High Rocks
| Site of Special Scientific Interest | |
 Location within East Sussex
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| Area of Search | East Sussex |
|---|---|
| Grid reference | TQ560382 |
| Coordinates | 51°07′19″N 0°13′48″E / 51.122°N 0.230°ECoordinates: 51°07′19″N 0°13′48″E / 51.122°N 0.230°E |
| Interest | Geological |
| Area | 3.2 ha (7.9 acres) |
| Notification | 1953 |
| Natural England website | |
High Rocks is a 3.2 hectare (7.9 acre) geological Site of Special Scientific Interest 3 km (1.9 mi) west of Tunbridge Wells in East Sussex, England. The site was notified in 1986 under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, and is an important geomorphological site for sandstone weathering features.
The location was formed when a melting ice sheet at the end of the last ice age uncovered hardened silt deposited when the area was part of the Wealden Lake. There are traces of Middle Stone Age and Iron Age residents, including a 1st-century A.D. fort guarding against the Roman invasion.
After King James II visited Tunbridge Wells and made the woodland a resort in the 17th century, High Rocks became a tourist attraction which also offered a maze, a bowling green, gambling rooms and cold baths. The Aerial Walk, a series of bridges linking the tops of the crags, was built in the 19th century.
A halt served by the local railway was established in 1907, and was used until 1952. The Spa Valley Railway, a heritage railway, now connects the High Rocks pub beyond the High Rocks turnstiles to Tunbridge Wells, Groombridge and Eridge (on the London-Uckfield line of Southern Railway).
High Rocks is a key geomorphological site for sandstone weathering features developed on the highest cliffs in the Weald. The Ardingly Sandstone has suffered gentle deformation, and joints have opened out to form spectacular gulls (tension cracks) which are wide enough in places for a person to enter.
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Wikipedia