::''This page is about the
geomorphological feature. For other uses of the term see
Nordic skating or
Csilla (
Star Wars
''Star Wars'' is an American epic space opera multimedia franchise created by George Lucas, which began with the eponymous 1977 film and quickly became a worldwide pop-culture phenomenon. The franchise has been expanded into various film ...
planet).''
An iceway is a linear channel eroded through bedrock by the passage of glacial ice. The term was coined by
geographer
A geographer is a physical scientist, social scientist or humanist whose area of study is geography, the study of Earth's natural environment and human society, including how society and nature interacts. The Greek prefix "geo" means "earth" a ...
Ronald Kay Gresswell in a paper in 1964 in relation to the origins of the
Dee and
Mersey estuaries on the boundary of northwest
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...
and northeast
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
. Gresswell identified several such sub-parallel features running in a northwest to southeast direction from
Liverpool Bay through
Merseyside
Merseyside ( ) is a metropolitan and ceremonial county in North West England, with a population of 1.38 million. It encompasses both banks of the Mersey Estuary and comprises five metropolitan boroughs: Knowsley, St Helens, Sefton, Wirral ...
into
Cheshire
Cheshire ( ) is a ceremonial and historic county in North West England, bordered by Wales to the west, Merseyside and Greater Manchester to the north, Derbyshire to the east, and Staffordshire and Shropshire to the south. Cheshire's coun ...
. The Dee estuary and its landward continuation south of
Chester
Chester is a cathedral city and the county town of Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Dee, close to the English–Welsh border. With a population of 79,645 in 2011,"2011 Census results: People and Population Profile: Chester Loca ...
as far as
Farndon along with the Mersey estuary are the two largest iceways discerned in this region. Further iceways were identified underlying the lower
Gowy valley and the Alt-Ditton depression east of
Liverpool
Liverpool is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the List of English districts by population, 10th largest English district by population and its E ...
. Each of these have also been referred to as
tunnel valleys.
[R K Gresswell, 1964 Origins of the Dee and Mersey Estuaries]
References
Glaciology
Glacial landforms
{{glaciology-stub