Where to find fossils

[pubrunner]

Hi All,

My youngest (7 years old) is interested in ancient & natural history. It is coming up to half-term, and I thought that I'd take him fossil hunting.

I'm considering taking him up to Yorkshire, staying over and having a look around the coast by Robin Hoods Bay. If he could find an ammonite or some of those bullet-shaped fossils (belomnite ? - can't remember the exact name) then he'd be chuffed to bits. There are places (close to where I live) around Llangollen and Llanymynech where fossils (allegedly) may be found, but I don't know of anyone who has seen any.

I feel that fossil-hunting would be an excellent way of keeping him occupied, if only for a few hours. Can anyone suggest somewhere where we have a strong chance of finding fossils (other than an old people's home) ?

Ta for any serious suggestions.

 

[cisamcgu]

This may help ... but I know nothing about fossils

 

[totallyfixed]

Jurassic coast, specifically between Lyme Regis and Charmouth, guaranteed to find some, do take a rock hammer and some of those cheap plastic goggles, he will love it.

 

[thnurg]

Try any lawn bowls club.

 

[byegad]

Plenty of fossils riding with some CTC DAs.

 

[ACS]

Fossil Hunting in North Wales​

 

[jonny jeez]

Jurassic coast, specifically between Lyme Regis and Charmouth, guaranteed to find some, do take a rock hammer and some of those cheap plastic goggles, he will love it.

+1... I'd extend it to seaton (Golden Cap) as charmouth is a little further down. Between Golden cap (my fav destination as a child for fossil hunting) and Lyme is an exposed layer of subrock that gives up a multitude of attractive fossils...hence the name Jurrasic coast. But step putside these limits and you'll find very little.

For my money Golden Cap is just a magical place to stay, it's one of those places that offers kids genuine freedom to roam in safety for miles and miles along unspoilt and uncrowded beaches.

I'm told that some laws no govern the chipping of rock from the face and that only lyng stones can be opened.

http://www.wdlh.co.uk/parks/golden-cap.aspx

 

[Ian H]

Jurassic coast, specifically between Lyme Regis and Charmouth, guaranteed to find some, do take a rock hammer and some of those cheap plastic goggles, he will love it.

Be careful to obey local signs and stay away from the unstable cliffs. At the weekend I saw a fence hanging in midair where a section had collapsed.

 

[User482]

I was about to recommend Lyme Regis, but for a different reason. Auntie Ella lives there, and she's 96.

 

[Arch]

My Brother in Law plans to take my nephew Oli (4, and obsessed with dinosaurs) on a fossil hunting day trip with this chap, down in Sussex...

http://www.discoveringfossils.co.uk/fossil_hunting_trips.htm

When Oli writes his full name, the e in Oliver is drawn like an ammonite every time...

 

[Fnaar]

Be careful to obey local signs and stay away from the unstable cliffs. At the weekend I saw a fence hanging in midair where a section had collapsed.

Like this

[media]
]View: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZVjr4mii3cE[/media]

 

[jonny jeez]

Have to agree with this - we spent many a family holiday there when I was a kid, and I've been back recently to find it's hardly changed at all. Still plenty of fossils to find, and you can pick them up among the shingle on the beach as the tide goes out, ammonites, pentacrinites, belemnites - no need to attack the rocks with a hammer, unless you want to!

Yep, I went back for the first time in around 25 years in the summer of 2010 and it hadn't changed a jot...the car park (a field on the side of a mountain) still even smelled the same...a heavenly mix of rabbit poo, grass and sea salt. We had a wonderful ad-hoc picnic (foraged from Sainsburys in Bridport) on the pebble beach whilst the kids watched the Mackerel fishermen reel in 6 at a time (to squeals of delight).

Then watched as they lit up the beach fires.

it was a really magical afternoon

sigh

 

[Glow worm]

You could do worse than going to Dudley. I know, sounds mad, but there really is an amazing nature reserve there where youstruggle to pick up a rock without a fossil. There's even a raised beach at about an 80 degree angle where the ripples of the sand from millions of years ago are fossilised. The place is called Wren's Nest and there's more info here Wren's Nest National Nature Reserve, Dudley

I went a couple of weeks ago and was bowled over by it.

 

[Archie_tect]

We walked along the Jurassic Cliffs east of Lyme Regis this August- it was great.

 

[Peteaud]

Yep Lyme Regis - Sea Town (not Seaton).

Charmouth is very good, almost always get some, especialy after a good storm.

As others have said,keep away from the cliffs.

(20 mins down the road forme,so i go quite a lot)