We decided to take an impromptu mini break on the south coast, and Dorset was the number one choice. Having wanted to go to Lulworth Cove, and given that it's located on the Jurassic Coast, and forms part of the Natural World Heritage Coastline, it seemed an ideal choice. Clearly cameras would be going into suitcases, and into action! A quick Google session secured a pretty B&B in the conveniently positioned and quiet village of Coombe Keynes just north of the coast, and we were off.
Lulworth Cove is a natural horseshoe-shaped harbour cut out of the coastline, as if by a giant pastry cutter. It's one of the finest examples of such a landform in the world, and is inevitably a prime attraction for the area, especially for geology enthusiasts and photographers! But its just one of a number of rare and fascinating natural rock formations recording 185 millions years of the Earth's history in a 95 mile stretch of truly stunning coastline from East Devon to Dorset. World Heritage status was achieved because of the site's unique geological ‘walk through time' spanning the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous periods. Overwhelming - but I just wanted to find one small fossil to take home with me ... .
Our first exploration of the coast was along the South West Coast Path, a white chalky trail leading west from Lulworth Cove. This must be one of the most tourist-trod routes in the country, and we (reluctantly) joined the trail of people who were also keen to see what this coast had to offer. Despite not having the place to ourselves, and even knowing what attractions lay ahead (as we'd researched the place), we weren't prepared for the stunning panoramas.
The first geological gem on this route is a 'blow hole' where the sea has exploited a weak spot in the rocks and this has led to erosion. It's also a superb illustration of folding strata, formed by the action of the sea on the soft Portland and Purbeck limestone. 'Stair Hole' looks a bit like a squashed crinkled fan, but this type of rock formation is more aptly known as 'Lulworth Crumple'. It's a relatively new cove, as geological structures go, and in just a few 'short' hundred thousand years it's predicted to be just as large and spectacular as Lulworth Cove! Not stopping around to see this, we continued along the undulating but not unchallenging chalky path (which I re-named the 'scar on the landscape', after realising it could be seen from miles away), until we reached the next stretch of Jurassic gems, from St Oswald's Bay to Man 'O War Bay.
Okay, so the sky was a piercing blue, the sun was glowing golden, the sea azure, the sand pale cream and the cliffs dazzling white, but the sweeping, sculptured curves of the coastline around St Oswald's and Man o' War Bays are just so beautiful. Looking along this shapely, flawless coastline on such a perfect summer's day was a visual feast for the eyes (and the camera!). As we neared the rocky headland at the far end of Man o' War Bay we realised that what were were looking at was in fact the back of Durdle Door, the most known and photographed natural limestone arch in the country.
On reaching the spit of land jutting out into the sea we turned across it down the narrow path on the 'saddle', which soon divided left and right, giving us two choices. To the left there was a long, steep and narrow set of steps leading down to the perfect little 'Man o' War Bay, far below. To the right a winding, less direct trail of steps down to Durdle Door. We chose the latter, simply because there was is no access from one to the other at beach level, and Durdle Door was definitely not the option to be missed!
Durdle Door and Man o' War are what remain after millennia of sea erosion of the cliffs near Lulworth Cove. This spit of land is made of limestone, and the sea has worn away both the limestone and clay back to the chalk cliffs. From this vantage point there is a panoramic view over the surrounding coastline all the way to Portland Bill and Weymouth in the west and back to Lulworth Cove in the east. Phew, quite a view!
Once at 'sand' level we took a long walk along the narrow shingle strip of beach towards the next headland, Bat's head. The views along (and through) Durdle Door and the Bay are undeniably beautiful, but as we headed towards Bat's head, yet another geo-gem came into view. Right at the tip of the headland the sea has mined a tunnel through the rock leaving 'Star Hole', a small 'blow hole' which is navigable and therefore a popular route for all local canoe and dingy clubs who take advantage of this splendid stretch of coast (and no doubt of the tourists' holiday money as well!). Star hole is said to also house bats, but we didn't see any evidence of these. Neither did we see any evidence of the naturists that apparently have use of this remote section of the bay, in fact with the exception of 1 or 2 people this end of the beach was deserted. After more than half an hour struggling to trudge through the deep layers of sinking shingle, our legs (and ears) were relieved to get back onto terra firma! In retrospect, it can't be the most comfortable of surfaces for people to lie on, clothed or otherwise ... .
At this point we turned eastwards back towards Lulworth cove, as I was keen to explore the famous 'Fossil Forest', just a mile or so beyond the cove. This was surely where I'd pick up a fossil to take home ... .
After a quick stop at the local Lulworth watering hole, we took the circular route (!) around Lulworth cove, before climbing up and over the western headland onto Bindon Hill, following the path to the Fossil Forest, on the edge of the Bindon Army Firing Range. The 'forest' location was not what I envisaged! It's perched on a precipitous ledge on the cliff face overlooking the sea, accessed by a steep 50ft climb down the said cliff face (albeit on a purpose-built steel structure). The 'remains' of the forest were also not what I expected, but were fascinating nevertheless. What remains are the growths, or moulds of late Jurassic or early Cretaceous coniferous trees that have formed around the tree stumps from about 135 million years ago, in the underlying 'Dirt Beds'. Higher up the ledge above the 'trees' we saw stromatolites and thrombolites (see photo), layered structures formed in shallow water by the trapping, binding and cementation of sedimentary grains by micro-organisms such as algae. Clearly geology isn't my field, so I'll quit while I'm ahead. Needless to say, it was an intriguing place, good for the imagination, excellent for photographs, but hopeless for finding fossils small enough to take home!
Having attempted to learn the basics of geology, the next day we turned to the history of the area, and more specifically the 'forgotten village' of Tyneham, steeped in medieval history, buried deep in the Tyneham Valley, but positioned in the middle of the MOD Firing Range!
Tyneham went under military occupation 6 days before Christmas 1943 for the training of American and British tank crews. The promise to return Tyneham to it's inhabitants was never kept, and the area is still used for firing live shells. The village and range walks on this section of the Dorset Coastal Path are regularly open to the public. But Tyneham is now a ghost village, the domestic buildings being in ruins. An eerie and poignant visit to this once pretty village, where visitors were reminded to: "Please treat the church and houses with care; we have given up our homes where many of us lived for generations to help win the war and to keep men free. We shall return one day and thank you for treating the village kindly." They're still waiting.
That evening we had dinner at The Ship Inn at Wool, a small village at the foot of the Purbeck Hills, which boasts a 14th century manor house, and whose claim to fame is being the location of Tess' honeymoon in Thomas Hardy's Tess of the D'Urbervilles. I remember it for different reasons. On leaving The Ship Inn we found that the sky was ablaze with a full-on orange and pink Dorset sunset! Faster than a speeding bullet across the Firing Range, we got into the car and shot up the Purbeck Hills, taking S-bends with speed and precision that would have impressed Colin McRae, past the MOD firing range without getting shot, and up to the vantage point, cameras poised! We missed the best of the sunset, but not for the want of trying - and it was great fun!
On our last day we drove eastwards to Kimmeridge Bay, home to The Purbeck Marine Wildlife Reserve and to a geological feast! Characterised by it's dark, fossil rich shale beds, Kimmeridge Bay lies between the white chalk cliffs of Tyneham and Lulworth to the west and the pale grey limestones of the Isle of Purbeck to the east. Kimmeridge Bay itself is part of the privately owned Smedmore Estate and is dominated by Clavell's Tower, a one-time summerhouse and coastguard lookout, built in 1831. We have lasting memories of the Tower, but more specifically of a couple of hardy and quite eccentric 'charity trekkers with a heart.' Dressed in khaki from hat to boots, with tall white banners held aloft, map cases and cameras slung around necks, and a look of determination on their faces, they proudly told us they were walking the South West Coast Path in aid of the Heart Foundation. Good on them!
The final stop of our short but full mini-break was to Lulworth Castle, built in the early 17th Century as a hunting lodge, but turned into a country house at the heart of a large estate. Thomas Howard, 3rd Lord Bindon, built the Castle in order to entertain hunting parties for the King and Court. The Howards owned it until 1641 when it was purchased by Humphrey Weld, the direct ancestor of the present owners. The exterior of the Castle changed little over the years but the interior evolved in line with changing fashions until it was gutted by a disastrous fire in 1929. Restoration work began on the ruin by the Department of the Environment and was followed through to completion in 1998 by English Heritage.
What captured our attention more than the restored and resurrected heritage of the landed gentry, was the jousting tournament in the grounds of the castle estate. A colourful, humourous and lively display with plenty of activity, horseplay, jestering and audience participation! And in 'time honoured tradition' the evil dastardly black knight fought a dirty fight, lost everything and was booed out of the arena, whilst the honourable worthy knight won battle and fair maiden and rode off with her into the sunset on his trusty charger.
So a happy ending for all (except the baddie), and a happy ending to our Dorset break too! (Except, of course, that in 'time honoured holiday tradition' I didn't fulfil my hopes of finding a fossil to take home (no fossil in Dorset, no dinosaur footprint on the Isle of Wight, no puffins on Farne, no otters on Skye, no red squirrels on Arran - see previous postings!).
Lulworth Cove is a natural horseshoe-shaped harbour cut out of the coastline, as if by a giant pastry cutter. It's one of the finest examples of such a landform in the world, and is inevitably a prime attraction for the area, especially for geology enthusiasts and photographers! But its just one of a number of rare and fascinating natural rock formations recording 185 millions years of the Earth's history in a 95 mile stretch of truly stunning coastline from East Devon to Dorset. World Heritage status was achieved because of the site's unique geological ‘walk through time' spanning the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous periods. Overwhelming - but I just wanted to find one small fossil to take home with me ... .
Our first exploration of the coast was along the South West Coast Path, a white chalky trail leading west from Lulworth Cove. This must be one of the most tourist-trod routes in the country, and we (reluctantly) joined the trail of people who were also keen to see what this coast had to offer. Despite not having the place to ourselves, and even knowing what attractions lay ahead (as we'd researched the place), we weren't prepared for the stunning panoramas.
The first geological gem on this route is a 'blow hole' where the sea has exploited a weak spot in the rocks and this has led to erosion. It's also a superb illustration of folding strata, formed by the action of the sea on the soft Portland and Purbeck limestone. 'Stair Hole' looks a bit like a squashed crinkled fan, but this type of rock formation is more aptly known as 'Lulworth Crumple'. It's a relatively new cove, as geological structures go, and in just a few 'short' hundred thousand years it's predicted to be just as large and spectacular as Lulworth Cove! Not stopping around to see this, we continued along the undulating but not unchallenging chalky path (which I re-named the 'scar on the landscape', after realising it could be seen from miles away), until we reached the next stretch of Jurassic gems, from St Oswald's Bay to Man 'O War Bay.
Okay, so the sky was a piercing blue, the sun was glowing golden, the sea azure, the sand pale cream and the cliffs dazzling white, but the sweeping, sculptured curves of the coastline around St Oswald's and Man o' War Bays are just so beautiful. Looking along this shapely, flawless coastline on such a perfect summer's day was a visual feast for the eyes (and the camera!). As we neared the rocky headland at the far end of Man o' War Bay we realised that what were were looking at was in fact the back of Durdle Door, the most known and photographed natural limestone arch in the country.
On reaching the spit of land jutting out into the sea we turned across it down the narrow path on the 'saddle', which soon divided left and right, giving us two choices. To the left there was a long, steep and narrow set of steps leading down to the perfect little 'Man o' War Bay, far below. To the right a winding, less direct trail of steps down to Durdle Door. We chose the latter, simply because there was is no access from one to the other at beach level, and Durdle Door was definitely not the option to be missed!
Durdle Door and Man o' War are what remain after millennia of sea erosion of the cliffs near Lulworth Cove. This spit of land is made of limestone, and the sea has worn away both the limestone and clay back to the chalk cliffs. From this vantage point there is a panoramic view over the surrounding coastline all the way to Portland Bill and Weymouth in the west and back to Lulworth Cove in the east. Phew, quite a view!
Once at 'sand' level we took a long walk along the narrow shingle strip of beach towards the next headland, Bat's head. The views along (and through) Durdle Door and the Bay are undeniably beautiful, but as we headed towards Bat's head, yet another geo-gem came into view. Right at the tip of the headland the sea has mined a tunnel through the rock leaving 'Star Hole', a small 'blow hole' which is navigable and therefore a popular route for all local canoe and dingy clubs who take advantage of this splendid stretch of coast (and no doubt of the tourists' holiday money as well!). Star hole is said to also house bats, but we didn't see any evidence of these. Neither did we see any evidence of the naturists that apparently have use of this remote section of the bay, in fact with the exception of 1 or 2 people this end of the beach was deserted. After more than half an hour struggling to trudge through the deep layers of sinking shingle, our legs (and ears) were relieved to get back onto terra firma! In retrospect, it can't be the most comfortable of surfaces for people to lie on, clothed or otherwise ... .
At this point we turned eastwards back towards Lulworth cove, as I was keen to explore the famous 'Fossil Forest', just a mile or so beyond the cove. This was surely where I'd pick up a fossil to take home ... .
After a quick stop at the local Lulworth watering hole, we took the circular route (!) around Lulworth cove, before climbing up and over the western headland onto Bindon Hill, following the path to the Fossil Forest, on the edge of the Bindon Army Firing Range. The 'forest' location was not what I envisaged! It's perched on a precipitous ledge on the cliff face overlooking the sea, accessed by a steep 50ft climb down the said cliff face (albeit on a purpose-built steel structure). The 'remains' of the forest were also not what I expected, but were fascinating nevertheless. What remains are the growths, or moulds of late Jurassic or early Cretaceous coniferous trees that have formed around the tree stumps from about 135 million years ago, in the underlying 'Dirt Beds'. Higher up the ledge above the 'trees' we saw stromatolites and thrombolites (see photo), layered structures formed in shallow water by the trapping, binding and cementation of sedimentary grains by micro-organisms such as algae. Clearly geology isn't my field, so I'll quit while I'm ahead. Needless to say, it was an intriguing place, good for the imagination, excellent for photographs, but hopeless for finding fossils small enough to take home!
Having attempted to learn the basics of geology, the next day we turned to the history of the area, and more specifically the 'forgotten village' of Tyneham, steeped in medieval history, buried deep in the Tyneham Valley, but positioned in the middle of the MOD Firing Range!
Tyneham went under military occupation 6 days before Christmas 1943 for the training of American and British tank crews. The promise to return Tyneham to it's inhabitants was never kept, and the area is still used for firing live shells. The village and range walks on this section of the Dorset Coastal Path are regularly open to the public. But Tyneham is now a ghost village, the domestic buildings being in ruins. An eerie and poignant visit to this once pretty village, where visitors were reminded to: "Please treat the church and houses with care; we have given up our homes where many of us lived for generations to help win the war and to keep men free. We shall return one day and thank you for treating the village kindly." They're still waiting.
That evening we had dinner at The Ship Inn at Wool, a small village at the foot of the Purbeck Hills, which boasts a 14th century manor house, and whose claim to fame is being the location of Tess' honeymoon in Thomas Hardy's Tess of the D'Urbervilles. I remember it for different reasons. On leaving The Ship Inn we found that the sky was ablaze with a full-on orange and pink Dorset sunset! Faster than a speeding bullet across the Firing Range, we got into the car and shot up the Purbeck Hills, taking S-bends with speed and precision that would have impressed Colin McRae, past the MOD firing range without getting shot, and up to the vantage point, cameras poised! We missed the best of the sunset, but not for the want of trying - and it was great fun!
On our last day we drove eastwards to Kimmeridge Bay, home to The Purbeck Marine Wildlife Reserve and to a geological feast! Characterised by it's dark, fossil rich shale beds, Kimmeridge Bay lies between the white chalk cliffs of Tyneham and Lulworth to the west and the pale grey limestones of the Isle of Purbeck to the east. Kimmeridge Bay itself is part of the privately owned Smedmore Estate and is dominated by Clavell's Tower, a one-time summerhouse and coastguard lookout, built in 1831. We have lasting memories of the Tower, but more specifically of a couple of hardy and quite eccentric 'charity trekkers with a heart.' Dressed in khaki from hat to boots, with tall white banners held aloft, map cases and cameras slung around necks, and a look of determination on their faces, they proudly told us they were walking the South West Coast Path in aid of the Heart Foundation. Good on them!
The final stop of our short but full mini-break was to Lulworth Castle, built in the early 17th Century as a hunting lodge, but turned into a country house at the heart of a large estate. Thomas Howard, 3rd Lord Bindon, built the Castle in order to entertain hunting parties for the King and Court. The Howards owned it until 1641 when it was purchased by Humphrey Weld, the direct ancestor of the present owners. The exterior of the Castle changed little over the years but the interior evolved in line with changing fashions until it was gutted by a disastrous fire in 1929. Restoration work began on the ruin by the Department of the Environment and was followed through to completion in 1998 by English Heritage.
What captured our attention more than the restored and resurrected heritage of the landed gentry, was the jousting tournament in the grounds of the castle estate. A colourful, humourous and lively display with plenty of activity, horseplay, jestering and audience participation! And in 'time honoured tradition' the evil dastardly black knight fought a dirty fight, lost everything and was booed out of the arena, whilst the honourable worthy knight won battle and fair maiden and rode off with her into the sunset on his trusty charger.
So a happy ending for all (except the baddie), and a happy ending to our Dorset break too! (Except, of course, that in 'time honoured holiday tradition' I didn't fulfil my hopes of finding a fossil to take home (no fossil in Dorset, no dinosaur footprint on the Isle of Wight, no puffins on Farne, no otters on Skye, no red squirrels on Arran - see previous postings!).
Great choice for choosing Dorset holiday cottages. It's such a wonderful place to stay and there are great things to discover in there. Relaxing and very accommodating. A home away from home.
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