Past Remains in South-West Britain: Shapwick Grange Chalk Quarry, Nr Uplyme, Devon

I discovered this quarry while visiting the nearby Cannington viaduct, which can be seen in the previous post. I said there that this was my first quarry, but I then remembered that my first one was the clay quarry at St Austell in Cornwall and the second one was a tour of the Beer Quarry Caves, which are open to visitors. So this was my third one, although the first one that I found and explored on my own...which makes it a bit more special. :)

The works & buildings on this site were abandoned when quarrying stopped in 2002, Shapwick Grange being designated an SSSI - Scientific Site of Special Interest. Also known as Uplyme Quarry, it's the only locality in Devon to contain the fauna of Upper Greensand age. This makes it a key site for palaeogeographical and stratigraphical studies of the Lower Cretaceous period. As well as being an SSSI it is also a Geological Review Site because of its Pleistocene stratigraphy.

Planning permission was originally granted in 1960, the quarry being continuously worked for chalk as a source of agricultural lime. Additional permission was granted in 1990 to work the sandstones that lie beneath the chalk within the existing quarry. The chalk was worked by a mechanical excavator and crushed to a fine powder. This was then stored in the shed prior to bagging and bulk sale. The sandstone part of the works was a separate undertaking to the agricultural lime operations, supplying a local market for infill.

The site consists of a weigh bridge & site office, various sheds for loading and storage, conveyor belts, crusher, hopper and the control room above that. I think there was a generator room too, plus storage for oil...and the excavations, of course.

The site office, above, and interiors below.

Having visited here three times now - in 2007 and twice in 2008 - I found it a fascinating place to explore, each time discovering more to look at. On my third visit some changes had been made and there was evidence of new activity, with additional conveyors and a caravan. Some digging had begun on the site of the smaller excavations, away from the main one. However, on a bus journey in September 2009 I saw various earth movers at the top of the main excavations and it appears that extensive quarrying may have been reintroduced.

The top of the main excavation, above, and into the control room, below, which was accessible from the top above the hopper.

I love this funky, trundly machine. Not sure what it is, but it looks like a small, portable generator maybe?

The switchgear was manufactured by the local firm Ottermill Switchgear in Ottery St Mary, Devon.

Then down to where the hopper feeds into the crusher.

The crusher, shown in the photo below. The crushed material then travels on conveyor belts to be loaded onto trucks waiting below.

The view over the walkway and conveyor belts. Normally I'm horrendously acrophobic but it's nowhere near so bad if I'm looking through my camera. Mind, I didn't dare to go down the steps and onto the walkway though!

And some photos taken from below...on terra firma! ;)

As is often the case, there's a tendency to be more careful when on your own, but when with others it's easy to become complaisant. That happened to me on my second visit, as I was accompanied by a couple of aquaintances who wanted to see the site - and that was when I had a really stupid accident...

...Whilst investigating the smaller excavations I ran up a mound of clay, forgetting that we'd had a lot of rain recently, and before I knew it I was almost up to my knees in quicksand and firmly stuck. After an aborted attempt by the others to pull me out, I was resorted to digging out first one foot and then the other with my hands. I went home plastered...literally! ;)

The main excavation, below, with a small 'lagoon'. The turquoise, aqua-green colour in quarry pit water is caused due to the high mica content; one of the unwanted by-products in the extraction process of clay areas. Interestingly, there were newts, water boatmen, damsels and dragonflies in and on the water, which was really lovely to see.

And to finish up, a few odd photos that don't fit anywhere else...

A bizarre little handle in the form of a hand holding a bar and a view from the weigh bridge towards Cannington Viaduct.