Dorset and East Devon Coast

Dorset and East Devon Coast comprises 8 sections along the south coast of Great Britain that are globally important for the study of paleontology and geomorphology. Rock formations are exposed from the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous era’s.

Great numbers of animal (marine and terrestrial) and plant fossils have been discovered here, as well as fossil dinosaur footprints. They include Dimorphodon macronyx, one of the earliest flying reptiles, and Scelidosaurus harrisoni, the “Charmouth dinosaur”.

Geomorphological fields of study include a great variety of landslides, and beach formation and evolution on a retreating coastline. Chesil Beach for example is one of the best-studied beaches in the world. And the Fleet Lagoon, enclosed by Chesil Beach, is one of the most important saline lagoons in Europe. The site shows excellent examples of landforms, including the natural arch at Durdle Door, the cove and limestone folding at Lulworth Cove and an island, the Isle of Portland.

Year	Decision	Comments
2001	Inscribed	Reasons for inscription

Visit July 1979

I was nine, when I visited Dorset with my parents. The pictures show the cliffs and caves, Storhead (a park?), a swannery and me with a monkey on my shoulder. What I remember (not on the pictures): eating fishsticks day after day, and playing with the children of the owners of the Bed & Breakfast we stayed in (I became a member of their Puffin-club).

Reviews

John Booth (New Zealand):

I also found extensive views of Chesil Beach from the causeway near Weymouth and from Littlesea.
The quarry area on Portland bill was very interesting too, with the cut stones ready to be lowered into barges, long since discontinued, for tranport and use in many London buildings.
Other interesting features along the cast were the cliffs at Bowleaze Cove, the red cliffs of Sidmouth and the Devon Cliffs at Exmouth.

Date posted: May 2010

Ian Cade (England):

I really quite enjoyed my trips to this piece of coastline, I have visited pretty regularly having family days out here when I was very young, but I have also made two trips to specifically tick it off as a visited site.
Whilst the reasons for its inscription may seem a little dull,
“The coastal exposures within the site provide an almost continuous sequence of Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous rock formations spanning the Mesozoic Era”
The reality is actually a little more interesting and you don’t have to be a budding geologist to have a nice trip here.
I visited the part of the coast stretching from the almost completely circular Lulworth Cove along to the Durdle Door (which is just the other side of the headland in the picture). It is a really nice walk, giving you a bit of exercise and fresh air as well as the ‘Highlights’ of the coast, well for the non expert anyway. Unfortunately after a few hours spent breaking open any rock we could see we were not able to uncover any fossils, but apparently this is one of the best places in the Europe to do it.
The little village of Lulworth has a great visitor centre and a fine fish and chip shop so makes a nice place to start and end in. And for those that share my silly obsession of finding the World Heritage symbol on a plaque then just to the west of the cove there is a really fine example of the symbol and the reasons for its inscription!
There are lots of lovely little towns and villages all along the coast, replete with B&B’s, campsites and small hotels, or if you wanted just a day trip to the coast the best place to base yourself would probably be Bournemouth which has a nice seaside charm, it also sits on the edge of the New Forest which is on the UK tentative list and has an airport used by budget airlines!
The coast is a nice place to get a dose of fresh air and rewards even the non experts who visit it.

Date posted: July 2006

Marie Indge (UK):
The views of Durdle Door and Portland Bay from the cliff tops are quite something and the walk down to the beaches at Durdle Door is certainly worth the effort. On a hot day the sea is so inviting and clean and on a stormy day, the atmosphere is simply electric.

Date posted: November 2005

Jeremy Tollpuddle (England):

This is the closest site to me but it has taken me a long tme to get around to see it. In the end i was very happy that i did. I visited the area around Lulworth Cove and the Durdle Door, which was a really fantastic way to spend an afternoon and the walk along the cliff top is highly advisable, it is a nice 2km (1.2 mile) walk, but it is up and down hill so provides a bit of a work out!!. the two Lulworth Villages were really pretty aswell. definatly worth a visit if you are in the area, amkes a nice afternoon away from nearby Bournmouth, which is a very nice places to visit aswell

Ronni B. (Saudi Arabia):
The Dorset Coast extends from outstanding coasts to vast cliffs displaying its internal beauty to those who visit.What i was told there many tourists were stunned by the fasinating creatons...=)

Bill Billsworthy (Australia):
I used to live in Dorset. It was a bit cold but I highly advise you to go there. Any information about the coastline would be greatly appreciated as I am doing a project on it at school. Thankyou.

Norman Day (UK):
I'm delighted to see that you have listed the spectacular Dorset and East Devon coastline so quickly and that you have visited this beautiful part of the world. More information on this coast can be found on www.jurassiccoast.com and information on the area can be found on www.westdorset.com The swannary is in the beautiful village of Abbotsbury on the Dorset coast. The famous Chesil beach, a major feature of this World Heritage Site, is best viewed from the hill above Abbotsbury village.

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In the News

» Planners who wrongly allowed a millionaire to build an enormous beach hut on Britain's World Heritage Coast have been officially rebuked. (20-10-2011).
» New fossil found in Jurassic Coast makes pliosaur biggest predator among the dinosaurs (28-10-2009).
» Dinosaur footprint dating back 135 million years stolen from Jurassic Coast (14-03-2009).
» The Jurassic Coast has exceeded expectations in the benefits that it has brought to the region since becoming a World Heritage Site (03-03-2009).
» Huge landslide hits Dorset's Jurassic Coast (08-05-2008).
» Clavell Tower saved from sea plunge. (26-02-2008).
» 130 million year old crocodile skull found on Dorset Jurassic Coast (28-11-2007).
» Pollution could wreak havoc on World Heritage coast (21-01-2007).

Links

» Stay & Do the World Heritage Coast of Dorset & East Devon.
» Jurassic Coast.