fossil collecting at Burton Bradstock, Dorset



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Burton Bradstock Fossil Collecting Guide

Fossils and Fossil Collecting in Burton Bradstock
Your Complete Geological Guide

Locals wait months for 'Burton to fall', and when she does, her rich ammonite beds yield superb finds, bags to bring home. Cliff falls occur once every 2-3 years, fossils can be collected from the rocks on the foreshore or any scree slopes. After from ammonites, many other fossils can also be found, including echinoids, shark fins, bivalves and brachiopods.


Burton Bradstock - Dorset
Last updated: [20/02/08]  last visited 2008
Jurassic
Written by Alister and Alison Cruickshanks
The Western Productive end of Burton Bradstock
(The Western Productive end of Burton Bradstock) - 2008

Information for Fossil Hunting at Burton Bradstock

If you are prepared to take heavy lump hammers to Burton Bradstock and split blocks or if you are lucky enough to arrive shortly after a fresh fall, there is plenty to be found, superb ammonites and a wide range of species along with bones, shells and much more.

(Not suitable)

Burton Bradstock is not suitable for family trips since the cliffs can be dangerious.

Access to the beach at Burton Bradstock is nice and easy with a car park. However you do have to walk right the way to the Western end which can be very difficult on return after you have crammed your bag full of fossils.

Foreshore, Cliff

Burton Bradstock is a foreshore and cliff location, fossils are mainly found in the scree slopes and cliff falls, but occasionally they can be found in the Oolite rocks on the foreshore.

ACCESS
RIGHTS
This site is part of the Jurassic World Heritage Coastline. Please follow the
Fossil Code of Conduct.

Please follow our national fossil collecting code

A UK Fossils & Discovering Fossils initiative (c) 2006

Other Locations similar to Burton Bradstock

For locations which also have Inferior Oolite or Bridport Sands of which fossil collecting is permitted, try 'West Bay', next to Burton Bradstock, 'Ketton Quary' in Lincolnshire, or in Gloucestershire you could visit, 'Gilberts Grave' On the Isle of Skye, Bearreraig Bay also has Inferior Oolite.



! SAFETY NOTES FOR FOSSIL HUNTING AT BURTON BRADSTOCK!

Common sense when collecting at all locations should be taken and knowledge of tide times should always be noted. Care should be taken of tides at all locations. The well-known exposures of fossiliferous limestone at the foot of the cliffs are of course the result of cliff falls. Major falls like this are not common, but special care must be taken to watch for areas where loose material may fall. Wet or frosty weather conditions may cause falls. If at the time of a visit pieces of rock are falling from the cliff , then this locality must be considered unsafe and the place should be avoided until relative stability resumes. Some other places such as the low cliffs east of Burton Bradstock, some parts of Portland and the Chesil Beach could be visited instead. At all times wear safety helmets and watch out for any dangerous activity of the cliff. Since this is at the western part of the Chesil Beach there is some risk of being cut off by the tide or swept into the sea in very stormy weather conditions.

A fossil ammonite from Burton Bradstock
Ammonites are very common at Burton Bradstock


Stone Tumblers (Lapidary)


Stone Tumblers are used for tumbling and polishing rough rock, stones and pebbles including those found on the beach and glass.

Whilst collecting fossils, on those days where you come back empty handed, you could collect rocks, stones and glass from the beach and tumble then at home.

These are all high quality machines to give a professional finish to your samples. The tumblers can be used with a variety of grits, most commonly Silicon Carbide Grit and Cerium Oxide. We have a wide range of rough rocks for sale too.

Microfossils are much easier to collect because they are so small that the vast majority of collections only concentrate on large finds. These small finds can simply be found by taking small samples of sands, crags, clays and soft rocks and examining them under a microscope.

We have a wide range of microscopes for sale, both for the study of fossils, but also educational and professional for use in the laboratory. We have Stereo microscopes, Compound Microscopes, Polarising Microscopes and Monocular Microscopes.


We have thousands of Test Sieves for Particle Analysis.

Endecotts Sieves: For accurate dependable results you can't buy a better test sieve than Endecotts. At every stage of manufacture each test sieve is individually inspected.

High Precision Tecan manufactures precision apertures as small as 3 microns for a wide array of applications such as filtering, sieving and nozzles. Its high-performance, ASTM/ISO compliant test sieves satisfy the most demanding fine particle grading requirements.

Metal Detectors


We have a wide range of metal detectors and motion detectors.

Our metal detectors are of a very high quality and are british made by the Viking Company.

Why not take a metal detector when your fossil hunting! you never know what you may find.


We sell a wide range of compasses to both explorers, students to boat owners.

Some field compasses have build in clinometers so you can calculate the height of cliffs.

Our compasses are high quality. They are an essential part of the explorers kit.


All of our fossils are genuine and have been checked carefully, we only buy from reputable sources.

We have a wide range of fossils from low cost budget fossils to expensive stunning display pieces.

Our fossils are of a very high standard and they come from all over the world.

 



Images, Graphics & Content - (C)opyright 1998-2005 Alister Cruickshanks.
UK Fossils Management - Alister Cruickshanks & Roy Bullard
UK Fossils Curator - Ian Cruickshanks
UK Fossils is a division of CWA Design and run in conjunction with UKGE. Whilst we try to ensure that all content is accurate and up to date we cannot guarantee this. UK Fossils takes no responsibility in the accuracy of this content, nor takes any liabilities for any trips, events or exchanges between visitors using either the discussion board or the UK Fossils planner. Any posted trips and events by UK Fossils are personal and not arranged by UK Fossils, therefore visitors should seek their own personal insurance cover. Please remember to always check the tide times.
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