Salthill Quarry

Salthill Quarry is a disused limestone quarry on the edge of Clitheroe that has been developed as a geological trail and nature reserve. The exposed cliff faces show Carboniferous limestone that was forming when the area was part of a tropical reef system some 340 million years ago. The site is one of the best exposures of this type of geology in northern England.

The trail around the quarry is short and well-signed with explanatory panels that help non-geologists understand what the rock faces reveal. Fossils are visible in the quarry walls — look for the barrel-shaped crinoids. The reserve also has butterfly-friendly grassland on the upper terraces. It is a 15-minute walk from the town centre and little-visited by tourists, which adds to its appeal.

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A story
The quarry was worked for limestone from the medieval period until the 1930s. It was later turned into a nature reserve, and the exposed rock faces reveal a remarkably clear cross-section of Carboniferous limestone laid down around 340 million years ago, when this part of Lancashire was a shallow tropical sea. Fossils of crinoids, brachiopods, and corals are visible in the rock faces without any excavation.