Dramatic, inspiring, mystical – just a few of the words often used to describe Stonehenge situated high on the Salisbury Plain. A world heritage site, Stonehenge is one of the most well known pre-historic sites in the UK. This is a country where standing stones, barrows and forts can be found everywhere. Far fewer people are aware of the even deeper pre-history of this island and touring it can be extremely memorable. This is, after all, where the first footsteps of passing travelers outside the Great Rift Valley in Africa have been found, and where Mary Anning first stunned the world with her discovery of dinosaurs.
Drive about an hour southwards from Stonehenge and you enter the amazing Jurassic Coast world heritage site where 185 million years of history are on view. All you have to do is follow the 96 mile stretch of coastline from Studland Bay, Dorset to Exmouth in East Devon. Wherever you walk along the beach the cliff rear up, revealing colorful geological strata. The bottom layers date from the Triassic period 252 million years ago, followed by the Jurassic period 201 million years ago and then the Cretaceous period, 145 million years ago. Over that time, the land changed dramatically, from deserts to a tropical sea, followed by lagoons and rivers. Walkers along the Jurassic Coastal Path can chart the environmental changes that took place, and how life developed in the area.
One of the best viewpoints is from Golden Cap, a National Trust coastal site. It is the highest point on the south coast of England, rising to 627 feet above the sea. It offers a challenging walk to the top, but once there the views are spectacular as you can enjoy panoramic views along the coast as well as inland to Dartmoor.
Stone age cliffs of North Norfolk in the UK [Photo by Visit Dorset]
There are countless pretty towns and villages to explore such as Swanage, Sidmouth, Lyme Regis, Exmouth and Charmouth. Anyone interested in fossils tends to find Charmouth irresistible, for this is very much the center of fossil hunting in the area. The Charmouth Heritage Coast Centre has a stunning collection of fossils found in the area, and runs fossil hunting walks to help people find their own.
It was 1799 that Mary Anning was born in Lyme Regis. From an early age, she used to join her carpenter father hunting for fossils on the beach to sell for extra cash. In 1811, she found the first ever skull of a dinosaur and subsequently went on to make many more finds, and became a recognized expert in fossils, well known in Britain, Europe and America. There are now museums about her work in the area, especially in Lyme Regis, which holds a yearly Fossil Festival during May.
There are many camping and caravanning sites all along the Jurassic Coast. The Isle of Purbeck is good central location if you want to stay in one place for several days, and tour around. The Burnbake campsite offers a superb location, which is easy to access. You can opt for the main campsite, or try the Camp Cleavel tipi encampment right on the coast itself. I stayed there over the summer, and the setting is incredibly beautiful and offers superb views across the bay as far as Bournemouth. There is a well used central tent on site, offering the opportunity to socialize around a big camp fire. However, a word of warning – if you want a shower, or to use Burngate’s showers & catering facilities it requires 10 minute drive along some very narrow, deserted country lanes! Burnbake was the location for the filming of the British TV production Celebrity Campers earlier this year. The main campsite is more sheltered than the tipi encampment, and during the day offers fantastic views of steam trains puffing their way along the track to Corfe Castle and Swanage.
Traveling north from the Jurassic coast, passing the prehistoric sites of Stonehenge & Avebury, is a long drive across country to the eastern coast of England, specifically Norfolk. This is the location of a totally unique coastline, known as the Deep History Coast facing out across the North Sea. It can be a stormy area in winter, with cliffs and beaches lashed by strong waves causing erosion. It is an area of small villages, open countryside and some pretty seaside towns such as Cromer and Sheringham. For archaeologists, it is an area which is providing lots of previously unknown information. Over a million years ago, this stretch of coastline was joined to present day Norway by a great land bridge, known as Doggerland. When the climate changed and the ice melted, Doggerland was swept under the waves of the North Sea. Reminders of that ancient period can still be found as you walk along the beaches encountering the slippery, seaweed covered remmants of long ago forests. It was also here that the first footprints made by travelers crossing through Doggerland nearly one million years ago.
Sights from Hunstanton beach [Photo by Visit Dorset]
Drive further around the North Coast to the rocky beach at West Runton with its towering cliffs. It was here that the world’s biggest and most complete mammoth skeleton was discovered in the late 1990’s. Good places to go fossil hunting are East Runton, West Runton, Cromer and Sheringham while much further to the west the beach at Hunstanton offers lots of opportunities to find marine fossils including ammonites and corals.
It is an area which has inspired many writers including Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, creator of the well known detective, Sherlock Holmes. While staying in Cromer, Doyle heard the legends of Black Shuck, a ghostly black dog that roams the coastline, which provided inspiration for the dog portrayed in The Hound of the Baskervilels.
Quite apart from the Deep History Coast, there are lots of other things to see in the area. Norfolk is home to the almost moonscape landscape created by Grimes Graves, which was inhabited by prehistoric flint miners. One of the tunnels is open to the public to explore, but be warned – you do have to climb down quite a steep ladder in order to reach the underground mine. There are many barrows and ring forts hidden in the landscape, which give added interest to walking tours.
A heritage steam railway known as the Poppy Line runs between Sheringham and the Georgian town of Holt, and offers a great way to see the countryside. Alternatively head south to the county town of Norwich with its two cathedrals, several museums, and a market. Alternatively, explore the watery landscape of The Broads – a man-made landscape created by people hundreds of years ago, including monks from several abbeys, excavating huge areas for a local fuel (or peat). The quarries filled up with water creating the network of rivers and lakes that span the area. There are many historic churches scattered across Norfolk including some which contain rare medieval wall paintings.
All along the coast are numerous camping & caravanning sites such as the Kelling Heath Holiday Park, Deepdale Camping near Burnham Market, and Woodhill Park at Cromer. If you are heading over to the west side of Norfolk, you can even park up on a caravan park situated on Her Majesty (HM) the Queen's Sandringham Estate.
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