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Stiperstones EarthCache

Hidden : 12/17/2012
Difficulty:
2 out of 5
Terrain:
2 out of 5

Size: Size:   other (other)

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Geocache Description:

The Stiperstones is a very distinctive hill in the county of Shropshire, England. It is a quartzite ridge formed some 480 million years ago. During the last Ice Age the summit stood out above the glaciers and was subject to constant freezing and thawing which shattered the quartzite into a mass of jumbled scree surrounding several residual rocky tors

Quartzite

 

Quartzite (from German Quarzit) is a hard, non-foliated metamorphic rock which was originally sandstone.Sandstone is converted into quartzite through heating and pressure usually related to tectonic compression within orogenic belts. Pure quartzite is usually white to gray, though quartzites often occur in various shades of pink and red due to varying amounts of iron oxide . Other colors, such as yellow and orange, are due to other mineral impurities.

When sandstone is metamorphosed to quartzite, the individual quartz grains recrystallize along with the former cementing material to form an interlocking mosaic of quartz crystals. Most or all of the original texture and sedimentary structures of the sandstone are erased by the metamorphism. Minor amounts of former cementing materials, iron oxide, silica, carbonate and clay, often migrate during recrystallization and metamorphosis. This causes streaks and lenses to form within the quartzite.
 

To log the cache please answer the following questions

1) Go to the given co-ord's, describe what you see and explain the type of rock in this area. 
2) At The co-ord's find a piece of quartzite and explain the texture 
3) A photo of the summit would be nice

Source= Wikipedia

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