The Stołowe Mountains—A Unique Sandstone Tableland

The Stołowe Mountains, underlain by alternating sandstones and fine-grained rocks of Upper Cretaceous age, are a classic stepped tablelandTableland, rising above the surrounding terrains by some 450 m. Albeit quite small in terms of spatial extent, the mountain range showcases a number of interesting geomorphic features, including prominent mesasMesa and plateausPlateau, rock labyrinthsRock labyrinth, pedestal rocksPedestal rock, solitary bouldersBoulder and sandstoneSandstone canyonsCanyon. Since the morphology of these landforms is strictly associated with bedrock geology, the tablelandTableland represents one of the finest examples of rock control in geomorphology on the territory of Poland. While the time frames of landscape evolution in the Stołowe Mountains remain unknown, the recent decade has brought about a considerable advance in understanding the major geomorphic forces responsible for the retreat of plateauPlateau-bounding escarpments. In particular, the role of processes working at depth, which are thought to have primarily contributed to the non-catastrophic evolution of cliff lines and the development of ruiniform reliefRuiniform relief, has been recognized. The outstanding natural beauty of the area resulted in a long history of tourism development within the time span of more than 200 years.