This is an EarthCache in an urban location with plenty of easy parking just across the road. Please take care on the road however since not all drivers adhere to the speed limit and none will be expecting people to be gawping at the wall and not paying attention to the road.
The focus of the cache is the large retaining wall. You do not need to climb the wall but to answer all questions you might like to walk round the ramp to the top, however since this cache is wheelchair friendly this is not a requirement.
Here is some information about limestone and how it can create rock formations in and on other stone.
At this location you will notice that the wall is made up of large sandstone blocks which have been carved and put together. However the focus of this EarthCache is the formation of stalactite type deposits that are seeping though the wall. This is happening because the land behind the wall must be rich in limestone and as the rainwater passes through the surrounding rock and permeates out through the wall it leaves deposits behind, just like stalactites in some cave systems close-by.
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The words stalactite and stalagmite can be traced back to the Greek word "stalassein," which means "to drip." This is fitting because it describes how they are formed in nature. The slow drip drip drip of ground water leaving behind deposits .Although they look lifelike and a little creepy, stalactites and stalagmites grow simply because of water running over and through inorganic material leave behind trace deposits which build up over time.
Limestone caves, where most stalactites and stalagmites are found, are mainly composed of calcite, a common mineral found in sedimentary rocks. Calcite molecules are made of calcium and carbonate ions, and are referred to as CaCO3, or calcium carbonate. When rainwater falls over a cave and trickles through rocks, it picks up carbon dioxide and minerals from limestone. If we add water, carbon dioxide and calcium carbonate together, we get the constituent parts needed to leave deposits: This is exactly whats happening here as the rain water passes though this wall.
Thanks for reading the information.
Hopefully you have enough to answer the questions below, thank for having a go.
Questions
1)Look at the wall and describe what you can see, concentrate on the different types of rock used for the wall and the way the deposit has seeped through
2)Please explain what is going on to create this strange effect on the wall.
3)How far up the wall is the leaking of the the lime? You can use a percentage or a height.
4)Why is the lime not leaking out of the wall all the way to the top?
Thanks for visiting and I look forward to reading your logs.