The Wildeshausen Geest ( German : Wildeshauser Geest ) is part of the northwest Germany's geest ridge, that begins near Meppen on the river Ems with the Hümmling , is broken by the Weser depression, continues with the Osterholz Geest and reaches the marshes of Kehdingen by the river Elbe with the ridges of the Wingst and Stade Geest . It gives its name to the eponymous nature park.
19-571: The term geest is a substantivisation of the Low German adjective güst , which means "dry and infertile". It is an Old Drift landscape, characterised by the sandy depositions of the Ice Age . In the depressions between them are wet meadows and, where drainage is poor, bogs. To the north the Wildeshausen Geest borders on the coastal marshes , to the south on a belt of wetland , which includes
38-595: A cliff or rock face is an area of rock which has a general angle defined by the vertical, or nearly vertical. Cliffs are formed by the processes of weathering and erosion , with the effect of gravity . Cliffs are common on coasts, in mountainous areas, escarpments and along rivers. Cliffs are usually composed of rock that is resistant to weathering and erosion. The sedimentary rocks that are most likely to form cliffs include sandstone , limestone , chalk , and dolomite . Igneous rocks such as granite and basalt also often form cliffs. An escarpment (or scarp)
57-402: A cliff peters out at the end of a ridge, with mushroom rocks or other types of rock columns remaining. Coastal erosion may lead to the formation of sea cliffs along a receding coastline. The British Ordnance Survey distinguishes between around most cliffs (continuous line along the topper edge with projections down the face) and outcrops (continuous lines along lower edge). Cliff comes from
76-534: A moon of Uranus. The following is an incomplete list of cliffs of the world. Above Sea Above Land Several big granite faces in the Arctic region vie for the title of 'highest vertical drop on Earth', but reliable measurements are not always available. The possible contenders include (measurements are approximate): Mount Thor , Baffin Island , Canada; 1,370 m (4,500 ft) total; top 480 m (1600 ft)
95-406: Is a cliff or not and also about how much of a certain slope to count as a cliff. For example, given a truly vertical rock wall above a very steep slope, one could count just the rock wall or the combination. Listings of cliffs are thus inherently uncertain. Some of the largest cliffs on Earth are found underwater. For example, an 8,000 m drop over a 4,250 m span can be found at a ridge sitting inside
114-472: Is a type of cliff formed by the movement of a geologic fault , a landslide, or sometimes by rock slides or falling rocks which change the differential erosion of the rock layers. Most cliffs have some form of scree slope at their base. In arid areas or under high cliffs, they are generally exposed jumbles of fallen rock. In areas of higher moisture, a soil slope may obscure the talus . Many cliffs also feature tributary waterfalls or rock shelters . Sometimes
133-521: Is about 1.7, corresponding to an angle of 60 degrees, and Mitre Peak is similar. A more vertical drop into the sea can be found at Maujit Qaqarssuasia (also known as the ' Thumbnail ') which is situated in the Torssukátak fjord area at the very tip of South Greenland and drops 1,560 m near-vertically. Considering a truly vertical drop, Mount Thor on Baffin Island in Arctic Canada is often considered
152-411: Is an Old Drift landscape, characterised by the sandy depositions of the Ice Age . In the depressions between the raised flats are wet meadows and, where drainage is poor, bogs . Geest lands are made up of moraines and sandurs . They are almost always next to flat marshlands , the geest being higher and better protected against flood but, compared to the marsh, with poor soil for agriculture. Where
171-505: Is overhanging. This is commonly regarded as being the largest vertical drop on Earth [1] ot:leapyear at 1,250 m (4,100 ft). of Baffin Island , rises 4,300 ft above the flat frozen fjord, although the lower portion of the face breaks from the vertical wall with a series of ledges and buttresses. Other notable cliffs include: Above Sea Above Land Above Sea Above Land Submarine Above Sea Above Land Cliff landforms provide unique habitat niches to
190-487: Is separated by hedges. The woods are partly mixed, partly coniferous. The proportion of woodland is highest in the Wardenburg – Twistringen – Syke triangle, which includes the towns of Wildeshausen and Harpstedt . Geest Geest ( German pronunciation: [ɡeːst] , Dutch : geestgrond [ˈɣeːstxrɔnt] , Danish : gest [ˈke̝ˀst] ) is a type of landform , slightly raised above
209-714: The Großes Moor , the Wietingsmoor [ de ] and the Sulinger Moor , which reaches as far as the Wiehen Hills . The geest plateaux lie mainly at an elevation of 50 to 60 metres above sea level ( Normalnull ), but reach elevations even as high as 80 metres in the southeast Nienburg , an area which is outside the Nature Park itself. The striking eastern edge of the geest rises between Hoya and Syke about 40 metres above
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#1732868769764228-564: The Kermadec Trench . According to some sources, the highest cliff in the world, about 1,340 m high, is the east face of Great Trango in the Karakoram mountains of northern Pakistan. This uses a fairly stringent notion of cliff, as the 1,340 m figure refers to a nearly vertical headwall of two stacked pillars; adding in a very steep approach brings the total drop from the East Face precipice to
247-662: The Weser Lowlands , west of Syke the land is still about 20 to 30 metres high. On the southern perimeter there is a height difference of 20 metres in places, but often no difference at all. The larger waterbodies of the Wildeshausen Geest flow from south to north. Apart from the Hunte coming from the Wiehen Hills, they are rivers that rise in the geest itself, especially the Delme , Klosterbach and Hache . The valleys of these small rivers given
266-505: The Old English word clif of essentially the same meaning, cognate with Dutch, Low German, and Old Norse klif 'cliff'. These may in turn all be from a Romance loanword into Primitive Germanic that has its origins in the Latin forms clivus / clevus ("slope" or "hillside"). Given that a cliff does not need to be exactly vertical, there can be ambiguity about whether a given slope
285-522: The geest borders the sea directly, sand cliffs exist. The oldest settlements in Northern Germany and Denmark lie on geest, since it provided better protection against storm floods . Many important towns are on the boundary between geest and marshland where people could enjoy the flood-protection of the geest but still use the much more fertile soil in the marsh. Examples of regions characterised by geest are: Cliff In geography and geology,
304-536: The highest at 1370 m (4500 ft) high in total (the top 480 m (1600 ft) is overhanging), and is said to give it the longest vertical drop on Earth at 1,250 m (4,100 ft). However, other cliffs on Baffin Island, such as Polar Sun Spire in the Sam Ford Fjord , or others in remote areas of Greenland may be higher. The highest cliff in the solar system may be Verona Rupes , an approximately 20 km (12 mi) high fault scarp on Miranda ,
323-474: The landscape a characteristic division and rolling nature. On the northern edge of the geest between Ganderkesee and Barrien [ de ] they bend towards the east. Small streams on the eastern rim of the geest gather themselves into the northwards-flowing lowland rivers such as the Süstedter Bach. The present pattern of land use forms a mosaic of woods, arable fields and grassland, which in places
342-432: The nearby Dunge Glacier to nearly 2,000 m. The location of the world's highest sea cliffs depends also on the definition of 'cliff' that is used. Guinness World Records states it is Kalaupapa, Hawaii , at 1,010 m high. Another contender is the north face of Mitre Peak , which drops 1,683 m to Milford Sound , New Zealand. These are subject to a less stringent definition, as the average slope of these cliffs at Kaulapapa
361-588: The surrounding countryside, that occurs on the plains of Northern Germany , the Northern Netherlands and Denmark . It is a landscape of sandy and gravelly soils formed as a glacial outwash plain and now usually mantled by a heathland vegetation on the glacial deposits left behind after the last ice age during the Pleistocene epoch. The term geest is a substantivisation of the Low German adjective güst , which means "dry and infertile". It
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