JURASSIC COAST

The 'Jurassic Coast' is a World Heritage Site on the English Channel coast of southern England. The site stretches from Orcombe Point near Exmouth in East Devon to Old Harry Rocks near Swanage in East Dorset, a distance of .^[1]
Chartered in 2001, the Jurassic coast was the second natural World Heritage Site to be designated in United Kingdom. Its entire length can be walked on the South West Coast Path.^[2]

Contents

Geology

History

Gateway towns

See also

References

External links

Artwork

Photographs

Geology

The Jurassic Coast consists of Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous cliffs, spanning the Mesozoic Era, documenting 180 million years of geological history.
The site contains a number of unique geological features and shows excellent examples of different landforms, including the natural arch at Durdle Door, the cove and limestone folding at Lulworth Cove and an island, the Isle of Portland. Chesil Beach is a fine example of both a tombolo and a storm beach. The site has stretches of both concordant and discordant coastlines. Due to the quality of the varied geology, the site is the subject of international field studies. This area was home to Mary Anning, a Palaeontologist who studied the fossils of the coastline around Lyme Regis and discovered the first complete Ichthyosaur fossil.
The highest point on the Jurassic Coast, at , is Golden Cap.

History

The site was featured on the television programme Seven Natural Wonders as one of the wonders of the South West (of the UK), and in a 2005 poll of ''Radio Times'' readers, the Jurassic Coast was named as the 5th greatest natural wonder in Britain.
During World War II several sections of the Jurassic Coast became property of the then Ministry of War. One of the Royal Navy's largest bases was at Portland Harbour, though it has since closed. A major army base at Bovington remains in use today, and large areas of land, including the coast between Lulworth Cove and Kimmeridge, including Tyneham ghost village, is still only partially accessible. Areas of the coast near Exmouth, The Fleet at Weymouth and the beaches at Studland were also used for training during the war, but have since been returned to civilian use.
Parts of the coast, especially around Portland, can be very dangerous, and frequent shipwrecks have been a feature of the coast throughout recorded history. In January 2007 the coast experienced its most environmentally damaging wreck when the MSC Napoli, a 2,400 capacity container ship was beached at Branscombe near Sidmouth, losing oil and cargo.^[3]

Gateway towns

West Bay forms a major gateway to the Jurassic Coast with the completion in 2004 of the Jurassic Pier.^[4] Weymouth is also a major gateway town, near the centre of the world heritage site. A World Heritage Coast Centre is to be built in the town by 2011.^[5]
Other gateway towns include:

★ Abbotsbury

★ Bridport

★ Budleigh Salterton

★ Charmouth — Charmouth Heritage Coast Centre

★ Exmouth

★ Lulworth

★ Lyme Regis

★ Seaton

★ Sidmouth

★ Swanage

See also

★ Mary Anning

★ Geology of the United Kingdom

★ UK coastline

★ List of Dorset beaches

★ List of fossil sites

References

1. Dorset and East Devon Coast
2. The Official Guide to the SWCP
3. ''BBC News'', 2007. Stricken cargo ship run aground.
4. Jurassic Pier
5. Weymouth Pavilion & Ferry Terminal—The scheme so far

External links

★ The official Jurassic Coast Website

★ The South West Coast Path National Trail

★ UNESCO's page on the Jurassic Coast

★ UNEP's page on the Jurassic Coast

★ The Dorset Coast Forum

★ South West Grid for Learning, Dorset Coast Forum, Countryside Agency and Dorset & Devon County Council joint Jurassic Coast site

★ National Geographic article on the Jurassic Coast

★ BBC News Article on the Jurassic Coast

★ Information on the Heritage Coast of Devon and Dorset

★ Information, History, Photos etc

★ Geology of the Wessex Coast by Ian West, Southampton University

★ Coastal protection work at Lyme Regis during 2006

Artwork

★ Art of the Jurassic Coast

Photographs

★ Jurassic Coast pool at flickr

★ Jurassic Coast gallery at Cotch.net

★ Dorset Pictures by Dorset Photographers Roger Lane and Roger Holman

★ 360° panoramas of The Jurassic Coastline at Lyme Regis

★ Dorset Coast Images