Dorset · Dorset
Fossil hunting at Seatown
A quieter Jurassic Coast beach below Golden Cap, with ammonites and belemnites in the shingle.
Representative photography of this stretch of coast, not a photograph of the site on a particular day.
What can you find?
- AmmonitesCoiled shells of extinct marine molluscs, the classic British fossil.Identify →
- BelemnitesBullet-shaped internal guards of squid-like Jurassic and Cretaceous animals.Identify →
- BivalvesFossil shellfish with two matching valves, common on most marine sites.Identify →
- Fossilised woodDriftwood and tree remains replaced by minerals, sometimes as jet or lignite.Identify →
About the site
Seatown sits at the foot of Golden Cap, the highest point on the south coast of England. The beach is shingle over a Lias foreshore and produces ammonites, belemnites and bivalves, generally in smaller numbers than Charmouth but with far fewer people searching.
The best ground is west towards Golden Cap, where fresh material arrives from the cliffs and landslips. As elsewhere on this coast, the cliffs are unstable and everything worth having will be found loose on the beach.
Planning a visit
- Geological period
- Early Jurassic (Charmouth Mudstone), around 195–190 million years old
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Suitable for children
- Yes, with supervision and attention to the tide and cliffs.
- Best time to go
- Winter and early spring, on a falling tide.
- Tides
- Go out on a falling tide and turn back well before low water. Check a local tide table on the day and allow time to return.
- Access
- Short level walk from the car park to the beach; the beach itself is steep shingle.
- Parking
- Pay and display car park at Seatown, behind the beach.
- Walking and terrain
- Under 100 m to the beach; 1 km west along the foreshore below Golden Cap.
- Location type
- Beach, Cliff
- Collecting
- West Dorset fossil collecting code applies. Loose material from the foreshore only.
Safety
- Golden Cap is prone to landslips and rockfall — keep clear of the cliff base.
- The foreshore west of Seatown can be cut off on a rising tide.
What to bring
- Boots
- Tide table
- Bag for finds
Nearby fossil locations
- 01CharmouthDorset · DorsetAmmonites · Belemnites · Bivalves · Fossilised woodBeginnerFamily friendlyBeach, CliffExplore location →
- 02Eype BeachDorset · DorsetAmmonites · Belemnites · BivalvesEasyFamily friendlyBeach, CliffExplore location →
- 03Lyme RegisDorset · DorsetAmmonites · Belemnites · Bivalves · Marine reptile remainsBeginnerFamily friendlyBeach, CliffExplore location →