The Jurassic Coast
The Jurassic Coast is a particularly wild and rocky stretch of coast on the English Channel in southern England. It extends from Orcombe Point to Swanage in East Dorset. This World Heritage Site is 153 kilometers long (93 miles.) You can walk the entire length of the coast along the South West Coast Path.
These are very sharp high cliffs along this famous coast that contain visible treasures and formations from the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous areas. The cutaway nature of the cliffs expose 180 million years of natural history. The area was well studied by a famous British palaeontologist named Mary Anning. Anning documented the fossils found along the coastline.
The highest point of the cliffs is 191 meters (627 feet.) and is known as the Golden Cap Along the Jurassic Coast, which is called one of Britain’s Seven Wonders are spectacular landforms. This includes a natural stone arch at Durdle Door near Lulworth in Dorset, England. This is part of a band of natural limestone that extended into the sea to create an archway. It is about 160 feet across and is large enough for a small boat to sail through.
Another popular land form on the coast are stacks of rocks that extend into the ocean. A famous example of this are Old Harry’s rocks at Handfast Point.
A very popular feature are the Beer Quarry Caves which is a man-made limestone underground complex located in the village of Beer in Devon. It is named this because it is made of Beer Stone which was mostly mined and used to decorate windows in cathedrals and churches. Stone has been mined in this area for as long as men have been working with stone to create buildings.
Part of the coast played a significant part in World War II. One of the Royal Navy’s largest bases was at Portland Harbour along the coast. Beaches near Exmouth, Weymouth and Studland were also used extensively for war purposes.
Shipwrecks have also been common on this picturesque coast which is also known for its stormy seas. In 2007 one of the biggest oil spills ever to affect England append when an oil tanker called the MSC Napoli was beached near Sidmouth.
A famous tourist attraction in the area is the Portland Museum on the Isle of Portland off the coast of Dorset. This island museum, first opened in 1930, houses the history of Portland stone and the coast’s many shipwrecks inside two 17th century thatched cottages.