the valley-side. Over much of the area the limestone soils are thin, and calcareous grassland is extensive. The sward is characterised by blue moor grass and sheep Õs fescue and is rich in herb species including rockrose, dropwort and limestone bedstraw in the flushed areas Grass-of-Parnassus and bird Õs-eye occur, patches of deeper soils support acidic grassland characterised by mat-grass and tufted hair-grass. The site contains five nationally important limestone pavements. While the majority of the site is pasture land, a small meadow at Little Lathe has been separately identified as of significance for grassland typical of agriculturally unimproved northern hay meadows. The sward contains a mixture of grasses including crested dog Õs-tail and smooth meadow-grass together with herb species such as great burnet and pignut. However it is the Karst features of the Carboniferous Limestone which make the site of national physio-graphic importance. The pavements and scars are very well developed with large, little fractured, inclined slabs dominating the south end of the site, and more fractured horizontal pavements at the northern end. Conistone Dib, along the northern edge of the site is a fine, dry meltwater channel with the narrow, deeply incised, with the Gurling Trough at its lower end, and Dib Scar in an adjacent channel at the southern end of the site.

The Important Questions

1; Waypoint 1 At this point please describe what you see, can you tell me what it is now, or what it was millions of years ago, can you see some layers? how many are there? also estimate the width and height of this feature

2; You are now starting your journey, can you describe what you see, how have the Beds of Limestone changed, and what are you walking through?

3; Waypoint 2 Please describe what you see and how it was formed, estimate the height, width and depth of this feature

4; Waypoint 3 You are now out in open country, can you tell me What this is? How it was formed? What do you think it was at the end of the Ice age? And just for fun wild creatures are active here, what are they? And why are they here? Can you take a Photo of them? (They may not be so active in winter)

5; Although no longer required a photograph without giving the information away, would prove the visit

Please email the answers using the email address in my profile