Clay and sand particles gently float around and are deposited in layers on the seabed. But suddenly the sluggish calm is over. Enormous forces push in on the sea from the north and south and push the layers together - the Rhenish Slate Mountains are formed. Although 300 million years ago, we can still see the result of these processes today on the demolition wall of this old quarry: The layers that once lay flat on top of each other now appear as so-called folds in the upper part of the wall in an undulating form. But that's not all! Around 65 million years ago, the mountains began to uplift.
Where particularly strong forces are at work, the folded layers are broken up into individual clods. This process can also be seen here: below the folds, a diagonal line cuts through the wall and marks the point at which one clod pushed over another. And that was still not all! The uplift of the Eifel Mountains triggers further processes in the earth's interior: magma rises and volcanoes form! If the clays and sands only wanted to rest, everything turned out quite differently. First folded together, then pushed on top of each other and finally perforated by volcanic vents and covered in ash.
Tip: While you can see the “foundations” of the Eifel volcanoes here, you will find many interesting witnesses to volcanism along the German Volcano Route.
