Local Attractions Charmouth is situated in West
Dorset, close to where the Dorset/Devon border meets the sea just two
miles to the west at Lyme Regis. Its famous fossil
beach is at the heart of the UNESCO World
Heritage Jurassic Coastline.
This beautiful,spectacular
coastline
stretches from Old Harry Rocks forty miles to the east, passing Swanage
and the Purbeck Hills, Lulworth Cove, Durdle
Door, the
Victorian resort of Weymouth, the graceful curve
of Chesil Beach and the rugged
cliffs at West Bay to Golden
Cap, just
two miles from Charmouth and the highest point along the south coast.
Travelling west from
Charmouth past Lyme Regis and into Devon, the coast crosses the Axe Estuary Wetlands (great for bird
watching) and the Seaton Tramway, on past the pretty
villages of Beer
and Branscombe
and the ancient red sandstone cliffs at Sidmouth, past Budleigh Salterton to the River Exe
Estuary at Exmouth.
Charmouth is on the South West
Coast Path
and the landscape affords spectacular cliff walks in all seasons.
(Please note that certain sections of the path close from time to time
as the cliffs erode away, we can advise you of the closures affecting
the Charmouth area at the time of your visit). The beach is world
renowned for its fossils and you can book expert guided fossil walks
with Charmouth
Heritage Centre or with Chris Pamplin.
But do not just
restrict your travels to the coast, the countryside
around Charmouth is also well worth exploring. Many country lanes wind
their way through the Dorset hills and lead to hidden
villages and hamlets, thatched pubs, Iron Age Hill forts and historic houses
such as Forde Abbey just five miles to
the north. If you want to explore the area more thoroughly, you can
take an electric bike tour with Martin from
Marshwood Trails
which we can highly recommend. It is a superb way of really seeing the
hidden countryside such as the Marshwood Vale (and those electric bikes
do take a lot of the work out of the hills!)
Bridport
and West Bay (which
was where much of Broadchurch
was filmed )
just five miles to the east is a charming Georgian market town, famous
for rope and net making (the hangman's noose was known as the Bridport
Dagger). Its Saturday street market is a great way of whiling away a
few hours on a Saturday morning.
Charmouth is only
four miles from Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall's River Cottage HQ which hosts regular
cookery courses and other events.
Slightly further
afield you can visit the Donkey
Sanctuary near
Branscombe, or have a guided tour of the 2000 year old man made Beer Quarries
and Caves,
go fishing for mackerel with local fishermen Nick or Harry from Lyme Regis
harbour or for the adrenaline junkies, a white knuckle Rib Ride
from Simon in
West Bay.
The County town of Dorchester, birthplace of Thomas Hardy, is 20 miles to the east. The attractive towns of Sherborne and Shaftesbury with the famous Gold Hill are 30 miles or so to the north west. There is also within a 30 mile drive the Fleet Air Arm Museum near Yeovil and the Tank Museum at Bovington which are both worth a visit. The historic lace-making town of Honiton is sixteen miles to the west and is renowned for its many antique shops. The City of Exeter is thirty miles to the west and worth a visit, if just to see its magnificent Gothic Cathedral. There is an awful lot to enjoy in this area but most of all the peace and quiet of the countryside and the spectacular coastline are what will bring you back to west Dorset again and again. |