INCREDIBLE scenery is one of the things this county is best known for, drawing in visitors from far and wide to enjoy its very own natural wonders.

It is that scenery – and its journey into existence – that is the basis for a new book called 'Herefordshire's Rocks and Scenery: A Geology of the County'.

Published by Almeley-based Logaston Press and written by members of the geology section of the Woolhope Naturalists' Field Club, the book aims to explain how, where and when the various rocks that underlie Herefordshire were formed and the forces which subsequently worked upon them to result in the scenery we enjoy today.

It says: "Why, for example, does the Old Red Sandstone, the main rock of the county, have different qualities in different places? How have the various rocks been brought into juxtaposition through plate tectonics and fault lines?

"How, in more recent times, did Ice Age glaciers scour and shape the landscape, forcing rivers to change course and creating hummocky scenery through moraines deposited by ice moving from Wales and the north?"

The book, edited by John Payne, also looks at why the Malverns are so prominent and different in their outline to anywhere else in the area.

The book features 200 colour photographs, drawings and tables and explores the various geological period and the processes at work.

Aerial photographs also serve to show the effect on the landscape along with an explanation of what can be seen in the faces of quarries across the county.

Visit logastonpress.co.uk to order a copy of the book.