Fossil hunting in England advice

[DatFossilBoy]

Hello everyone!

I am very excited; In 2 weeks I am going fossil hunting on the Jurassic coast of Lyme Regis,Charmouth and the nearby fossil beaches.

I have already went to Lyme Regis when I was a kid and all I remember was spending hours flipping stone for small ammonites.

I would need some advice... Where are the best places and areas to find fossils,I am really on a vertebrate hunt more than a invertebrate one but it’s cool to come across some aswell.

I am considering doing a guided tour with a professional fossil expert from Lyme Regis. Do you have any suggestions/advice/addresses?

I would also be looking for the best fossil shops around Lyme Regis and Charmout, I know they are a few, I just don’t know which are the best and worth it.

Any English fossil experts? 

Really Appreciate all the help and suggestions  

Kind regards.

[Uncle Siphuncle]

That's a trip I'd love to do someday as well.  But I have to weigh collecting competition vs. travel cost and opportunity cost of collecting elsewhere.  Best of luck.

[Miocene_Mason]

Maybe @JohnBrewer or possibly @Tidgy's Dad could lend some knowledge (though I know Adam has been away from England for a while).

[Tidgy's Dad]

I have been away from England for centuries. 

But i do know that a must is to visit the Charmouth Heritage Coast Centre. 

Here they can give you advice, leaflets, a guide or group guided tour. 

 https://charmouth.org/chcc/

Charmouth is over the river estuary from Lyme Regis and even better for fossils most times, in my experience. Golden Cap can be excellent. 

But the best fossils are usually and most easily found on the beach in the shingle and the rock pools, it's here you've the best chance of finding ichthyosaur vertebrae and other rarer vertebrate remains. So get a decent time times table and go at the lowest possible tide as the further out you go, the fewer people will have checked those rock pools. 

Wrap up warm as it's nearly always cold and often windy and don't waste too much time mucking about near the cliffs though recent mudslides are always worth a look. 

Good luck! 

[Nimravis]

@Bobby Rico

[Bobby Rico]

Hi

 

Adam @Tidgy's Dad covered it very well. I would go to Lyme Regis first and from there you will be able to get on a guited fossil hunt which I would recommend you do. After that Charmouth is next popular but I like Seatown or Burton Bradstock . Burton you do need to know when the clifs last fell but when they does, rich ammonite beds yield incredble finds.

For Burton you may have to take a  lump hammers and split blocks, or if you are lucky enough to arrive shortly after a  fall, there is plenty to be found.

 

Remember to find out The West Dorset fossil collecting code of conduct , access rights and the tide time. I hope this helps. 

 

Cheers Bobby 

[MeargleSchmeargl]

I really want to go to the UK for some of the same reasons. Want some of the killer ammos I've seen from there!

 

[JohnBrewer]

Just to add to the above info.

 

Paddy’s (Lyme) walk/tours are better than the Charmouth tour but the Heritage Centre at Charmouth is fantastic for info and there’s a good fossil shop there too. Go to Charmouth village and pop into the shop, you’ll see prep work going on and they’ll show you what and how they’re working on if you show interest. 

 

Vertebrates: Bottom of Black Ven, most of my ichthyosaur material has come from there or close by. Go when tide is in and follow tide out. Some things are tiny. I’ve got paddle bones and verts of a few mm from there! Golden Cap is ok too. 

 

Inverts: Walk from Charmouth to Seatown. It’s a trek and there are obstacles (mud, rocks) so go when tide is going out. You WILL find easily crinoid stems (Pentacrinites) and decent but very fragile belemnites and ammonites. A very productive walk with virtually no tourists so you should get s good yield. 

 

When you get to Seatown enjoy a well earned beer and food at the pub. Walking back might be a bit of a killer but a taxi to Charmouth is £20. 

 

Remember early morning as tide tide goes out is good as pros and tourists pick the beaches clean. 

 

I always collect low grade and partials to give to kids who’re looking or put them in places for kids to find. Makes the world go round in a nice way.  

 

ill be be there in August and December. I go at least twice a year. If you can get to The Isle of Wight do it. IMHO it’s better than the Jurassic coast for vertebrates with less tourists looking for fossils. Also the Isle has fossils from many different eras. 

 

Hope that helps.  

[JohnBrewer]

@DatFossilBoy do you live in the U.K.? If so pm me. Group trip soon  

[Bobby Rico]

Great advice @JohnBrewer I hope to get there at some point this year. 

[DatFossilBoy]

9 hours ago, JohnBrewer said:

@DatFossilBoy do you live in the U.K.? If so pm me. Group trip soon  

No I don’t but I go very often to the south of England and pop to Lyme Regis and Charmouth.

Hope to find some good stuff from the 20 fossil shops around there too

Kind regards