Chester is full of sandstone - it's been used in many of the buildings, the City Walls and I was looking at the shapes in this bridge when walking over the canal recently. There were two different types of bedding in stones beside each other than tell us a little about how the stones were formed.
This EarthCache is meant to be simple - all the information you need to answer the questions is in the listing. It should take no more than a couple of minutes to complete.
You can find parking in the side streets near here - be careful, check for restrictions and please do not block any access.
Although the terrain rating is 1.5, there is a paved path here, though it is cobbled in places and can be slippy. Please take care if it's been raining.
1) Look at the yellow block. Describe the lines on it - are they all running in the same direction? Are they evenly spaced?
2) What type of bedding is on this stone?
3) Look at the red block. Describe the lines on it - are they all running in the same direction? Are they evenly spaced?
4) What type of bedding is on this stone?
5) Take a photo of yourself at GZ, or an identifying item, being careful not to reveal any of the answers to the questions.
Please submit your answers via message though the Geocaching website or by sending me an email - there is no need to wait for a response before logging your find.
Cross Bedding
Cross bedding refers to the layering found within sandstone rocks, characterised by angles relative to the main bedding plane.
This type of layering develops during deposition on inclined surfaces of bedforms like ripples and dunes, indicating the presence of a dynamic medium such as water or wind in the depositional environment.
Graded bedding
A graded bed is defined by a change in grain size from the bottom to the top of the bed. Typically, this shows as normal grading, where coarser sediments reside at the base, moving into progressively finer ones toward the top. In the example photo, look at how the bigger grains are at the bottom and the smaller ones at the top.
These beds usually signify depositional settings where transport energy (flow rate) decreases over time. However, they can also originate during swift depositional events. Their most notable occurrence is in turbidite strata, where they indicate abrupt, vigorous currents that deposit coarse sediments initially, succeeded by finer ones as the current diminishes.
Planar bedding
Planar bedding forms when a layer of sediment is deposited flat, with its layers parallel to the main bedding plane. This typically occurs either in very calm conditions where sediment gently settles, or from very fast, sheet-like currents that move across the ground.