Cheltenham Badlands is a small example of Badlands

Badlands

A badlands is a type of dry terrain where softer sedimentary rocks and clay-rich soils have been extensively eroded by wind and water. It can resemble malpaís, a terrain of volcanic rock. Canyons, ravines, gullies, hoodoos and other such geological forms are common in badlands. They are often...

 formation in Caledon, Ontario

Caledon, Ontario

Caledon is a town in the Regional Municipality of Peel in the Greater Toronto Area of Ontario, Canada. In terms of land use, Caledon is somewhat urban, though it is primarily rural in nature...

.

The site is located on the southside of Old Base Line Road (between Ontario Highway 10 and Creditview Road/Peel Regional Road 12) and features exposed and eroded Queenston Shale. The formation is located along the Niagara Escarpment

Niagara Escarpment

The Niagara Escarpment is a long escarpment, or cuesta, in the United States and Canada that runs westward from New York State, through Ontario, Michigan, Wisconsin and Illinois...

.

History

The formation was exposed by poor farming practices in the 1930s that led to soil erosion and exposed the underlying shale.

The formation is mostly red in colour due to iron oxide deposits with some faint green streaks due to ground water percolation changing the red iron oxide into green iron oxide.

Conservation

Once farmland, it was purchased by the Ontario Heritage Foundation in 2000 and managed by the Bruce Trail Association. Development is also restricted on the site by the Niagara Escarpment Commission

Niagara Escarpment Commission

The Niagara Escarpment Commission, founded in June 1973 by the Niagara Escarpment Planning and Development Act, is an agency of the Ontario government. Its mission is to "conserve the UNESCO-designated Niagara Escarpment World Biosphere Reserve as a continuous natural environment and scenic,...

The formation is located along the Niagara Escarpment

Niagara Escarpment

The Niagara Escarpment is a long escarpment, or cuesta, in the United States and Canada that runs westward from New York State, through Ontario, Michigan, Wisconsin and Illinois...

 and Bruce Trail

Bruce Trail

The Bruce Trail is a hiking trail in southern and central Ontario, Canada.-General:The trail follows the edge of the Niagara Escarpment, one of the thirteen UNESCO World Biosphere Reserves in Canada, for almost...

 and is part or near various geographically important area of Southern Ontario

Southern Ontario

Southern Ontario is a region of the province of Ontario, Canada that lies south of the French River and Algonquin Park. Depending on the inclusion of the Parry Sound and Muskoka districts, its surface area would cover between 14 to 15% of the province. It is the southernmost region of...

:

• Ontario Greenbelt
  Greenbelt (Golden Horseshoe)
  The Greenbelt is a permanently protected area of green space, farmland, forests, wetlands, and watersheds, located in Southern Ontario, Canada. It surrounds a significant portion of Canada's most populated and fastest-growing area - The Golden Horseshoe....
  
  
• just outside of Oak Ridges Moraine
  Oak Ridges Moraine
  The Oak Ridges Moraine is an ecologically important geological landform in the Mixedwood Plains of south-central Ontario, Canada. The moraine covers a geographic area of between Caledon and Rice Lake, near Peterborough...
  
  

Located within the Niagara Escarpment

Niagara Escarpment

The Niagara Escarpment is a long escarpment, or cuesta, in the United States and Canada that runs westward from New York State, through Ontario, Michigan, Wisconsin and Illinois...

, the site is by default part of the local UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve.

There are concerns by conservationists that increased visitors to the area will cause damage to the formation and suggest closure or restriction of access to the site. Trails leading from the site are now closed.

Parking is limited to a small area on the south side of Olde Base Line Road with restrictions beyond and on the other side of the road.