page_title: Wye Valley, Derbyshire
section_title: Geology
hierarchical_section_title: Wye Valley, Derbyshire / Geology
caption_attribution_description: English: River Wye above Cressbrook Mill Limestone cliff just upstream from the weir at Cressbrook Mill.
context_page_description: The Wye Valley is the limestone valley of the River Wye in the White Peak of Derbyshire, England. The source of the River Wye is west of Buxton on Axe Edge Moor. One main channel runs underground through Poole's Cavern. The river flows though Buxton Pavilion Gardens and then along a culvert under the town centre. After leaving the flat area of central Buxton, the Wye Valley becomes distinct as a gorge running east for 10 miles before the valley broadens at Ashford-in-the Water.
  The A6 road from Buxton to Bakewell follows the Wye Valley for most of its path. The Manchester, Buxton, Matlock and Midland Junction Railway used to run through the valley. It was built to link Manchester through the Peak District to London and operated from the 1860s to 1968.
context_section_description: The White Peak area of the Peak District is named after the limestone plateau landscape of the 'Derbyshire Dome' anticline. The plateau is generally between 200m and 300m above sea level. The Carboniferous limestone rocks of all the dales in the White Peak were formed 350 million years ago from the shells and sediments of a tropical sea. These deposits were compressed into rocks which over time were uplifted and folded into a dome. Erosion of the younger sandstones exposed the limestone strata below. The landscape of dales was then sculpted by the melt water from the last Ice Age 20,000 years ago.
caption: Limestone crags beside the River Wye
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