The foggy weather added a moody, atmospheric feel to our walk through Beecraigs Country Park and the Bathgate Hills, especially in the Bathgate Hills. Our walk aimed to explore the mining heritage of the Bathgate Hills. The downside was that with visibility limited to only a few hundred meters, we missed out on the splendid views of the surrounding area.
The geology of the Bathgate Hills comprises a sequence of volcanic rocks including basaltic lavas and tuffs (ash), with sedimentary intercalations, such as the Petershill Formation, which consists of a series of limestone, sandstone and siltstone layers. During the late Carboniferous to early Permian, these rocks were intruded by magma, resulting in the formation of dolerite sills (intrusions parallel to the bedding of layered strata) and dykes (intrusions that cut across bedded strata).
The Agricultural Revolution in Britain occurred between the mid-17th and late 19th centuries, characterised by substantial increases in agricultural productivity thanks to innovations such as crop rotation, selective breeding, and improved farming methods. This change was vital in accommodating a growing population and laid the groundwork for the Industrial Revolution.
During the 18th Century, the quarrying of limestone was greatly expanded, driven by the agricultural revolution. Limestone was quarried, burned in lime kilns and spread on fields. The quicklime produced by burning lowers acidity, adds essential minerals and improves soil structure. The Petershill Limestone was formerly extracted in several quarries along its outcrop, including the Petershill, Ballencreiff Toll, Rifle Range, South Mine, Silvermine, North Mine, Wairdlaw and Hillhouse quarries. Limekilns were constructed at the quarries, but little evidence of them remains. At Wairdlaw, there are two well-preserved lime kilns close to the old farmhouse. Many farmers had their own kilns or used small temporary ‘clamp kilns’ that they built in the fields where lime was spread. Small depressions seen in fields around the area may indicate where clamp kilns were located.
A group of 15 walkers gathered at the Hillhouse Car Park. After welcoming the group, including two new Ramblers, we made our way to Hillhouse Quarry. At the northern end of the quarry, mining was extended underground using the stoop and room system of working (stoops are pillars of rock left to support the roof). The workings should not be entered because of the risk of rockfall. We then retraced our steps, walking alongside the quarry before walking through the woods of Beecraigs to Witch Craig. On the way, we passed the Quarry at Wairdlaw. At Witch Craig, there would usually be excellent views towards the west and north of The Campsies, the Highlands, and the Ochil Hills.
From Witch Craig, we headed for Cairnpapple Hill with the Bronze Age burial site at its summit. Another excellent viewpoint, and a good one for appreciating the landscape features of the Bathgate Hills and further afield, resulting from geology and the last glaciation, though not today. Our next stop was the Hilderston Silver Mine site. The route took us down the side of a prominent dolerite dyke, which runs from Boghall to Wairdlaw and forms another splendid viewpoint at The Knock. This dyke is actually a step-like transgression in a major sill of the Midland Valley Sill Complex. We followed the dyke southwards into a small valley, where we found the ruins of Windywa's, located on the original site of the 17th-century Hilderston silver mine.
At the beginning of the 17th Century, silver was discovered, and a mine was set up at Hilderston. Several shafts were sunk, and three small depressions just west of the road indicate where the main group of original shafts were located. The silver was found in a vein along the side of a thin dolerite dyke, where it cut strata just above the Petershill Limestone. The workable vein only extended 80m in length and 18m below the ground surface. The mine was in operation from 1606 to 1614, but generated little to no profit after the initial two years. In the 18th Century, the mine reopened to extract lead and zinc from deeper levels where it intersected the Petershill Limestone. During this period, a second vein to the north was also exploited. The large mound to the east of the road marks the main shaft on the north vein. The original workings were re-excavated between 1865 and 1898, but no further economic mineral deposits were found.
From Hilderston, we set off in search of the trig point on Ballencrieff Hill and from there followed farm tracks down to the entrance to the Rifle Range Quarry. The largest of the quarries, it fell into disuse towards the end of the 19th Century. In the latter part of the 19th Century and the early part of the 20th Century, the quarry formed part of a rifle range set up on the hillside to the south by a local shooting club known as the Mounteerie Long Range Rifle Club.
The Petershill Limestone is rich in fossils, including corals, crinoids and brachiopods. As we wandered up through the quarry, we spotted a few Gigantoproductids along with some coral. The limestone formed in a shallow tropical sea around an elevated volcanic land area to the north of Bathgate.
After taking a lunch break at the northern end of the quarry, we made our way back over Ballencrieff towards Hilderston, with a quick detour to look at the South Mine Quarry and Silvermine Quarry. In the western wall of the northernmost part of the Silvermine Quarry, there are two adits, which were excavated in the 19th Century to access two branches of the northern lead vein worked in the 18th Century. The quarry is currently flooded, and the adits are only visible when the water level recedes below the entrances. There are only a few visible remains of structures associated with the mining activities. Most, including a well-built masonry arch to the southeast of the flooded quarry, are presumed to be the remains of lime kilns associated with the South Mine Quarry lime works.
As well as the limestone quarries, there are several small quarries in dolerite at The Knock, Cairnpapple, Wairdlaw and Beecraigs. The dolerite would have been quarried for road, walling and building stone.
We made our way back to the start, initially retracing our steps, but then taking a different route through The Korean War Memorial up to Guthries Path (an old drove road that runs along the southern edge of Beecraigs Country Park and leads into the Riccarton Hills). We followed Guthrie's Path until we reached the lane at Wairdlaw, and then took several trails through the woodlands of Beecraigs Country Park back to Hillhouse Car Park.
All in all, we had a very enjoyable walk with lots to discover, even with the mist hanging around.
TerryC
Photo credits: TerryC, NatalieC, InaG, LizS
For more information, click on the following links:
