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| A good addition to my geological toolkit |
In week 49 of the COVID-19 Pandemic,
in the middle of February 2021, there were no signs of life returning
back to normal anytime soon and I began to think of how I would continue
my exploration of the geology and historic buildings in and around South Yorkshire during the year ahead.
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| The bridge in Ulley Country Park |
It was only after I had walked around Ulley Country Park
with a friend who I hadn’t seen for a couple of years, that I had
another idea. I had only expected to walk around the reservoir, to look
at the various artwork that is permanently on display, as my friend Andy teaches Art at Brinsworth Academy and we have worked on a few
projects together.
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| A walk around Ulley Country Park |
That
didn’t take long, so we decided to follow the path that runs through the valley
to open countryside to the east – approximately following the course of
Ulley Brook, which flows through it. Although we both had boots to cope
with the muddy paths, we didn’t have a map – except on our
phones – and we just made our way along paths that we could identify from
the position of other walkers and ended up in Upper Whiston and Guilthwaite.
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| A view towards Penny Hill Wind Farm |
Except
when looking at the escarpment upon which the Penny Hill Wind Farm has
been placed, which is formed by Pennine Upper Coal Measures Formation
strata that is capped by the Ackworth Rock, the subject of geology
didn’t come up in our long conversation.
During
previous walks, in a few places, I wanted to be able to get down onto
the streambed and collect a sample; however, apart from not having a hammer, I am not as agile as I used to be and I probably
would have needed someone to help me get back out.
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| A streambed in Bowden Housteads Wood |
On
this occasion, we didn’t see any rocks, but our ‘promises’ to meet up
again very soon – for a longer planned walk - prompted me to buy a new
geological hammer, to replace the various hammers and chisels that I had
previously used to obtain my specimens of rock.
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| Old hammers |
Having
worked as a builder’s labourer for a year before starting university, I
was familiar with a club hammer, chisels and a bolster and thought
that these would be good tools; however, I soon learned that they
didn’t make much of a mark on the granite in Devon and Cornwall - with the shaft of the hammer being more liable to break than the rock that I was hitting.
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| A 40 oz pick ended hammer by Burgon & Ball of Sheffield |
I also have a 40 oz. pick ended hammer, with an 8½ inch wedged hickory shaft and made by Burgon & Ball
of Sheffield, which I must have ‘inherited’ from an old girlfriend. It
is sturdy enough, but it is best used for breaking large rocks at home and not for reaching into nooks and crannies.
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| An Estwing 20 oz brick hammer and holster |
The
traditional ‘geologist’s hammer’ is probably the Estwing 'Big Blue' 22
oz Rock Chisel with a 13” handle, but travelling primarily by bus and
train – where a shorter and lighter hammer would be more comfortable
when using a holster on my belt, I finally chose an Estwing 20 oz Brick Hammer.
Before
purchasing it, I discussed its merits with Greg Wessel - a geologist
colleague who lives on Vashon Island and owns one of my Glowing Edges Designs – and I was advised that this would
be best used with sedimentary, rather than harder metamorphic or
granitic rocks.
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| An exposure of coal in Smelter Wood |
Having
come back from walks with pieces of rock that I had obtained by
smashing one loose rock against another, pulling a piece out of a bank
with my fingers or digging with my Rodgers of Sheffield
stainless steel knife - in the case of the coal in Smelter Wood – this would be ideal
for my further exploration of the geology of South Yorkshire and the
surrounding counties.
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| Ready for the next field trip |
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