II.

Land and Resources

In the north of the county are bleak moorlands that form the southern tip of the Pennines, and which are part of the Peak District National Park. These uplands, rising to a height of 550 m (1,800 ft), are formed of grit and limestone. Evidence of the faults and folds that formed the hills in this area can be made out distinctly on Apes Tor, a rock face in the gorge of the River Manifold. A short distance further south is the coalfield surrounding Stoke-on-Trent, consisting of sandstones, clays, and shales, interspersed with seams of coal. The central agricultural area is undulating, with underlying sandstone and marl. Cannock Chase, in the south of the county, is a forest with some heathland areas. It is based on pebble strata, with hills rising to a height of 180 to 210 m (600 to 700 ft).

The main Staffordshire river is the Trent, the third-longest river in England, which rises on Biddulph Moor in the north of the county near the Cheshire border, and flows south-east until it reaches Burton upon Trent, where it becomes navigable. Its tributaries include the Dove, the Blythe, and the Sow, on which Stafford stands. The Stafford and Worcester Canal and the Trent and Mersey Canal (Grand Junction Canal) cross the county.

Kinver Edge, in the far south of the county, is a sandstone ridge covered in wood and heath, from where there are spectacular views across Shropshire and the west Midlands. There are caves in the sandstone that may have been used by prehistoric peoples. The Countryside Agency has designated Cannock Chase as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The Staffordshire Way, a path for walkers, stretches from Kinver Edge on the Hereford-Worcester boundary northward to Mow Cop, and under various names reaches the northern county border with Derbyshire and Cheshire.

Staffordshire has a moderate, temperate climate. Average annual rainfall over the county is about 760 to 1,000 mm (30 to 40 in).