NIGEL J.CLARKE
BEFFERLANDS FARM WORKSHOPS
CHARMOUTH.DORSET
01297 561577/07808 321438
nigel@njcpublications.co.uk
Bookings
Private Fossil Walks or Individual Family
07808-321438/ 01297-561577
Email: nigel@njcpublications.co.uk
The cost
Private groups up to 10 people £60.
(For larger groups please contact me)
Open walks during school holiday £5.00 adults children £2.50
Turn up and Go Fossil Walks in school holidays
I take a Tuesday walk during the school holidays and normally the meeting point is at the cafe on east beach at Charmouth. £5.00 adults £2.50 children
Fossil Diary -May 2012
Rain, rain and more rain. This is the wettest drought I have ever seen! But..........at least it has put some fossils onto the beach. The cliffs are no longer dry and there is a bit of mud to fall into and the storms have churned the beach up.
There seems to be some movement on the beach at Black Ven but ammonites are hard to find. There are lots of bits of iron pyrite on the slip to the east of Lyme Regis. On Monmouth Beach (west of Lyme) there has been a rock fall onto part of the ammonite pavement.
CHARMOUTH MEET THE FOSSILERS.
The annual evening took place on 16th May.A very good evening with talks about the landslips, early fossil collecting by David Sole, Richard Edmunds (Dorset County Geologist) and Prof.D.Brunsden.
Predicted cliff falls for Stonebarrow.........
The talk by Prof.Brunsden about the landslides and the future predictions of movement was very illuminating and he predicted a large slide on Stonebarrow in the next few years. He also talked about the problems of the developing landslips towards Lyme Regis on Black Ven which if not sorted by expensive engineering solutions would cause the loss of the large car park, football field and road into Lyme Regis. It always amazes me that Councils have allowed houses to be built any where near this area.
I always thought one of the attractions of Lyme was that it is falling into the sea! I also think asking a group of civil engineers to fix the problem (in return for a large fee) is a bit like asking a hairdresser if you need a cut.
A very good evening with excellent talks.
When I have not been leading Fossil Expeditions, I have been working on a new book about our local Fossil Hunter Mary Anning which is now available on Amazon as a Kindle book and now as a printed copy. The Ichthyosaur Skull she and her brother Joseph discovered and extracted 200 years ago is on display at Lyme Regis Museum to celebrate the anniversary.I also found out why Mary Anning died in poverty...............and why she found so many fossils.
The Lyme Regis Annual Fossil Festival 2012
A good festival with lots of things for the kids to do. The Natural History Museum put on a good show as did the British Antartic Survey. The dinosaur runway hosted by Plymouth University looked fun.
A brllliant display by the local collectors. There will be another festival next year which I think will be at the same weekend but I will put a confirmation of the date on when I have it.
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"MARY ANNING 1799-1847"
A LIFE ON THE ROCKS
(A NEW PUBLICATION BY ME)
At last I have finished the Mary Anning book, available on the Amazon Kindle reader and now as printed copy (£3.50). Lots of sweat, mistakes and time. Please load down a sample of the book (you do not have to buy the sample) and have a look at it.
If you would like a signed copy then please contact me. I can send a Paypal invoice.
I have put three other titles up onto the Kindle.You can down load a sample of all of these titles from Amazon. The more hits the better for me!
"An Account of Weymouth,Portland and The Chesil"
A visitors guide to the area with lots of history and information
"The Unusual Guide to Bath"
A walking guide to Bath which we updated this year
"The Duke of Monmouth's West Country Rebellion of 1685"
Monmouth landed at Lyme Regis in 1685 to incite a rebellion against James II.
He was eventually defeated at Sedgemoor, in Somerset.The book is about the history of this rebellion and the retribution that followed at the
"Bloody Assizes".
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Where Do We Meet?
Charmouth:
The fossil walks meet at the Cafe on the Beach at Charmouth, which is located on the east side of the River Char.
Cross over the bridge from the carpark. I will be there about 20 minutes prior to the start. I will give a 20 minute talk about the fossils in the area around Charmouth and Lyme Regis, then it's down to the beach to go hunting ammonites and belemnites.
Fossil hammers can be hired at the cafe if required.
Please - no dogs, as they are banned from Charmouth Beach all year.
Lyme Regis:
The walk meets by the Anchor in the carpark at Cobb Gate, near the Town Clock and bus stop.(or outside the Aquarium on the Cobb at Lyme Regis. Please check on walk times or email me.
Fossil Walks & the English Weather
The fossil walks are subject to the weather. If the rain is coming down in huge amounts and the occasional tree sails by in the wind, then I doubt I will be taking a group. If in doubt please telephone me on 07808-321438 to confirm. (Even ammonites do not like heavy rain).
Low Water Predictions Charmouth
I publish tide tables and have listed the times of low water on this site for the coming month for Charmouth. The times of low water are the only period that you can walk along the beach to Lyme Regis. There is a safe window of about 1 hour either side of low water otherwise you will have to walk back along the beach to Charmouth. In Lyme, there is a connecting bus service back to Charmouth or taxis are available. Alternatively, it is possible to trudge over the cliffs back to Charmouth.
The Guide
Nigel Clarke, is an established and award winning local journalist, author and historian, who regularly contributes to magazines and newspapers. He has been a fossil guide on the beaches of Charmouth and Lyme Regis for over twenty years.
Nigel also leads a short historical walk that explains the history of the Cobb at Lyme Regis, its fossils and hidden carvings.A visit to the Aquarium can also be arramged to include a talk about the fish, local sealife, crabs and other crutaceans.
Nigel has gives talks to local groups and at local museums and is able to provide educational talks or walks for local schools and tourists. He has an extensive knowledge of the cliffs and walks of this Jurassic coastline, was an active member of the Lyme Regis Coastguard Team and has dived many of the local shipwrecks, susequently publishing an award winning book on the subject:
The "Shipwreck Guide to Dorset and South Devon" details over 200 shipwrecks off the coast, together with GPS data and depth.
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Glass on the beach
Often when you go fossiling along the coast of Lyme Bay you come across glass.
Above is a shipwreck chart that I have just published "The Shipwreck Chart of Lyme Bay"which illustrates the main wrecks off the Dorset coast. On the beach I can find green glass, blue glass, white glass but never have
I found red glass. WHY?
