Earth movements caused the rocks to fracture, thrusting the land upwards. Mineral-rich solutions bubbled into the cracks that appeared in the limestone, forming veins of lead and silver. The softer rocks on the surface gradually eroded leaving the limestone exposed on the higher ground, forming the limestone plateau that we see today.
Both above and below ground are typical features of limestone areas with outcrops of bare jointed rock, fossil beds, thin soils, and little surface water. The limestone is dissolved by the carbon dioxide in rain water as it passes through fissures resulting in the formation of caverns and underground lakes, most notably the enormous undergound lake in Powell’s Lode Cavern, beneath Rhosesmor.