The cliffs at Holwick Scar developed over time as the environment in this area has changed. The cliffs are formed of a hard rock called dolerite. This formed from molten rock (magma) that rose from deep within the Earth about 295 million years ago. The magma was injected into the rocks forming a thick sheet known as the Whin Sill.

Natural processes have since altered the cliffs:

• during the last ‘Ice Age’, around 11,500 years ago, ice sheets flowed across the dale. The ice contained boulders, gravel and sand that scoured
  the land surface as they passed, eroding areas such as these cliffs
• When the ice sheets melted, further erosion occurred from the large volumes of meltwater produced
• The rock debris, or scree, at the foot of the cliffs has formed since the ice melted. It continues to build up today, as rock fragments are broken
  off by the alternate freezing and thawing of water in cracks in the rock.

Please note that there is no public access to the base of the Scar.