Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
To get to Lyme Regis direct from London Waterloo, take the hourly London-
Exeter train and disembark at Axminster (2
3
⁄
4
hr. away). From there, catch bus no. 31
from Axminster Station to Lyme Regis (20 min.; hourly service during the day).
If you're driving to the Jurassic Coast from the east, head west along the A35 as far
as Dorchester. To get to Lyme Regis, continue farther along the A35 beyond Bridport,
cutting south to the coast at the junction with the A3070. For Weymouth, head
immediately south from Dorchester for 9 miles on the A354.
VISITOR INFORMATION
In Lyme Regis, the
Tourist Information Centre,
Guildhall Cottage, Church Street (
&
01297/442138;
www.westdorset.com), is
open November through March, Monday to Saturday 10am to 3pm, and April
through October, Monday to Saturday 10am to 5pm and Sunday 10am to 4pm. The
Weymouth Tourist Information Centre,
The Esplanade (
&
01305/785747;
www.visitweymouth.co.uk), is open daily 9:30am to 5pm between Easter and Octo-
ber, closing an hour earlier the rest of the year. For more on the World Heritage Coast,
see
www.jurassiccoast.com
, follow
twitter.com/jurassic_coast
, or download the
Jurassic iPhone and iPad app from the iTunes Store.
Exploring the Jurassic Coast
The highlight of the Jurassic Coast is wandering the steep, winding streets and
unique harbor at
Lyme Regis
(see “Shopping in Lyme Regis”, below). Completed
in its current form in 1756 as a breakwater, the handsome
Cobb
has protected
Lyme's thriving little seaport for 2
1
⁄
2
centuries. Along with providing the iconic image
from the 1981 movie
The French Lieutenant's Woman
(written by local John Fowles),
the Cobb is the place to head if you fancy trying scenic
mackerel fishing.
In good
weather, boats depart the harbor regularly on trips lasting 1 hour and costing £8. The
surrounding coast is a fascinating place for botanists and zoologists thanks to the
predominance of blue Lias, a sedimentary rock well suited to the formation of fossils
(especially ammonites), and of landslips from cliffs weakened by 19th-century quar-
rying. Each landslide reveals new finds. In 1810, Mary Anning (at the age of 11)
discovered one of the first articulated ichthyosaur skeletons nearby. She went on to
become one of the world's first professional fossilists (a fascinating tale told in
The
Dinosaur Hunters,
by Deborah Cadbury). She's buried in the churchyard of Lyme's
Parish Church,
St. Michael Archangel,
on Church Street.
Just east of Lyme, the seaside village of
Charmouth
is the best jumping-off point
for beachfront walks at the foot of
Golden Cap.
At 191m (627 ft.), they're the tallest
seacliffs along the southern coast and in times past they served as a fine brandy smug-
glers' lookout. The best spot here for a coastal pint is the
Anchor Inn,
Seatown,
Chideock (
&
01297/489215
). Suitably refreshed in this former smugglers' tavern,
you can strike out for a clifftop walk or stroll along the adjacent pebble beach.
Dorset's best produce fills the shelves at
Washingpool Farm Shop
, North
Allington, Bridport (
&
01308/459549;
www.washingpool.co.uk). The offerings
change with the seasons but always include local organic meats and vegetables,
imaginative chutneys, cakes baked in the farm kitchen, and even Dorset wines.
Starting just east of Bridport, at West Bay, the pebble bank known as
Chesil
Beach
begins its 18-mile sweep to Portland. It's said that an experienced Dorset
seaman can tell exactly where he is along the beach just from the size of the pebbles
underfoot—an anecdote that plays a role in J. Meade Falkner's fictional children's
smuggling tale,
Moonfleet
. Drive parallel to the Chesil, along the B3157, for spec-
tacular coastal views, especially around the village of
Abbotsbury.
Warning:
Don't
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