106 GEOLOGY OF THE ISLE OF WIGHT 



Shanklin and Wroxall, Gat Cliff above Appuldurcombe, the 

 fine wall of Gore Cliff above Rocken End, and the line of 

 cliffs above the Undercliff . To the Gault Clay is due the 

 formation of the Undercliff the terrace of tumbled strata 

 running for miles well above the sea, but sheltered by an 

 upper cliff on the north, and in parts overgrown with 

 picturesque woods. The impervious Gault clay throws 

 out springs around the downs, which form the headwaters 

 of the various Island streams. The upper division of the 

 Lower Greensand, the Sandrock, forms picturesque un- 

 dulating foothills, often wooded, as at Apsecastle, and at 

 Appuldurcombe and Godshill Park. On a spur of the 

 Sandrock stands Godshill Church, a landmark visible 

 for miles around. At Atherfield we have a fine line of 

 cliffs of Lower Greensand, while the Wealden Strata on to 

 Brook form lower and softer cliffs. 



To the north of the central downs the Tertiary sands 

 and clays, often covered by Plateau gravel, form an 

 extended slope towards the Solent shore, much of it well 

 wooded, and presenting a charming landscape seen from 

 the tops of the downs. This slope of Tertiary strata is 

 deeply cut into by streams, which form ravines and 

 picturesque creeks, as Wootton Creek, 200 feet below the 

 level of the surounding country. While much of the 

 Island coast is a line of vertical cliff, the northern shores 

 are of gentler aspect, wooded slopes reaching to the 

 water's edge, or meadow land sloping gradually to the 

 sea level. Opposite the mouths of streams are banks of 

 shingle and sand dunes, forming the spits locally known as 

 " dovers." Some of these, in particular, St. Helen's Spit, 

 afford interesting hunting grounds for the botanist. 



The great variety of soil and situation renders the Isle 

 of Wight a place of interest to the botanist. We have 

 the plants of chalk downs, of the sea cliff and shore, of the 

 woods and meadows, of lane and hedgerow, and of the 

 marshes. The old villages of the Island, often occupying 



