NORTHUMBERLAND WILDLIFE TRUST
Nearest Town: Bardon Mill
OS Map: NY848673 (OS 50 000 Sheet 87)
This 1ha SSSI is a former limestone quarry with interesting geology and flora.
Location and access: The site is on the Roman road north of Bardon Mill know as the Stanegate. Parking is on the Stanegate next to the public footpath. Follow the footpath to the farm and then follow the signs for the quarry. A permit is required.
A former limestone quarry leased to the Trust in 1979 and, more recently, the subject of a Northumberland National Park restoration scheme involving earthmoving, re-seeding, tree planting and fencing. Disused for over 20 years, the site has developed a rich limestone flora, as well as having interesting geological explosures. The quarry faces are between 3 and 6 metres high and show exposures of the Namurian (Upper Carboniferous) Great Limestone. There are excellent examples of folding in the south west and north eastern corners. The flora includes salad burnet, thyme, cowslip, hoary plantain, autumn felwort, heath grass and crested hair grass.