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This is a famous location for finding fossils on the Dorset coast. Some really big and important finds were made in the late 1800s. The sea is constantly washing more of the cliff down onto the beach providing new opportunities for that once-in-a-lifetime find.
I had hoped to get the focus good enough for geologists to look at individual rocks in the cliff, but as you can see, I didn't quite nail it. The next bay to the East (right) at Seatown is here: http://tinyurl.com/m3f8ap. |
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The beaches around Charmouth and Lyme Regis are world famous for fossils. I found my first ammonite here in 1973 and became a geologist as a result!
I have planted 10 fossils in this view but there are many more. This is just how you find them, lying on the beach! There are ammonites, belemnites, shells, trace fossils, crinoids (can anyone find the star shaped stalk?) and ichthyosaur vertebrae. There are also minerals; calcite and 'beef' calcite together with flint and chert. The sea does all the hard work, washing away the soft clays to leave the well preserved fossils scattered across the beach for people to find. People can take these fossils away because if they are not collected, they would simply be destroyed by the very process that uncovers them. Every year there are fossils, and more fossils! The Charmouth Heritage Coast Centre, Lyme Regis Museum and a number of private individuals lead guided walks and this is the best way to get a start. Please stay away from the cliffs and landslides – rock falls can happen at any time while the landslides contain mudflows and quicksand, it is all too easy to get stuck. Rough weather is the best time to go collecting; this gigapan was taken during excellent fossil collecting weather, wind and rain! But you also need to check the tides and head out along the beach as the tide is going out. A fossil collecting code operates in this area. Visit www.charmouth.org for more details |
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This is a famous location for finding fossils on the Dorset coast. Sadly something went wrong and the image is not well-focused. If that was not enough, the white balance was set to incandescent light. I attempted to make the resulting blue image warmer but the colours are quite wrong. The sun was setting and all the rocks should have gold/rust colour.
The dark "soil" above the beach on the left is some sort of soft black rock. Erosion from the sea has cause a huge landslip here. For a much better shot and geological information see http://share.gigapan.org/viewGigapan.php?id=13305. You can see the next bay East (right) here: http://tinyurl.com/m3f8ap. |
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The Centre is located right on the beach at Charmouth. This part of the Dorset and East Devon Coast World Heritage Site (the Jurassic Coast) is famous for fossils and the Centre aims to help people explore the geology and fossils, together with marine life. Expert fossil wardens are on hand to help people discover fossils and geology for themselves. Guided walks run regularly but hope for rough weather as this is the best time to find fossils!
For more information visit www.charmouth.org |
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The view from Cains Folly on Stonebarrow which is part of the Golden Cap Estate, owned and managed by the National Trust. |