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Today at Charmouth
Quiet dayWhy: Low tide falls at lunchtime, though it is not an especially big one. No recent storms, so expect a picked-over beach.
Safe window: 10:24am – 1:24pm
Leave the beach by 1:24pm — the tide will cut off your route back.
Why: Low tide falls at lunchtime, though it is not an especially big one. No recent storms, so expect a picked-over beach.
9° · rain · 9mm rain · Low tide: 12:03am (0.8 m), 12:24pm (0.9 m) · Wind up to 21 km/h · Waves 1.4 m
Safe window: 10:55am – 1:55pm
Leave the beach by 1:55pm — the tide will cut off your route back.
Why: Low tide falls at lunchtime, though it is not an especially big one. No recent storms, so expect a picked-over beach.
9° · overcast · 4mm rain · Low tide: 12:33am (0.8 m), 12:55pm (0.9 m) · Wind up to 21 km/h · Waves 1.1 m
Safe window: 11:28am – 2:28pm
Leave the beach by 2:28pm — the tide will cut off your route back.
Why: Low tide falls at lunchtime, though it is not an especially big one. No recent storms, so expect a picked-over beach.
8° · clear · Low tide: 1:04am (0.9 m), 1:28pm (0.9 m) · Wind up to 26 km/h · Waves 1.0 m
Safe window: 12:02pm – 3:02pm
Leave the beach by 3:02pm — the tide will cut off your route back.
Why: Low tide falls mid-afternoon, though it is not an especially big one. No recent storms, so expect a picked-over beach.
7° · clear · Low tide: 1:36am (1.0 m), 2:02pm (1.1 m) · Wind up to 14 km/h · Waves 0.6 m
Safe window: 12:39pm – 3:39pm
Leave the beach by 3:39pm — the tide will cut off your route back.
Why: Low tide falls mid-afternoon, though it is not an especially big one.
9° · overcast · Low tide: 2:09am (1.2 m), 2:39pm (1.2 m) · Wind up to 10 km/h · Waves 0.8 m
Safe window: 1:21pm – 4:21pm
Leave the beach by 4:21pm — the tide will cut off your route back.
Why: Low tide falls mid-afternoon, though it is not an especially big one.
12° · drizzle · 11mm rain · Low tide: 2:45am (1.4 m), 3:21pm (1.4 m) · Wind up to 16 km/h · Waves 0.7 m
Safe window: 2:09pm – 5:02pm
Leave the beach by 5:02pm — the tide will cut off your route back.
Why: Low tide falls mid-afternoon, though it is not an especially big one. No recent storms, so expect a picked-over beach.
13° · mostly clear · 3mm rain · Low tide: 3:25am (1.6 m), 4:09pm (1.6 m) · Wind up to 25 km/h · Waves 1.1 m
Work the loose shingle and the fresh tideline as the water drops — every tide re-sorts the gravel and the sea does the digging for you. The east beach towards Stonebarrow is richest after a blow. Ammonites and belemnites lie loose among the pebbles; nothing at the cliff base is worth the risk.
Ammonites show as coiled ridges in grey limestone, or as golden pyrite spirals the size of a coin. Belemnites are smooth amber-brown rods shaped like rifle bullets. Ichthyosaur vertebrae look like dark, shiny cotton reels. Free identification: the Charmouth Heritage Coast Centre identifies finds in person and from emailed photos (charmouth.org).
This coast is a protected site (SSSI). What does that mean?
Allowed: Loose fossils from the beach and foreshore are yours to keep — collecting them here is positively encouraged, because the sea destroys what nobody saves.
Never allowed: Never dig or hammer into the cliffs, ledges or landslide material; fossils still in place must stay in place.
Important finds: Register scientifically important finds with the Charmouth Heritage Coast Centre under the West Dorset Fossil Collecting Code.
Rules can change — check locally before you collect.
Detailed location guide at UK Fossils →
Large car park by the Heritage Coast Centre.
Toilets, café, and the Heritage Coast Centre for free fossil identification.
Flat access from the car park; the east beach is richest after storms.
Mudslides at Black Ven. Never approach the cliffs. Easy to get cut off east of the beach on a rising tide.
Fossil Forecast