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Between
Exmouth and Swanage, you can travel through 185 million
years of the earth's history
Exmouth
forms part of the UNESCO designated Devon Heritage
Coast. Start your exploration of this beautiful coastline
at Orcombe Point in Exmouth.
The Dorset and East Devon Coast has been officially
ranked alongside the Great Barrier Reef and the Grand
Canyon as one of the natural wonders of the world.
The
coast provides a walk through time of 185 million
years of the earth's history and stretches from Orcombe
Point at Exmouth in Devon to Old Harry Rocks in Dorset.
See
20 photos of the World Heritage Site Cliff walk from
Exmouth
The
rocks dip gently to the east and as a result the oldest
are found in the west, around Exmouth and Sidmouth
with progressively younger rocks forming the cliffs
to the east. Exmouth is important as it represents
the earliest geology of the entire coast.
Due
to tilting and erosion the oldest exposed rocks at
Exmouth are from the Triassic period. they are magnificent
red sandstone cliffs, at Orcombe Point and extend
for several miles eastwards. Indeed, the coast contains
a virtually complete sequence through some 200 million
years of geological time.
Orcombe
Point in Exmouth. This part of the cliff
line marks the start of the World Heritage Site and
is signified by a ‘Geoneedle’ (a pointed stone needle).
Here the rocks are 250 million years old and red in
colour. This is due to the desert environment that
existed in that area. These rocks show the Triassic
period and are the oldest section of the coastline.
Exmouth,
Geoneedle, Coast Path Walk
After an initial walk along the sea front there is
a short climb to the coast path and a visit to the
Geoneedle which marks the western boundary of the
"Jurassic Coast". After a section along
the coastal path the walk can go inland to intercept
the Budleigh Salterton/ Exmouth cycle way providing
an easy walk back to the outskirts of Exmouth (near
Sandy Bay). OR continue along the coast path up to
the fantastic views near the Golf Course before Budliegh
Salterton.
Budleigh
Salterton
The high cliffs you first encounter here are famous
as they contain the Budleigh Salterton Pebble beds.
The beach here is made entirely of pebbles eroded
from local cliffs. The pebbles were formed and transported
in one of the giant rivers that flowed in this area
into the Triassic dessert about 240 million years
ago.
Budleigh
pebbles are unique and often a oval shape and are
composed of very hard materials so htey survive being
transported by the waves and can be seen all along
the coastline from Slapton to Hastings in Kent.
River
Otter
Here the Budleigh pebbles have dropped below the sea
and the Otter Sandstone forms the cliffs from here
through to Sidmouth. These sands also formed in vast
rivers that flowed to the north. Reptiles, the ancestors
to the dinosaurs lived on the banks of these rivers.
The
cliffs from Exmouth are from the Triassic Period -
250-200 million years ago. The Triassic period begins
in the wake of the greatest mass extinction of all
time. Only about 4 per cent of known species survive
from the preceding Permian period. The world is a
single land mass called Pangaea and what is now the
Jurassic Coast lies at the arid centre of this super-continent.
Mountains to the south and west are the source of
huge rivers that wash stones across the area before
their waters evaporate. The period is characterised
by red-coloured sandstone and mud.
By
the end of the period the continental plates had started
to drift apart. There also emerge the dinosaurs, pterosaurs
(flying reptiles), marine reptiles and crocodiles,
turtles and mammals.
Fossils:
Rare and difficult to find
Reptiles and amphibians such as the Rhynchosaurs
Plant remains
Beaches:
Orcombe Point, Budleigh Salterton, Ladram Bay, Littlecombe
Shoot, Jacob's Ladder, Sidmouth
See
20 photos of the World Heritage Site Cliff walk from
Exmouth
The
Prince of Wales attended a reception and presentation
to celebrate the Unesco World Heritage Site award
and unveiled a commemorative monument at Orcombe Point,
Exmouth, Devon
The
Prince who came by helicopter was met the Mayor Cllr.
Pat Graham and others from Exmouth, East Devon District
Council and Devon Country Council officials. Crowds
of people came to watch on this glorious sunny October
day on the cliffs at Orcombe Point.
See
photos: HRH Prince Charles and guests
including the
Mayor.
See
photos: The Monument including
2 larger photos.
See
photos: HRH Prince Charles, crowd and Helicopter
5 photos.
DORSET
AND DEVON SUCCESSFULLY BID FOR WORLD HERITAGE STATUS
The
Dorset and East Devon Coast has been officially ranked
alongside the Great Barrier Reef and the Grand Canyon
as one of the natural wonders of the world.
UNESCO
has named the 95 mile stretch of coast a natural World
Heritage Site and "an outstanding example, representing
a major stage of earth's history and the record of
life". This is the culmination of seven years
of hard work by Dorset and Devon County Councils and
the Dorset Coast Forum.
The
decision, taken by UNESCO's World Heritage Committee
in Helsinki on 13 December, 2001, puts the coast on
the world map as one of the most geologically important,
and accessible, places on the planet. The coast provides
a walk through time of 185 million years of the earth's
history and stretches from Orcombe Point in Devon
to Old Harry Rocks in Dorset.
A
great deal of work has already been carried out by
the bidding team to ensure the long term protection
and promotion of the site. It is hoped that World
Heritage status will act as a trigger for bringing
in grant money and for encouraging out of season geo-tourism.
Jurassic
Coast:
The now famous Jurassic Coastline of East Devon and
Dorset, as well as boasting a spectacular scenery
of coastal walks, towns, beaches and attractions,
is also World renowned as being the titled “home
of geology”. The history of this scientific
aspect of the coast dates back to the 17th and 18th
century, when the many fossils of Lyme Bay first began
to be recognised as being of importance. As interest
in the sciences grew, notable people of the academic
world visited, lived and studied the many and varied
geologic formations along the coast. To name a few:
James Hutton (1726-1797), cited as “the father
of modern geology”; William Smith (1769- 1839),
made the first geological maps of Britain; and Sir
Henry De La Be Beche (1796- 1855), founder of the
British Geological Survey. When you consider that
during this era of history, the British Empire was
at the forefront of science and discovery, you can
begin to appreciate the significant effect this small
part of the World has had on the growth and advances
of human civilisation.
The
reasons that this area did, and still does, attract
interest from so many geological bodies is not only
down to the spectacular scenery and abundance of welcoming
hostelries- it is also because the site contains an
extensive range of textbook examples of geological
landforms, features processes and formations, which
in turn tell the story of Planet Earth from nearly
200 million years ago. Add all this evidence of our
Globe’s history with the mix of today’s
marine and coastal wildlife and the formula for a
World class area of special interest is complete.
The
folklore and local history of the Jurassic Coast is
an added appeal to the area. A local lady to the Dorset
coast, Mary Anning (1799-1847), during her life manage
to take the acclaim of becoming the Worlds first fossil
hunter. The lore relates she could be found wandering
the shores around Lyme Bay seeking new fossils for
her collection. Braving all conditions of the seasons
for an apparently worthless pastime, people considered
her behaviour eccentric and she tended to live a secluded
life. As her collection grew, so did the size and
magnificence of the fossils that she was finding.
Inevitably the word spread and local, then national,
papers picked up the stories of her strange and unusual
finds. Her collection was soon recognised as being
the largest in the World at that time, and Mary Anning
was forever to be known as “the most famous
fossil hunter in the World ever.”
World
Heritage Status as follows:
The
coastal exposures within the nominated Site provide
a near-continuous, accessible sequence of rocks that
documents almost 185 million years of the history
of the Earth, spanning the Mesozoic Era.
The nominated Site includes a remarkable range of
internationally important fossil localities, which
have produced superbly preserved and diverse evidence
of life during Mesozoic times.
The Site represents an exceptional range of text-book
exemplars of coastal geomorphological features, landforms
and processes.
The Site has been a crucible of earth science investigations
for over three hundred years. It has helped foster
major contributions to many aspects of geology and
geomorphology.
The Site includes stretches of beautiful and inspiring
coastline, and lies entirely within areas which receive
statutory protection in recognition of their landscape
importance and/or scientific interest.
See
360° Degree movie: from the cliffs at Orcombe
Point
The
Dorset and East Devon coast
Jurassic
Coast website
The Dorset and East Devon coast provides a fascinating
glimpse into the ancient past including the entire
Jurassic period.
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