Wharncliffe Crags

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Coordinates: 53°28′18″N 1°33′02″W / 53.4716°N 1.5506°W / 53.4716; -1.5506
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

The top of the crags with the Stocksbridge bypass in the background
The crags with their many detached boulders

Wharncliffe Crags is a gritstone escarpment or edge situated approximately 6 miles (10 km) north-west of the city of Sheffield in South Yorkshire, England. It is a geological Site of Special Scientific Interest.[1][2]

Overview

The edge, which is characterised as a steep rock face for much of its 2-mile (4 km) length, runs from grid reference SK295979 just east of the village of

electricity pylons, which converge at the northern end of the crags. The rocks of the escarpment were formed 320 million years ago in the Paleozoic
era.

History

The rocks at the north-western end of Wharncliffe Crags have been quarried to produce

Henry VIII's reign (1509–1547).[6][7]

Geology and habitat

The geology of Wharncliffe Crags led to the area being designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest in 1988. The geological features of the cliff face are of special interest, showing the best available exposed example of the Wharncliffe Edge Rock Formation within the Pennines and two primary sandstone beds that were originally laid down as sediments from a meandering river. The downslope from the base of the cliff towards the Don valley is covered by the birch and oak woodland of Wharncliffe Woods, which are owned by the Forestry Commission. The flat ground on the top of the crags is mostly carpeted with heather. The level terrain behind the central part of the crags is known as Wharncliffe Chase; this was part of a royal hunting park in the Middle Ages. More recently the chase was mined for ganister, which was used to produce furnace bricks for the local steel industry; there has also been small-scale coal mining in the past.[8]

Wharncliffe Lodge
The so-called "Dragon's Den" cave at the southern end of the crags

Wharncliffe Heath Local Nature Reserve

The north-western (Deepcar) end of the crags stand within the Wharncliffe Heath

linnet, viviparous lizard and green tiger beetle. The reserve is one of the best examples of dry heath in the Sheffield area. It differs from the nearby Peak District heather moorland in that it is a mosaic of heather, scrub and bracken. The reserve is managed by the Wharncliffe Heathlands Trust, whose main recent projects have been keeping birch scrub under control by felling and wood pasture creation.[9][10][11]

Rock climbing

Wharncliffe Crags has a long history of rock climbing: it was at the forefront at the birth of the sport in the UK in the 1880s. Pre-World War I climbing legend J. W. Puttrell was a regular visitor to the crags from 1885 onwards and pioneered many early routes, most notably Puttrell's Progress which had its first ascent around 1900.[12] By 1900 the crag was the most popular climbing venue in the country, a fact that was helped by the presence of the nearby Deepcar railway station on the Sheffield to Manchester railway line. The crag declined in popularity, losing out to more popular venues in the Peak District, and is now a quiet site. There are around 142 traditional climbs on the crag along with many bouldering climbs on the numerous large boulders that have become detached from the main crag.[13]

Legend

Slaying the Wharncliffe Dragon, Sheffield Town Hall
Main article: Dragon of Wantley

The crags are also the venue of the legend of the Dragon of Wantley, a myth that was made into a 17th-century satirical poem and an opera by Henry Carey. The legend was mentioned by Sir Walter Scott in the opening chapter of Ivanhoe: "Here haunted of yore the fabulous Dragon of Wantley".[14] The story tells the tale of how More, of More Hall, slays a troublesome dragon that lives on the crags. A cave at the southern end of the crags, close to Wharncliffe Lodge, is called the Dragon's Den and is thus marked on maps.[15]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Wharncliffe Crags citation" (PDF). Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Retrieved 3 April 2015.
  2. ^ "Map of Wharncliffe Crags". Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Retrieved 3 April 2015.
  3. ISBN 0-7112-2660-1
    , Page 24 “Wharn is a corruption of Quern”.
  4. ^ www.topforge.co.uk. Gives details of quern stones.
  5. ^ English Heritage. Gives details of quern stones.
  6. ISBN 1-84306-049-3
    Page 143 Gives details of Wharncliffe Lodge.
  7. ISBN 978-1-4021-6662-4
    Pages 46 & 47 Gives information on Wharncliffe Lodge.
  8. ^ "The Peak District and Central England" Page 24 Gives details of Wharncliffe Chase.
  9. ^ Notice board at reserve site. Gives details of Wharncliffe Heath Local Nature Reserve.
  10. ^ "Wharncliffe Heath". Local Nature Reserves. Natural England. Retrieved 4 August 2013.
  11. ^ "Map of Wharncliffe Heath". Local Nature Reserves. Natural England. Retrieved 4 August 2013.
  12. ^ "UKC Logbook – 'Puttrell's Progress'". www.ukclimbing.com.
  13. ^ www.rockfax.com. Gives details of rock climbing.
  14. ^ The Free Library. Gives text of Ivanhoe, Chapter 1.
  15. ^ www.kellscraft.com. Gives text of Dragon of Wantley poem.

53°28′18″N 1°33′02″W / 53.4716°N 1.5506°W / 53.4716; -1.5506

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