The Helderberg Escarpment, also known as the Helderberg Mountains, is an
escarpment
An escarpment is a steep slope or long cliff that forms as a result of faulting or erosion and separates two relatively level areas having different elevations.
Due to the similarity, the term '' scarp'' may mistakenly be incorrectly used inte ...
in eastern
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
New York may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* ...
, United States, roughly west of the city of
Albany. The escarpment is the northeastern extremity of the Allegheny Plateau. It rises steeply from the
Hudson Valley
The Hudson Valley or Hudson River Valley comprises the valley of the Hudson River and its adjacent communities in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. The region stretches from the Capital District (New York), Capital District includi ...
below, with an elevation difference of approximately 700 feet (from 400 to 1,100 feet) over a horizontal distance of approximately 2,000 feet. Much of the escarpment is within
John Boyd Thacher State Park
John Boyd Thacher State Park is a state park located 15 miles (24 km) southwest of Albany, New York, near Voorheesville, in Albany County, New York, Albany County on State New York State Route 157, Route 157. Located mostly atop the Helderb ...
, and has views of the Hudson Valley and the
Capital District
A capital district, capital region, or capital territory is normally a specially designated administrative division where a country's seat of government is located. As such, in a federal model of government, no state or territory has any politic ...
.
Geology
The escarpment is part of the
Onondaga Escarpment
The Onondaga Limestone is a group of hard limestones and dolomites of Devonian age that forms geographic features in some areas in which it outcrops; in others, especially its Southern Ontario portion, the formation can be less prominent as a lo ...
and is geologically related to the
Niagara Escarpment
The Niagara Escarpment is an approximately discontinuous, arc-shaped but generally northward-facing escarpment, or cuesta, in Canada and the United States. The escarpment begins south of Lake Ontario and circumscribes the top of the Great Lake ...
,
and the
Black River Escarpment.
The rocks exposed in the escarpment date back to the
Middle Ordovician
The Ordovician ( ) is a geologic period and system, the second of six periods of the Paleozoic Era, and the second of twelve periods of the Phanerozoic Eon. The Ordovician spans 41.6 million years from the end of the Cambrian Period Ma (milli ...
to
Early Devonian
The Early Devonian is the first of three Epoch (geology), epochs comprising the Devonian period, corresponding to the Lower Devonian Series (stratigraphy), series. It lasted from and began with the Lochkovian Stage , which was followed by the Pr ...
.
In 1934 the ''
Schenectady Gazette
''The Daily Gazette,'' from 1902 to 1989 ''Schenectady Gazette,'' is an independent, family-owned daily newspaper published in Schenectady, New York, Schenectady, New York state, New York. ''The Daily Gazette'' also owns and operates ''The Amste ...
'' described how the
Tory Cave, one of the
limestone caves
Limestone is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Limestone forms when t ...
to be found in the escarpment, routinely had
stalagmites
A stalagmite (, ; ; )
is a type of rock formation that rises from the floor of a cave due to the accumulation of material deposited on the floor from ceiling drippings. Stalagmites are typically composed of calcium carbonate, but may consist o ...
of ice in the springtime.
Transmission towers
Most of the Capital District's television and FM radio stations installed their
transmission
Transmission or transmit may refer to:
Science and technology
* Power transmission
** Electric power transmission
** Transmission (mechanical device), technology that allows controlled application of power
*** Automatic transmission
*** Manual tra ...
towers
A tower is a tall Nonbuilding structure, structure, taller than it is wide, often by a significant factor. Towers are distinguished from guyed mast, masts by their lack of guy-wires and are therefore, along with tall buildings, self-supporting ...
at the escarpment to take advantage of its high ground. In 2003 a tower was built on the highest point of the escarpment, for transmitting digital television and FM radio signals.
History
Dutch settlers first homesteaded the plateau above the escarpment in the 17th century. Helleberg is a Dutch name meaning "clear mountain".
The
Open Space Institute The Open Space Institute (OSI) is a conservation organization that protects land for clean drinking water, public recreation, healthy communities, wildlife habitat, and climate protection. Established in 1974, OSI achieves its goals through land acq ...
and the Mohawk Hudson Land Conservancy are working to keep escarpment lands from being developed for housing or industrial uses.
[
]
Farmers farming land near the escarpment can apply to sell their development rights, to help make sure that land is not developed. In 2003 the Ten Eyck family, owners of the Indian Ladder Farm just below the escarpment, sold the development rights to their farm for $848,000. Two real estate assessment were done, one on the value of the property as a working farm, the other on its value as a potential site for urban development. The Ten Eycks were paid the difference in return for agreeing to keep the property as a working farm. They were the first property owners to sell their development rights in
Albany County.
See also
*
List of escarpments
A list of escarpments follows below.
Planets Earth
Africa
* Elgeyo Escarpment (Kenyan Rift Valley, Great Rift Valley)
* Great Escarpment, Southern Africa
**Including the Drakensberg and God's Window in Mpumalanga's Eastern Escarpment
* Bandiag ...
References
Landforms of New York (state)
Escarpments of the United States
Landforms of Albany County, New York
Mountains of Albany County, New York
Mountains of New York (state)
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