Dorset · Directions ↗
Today at Eype
FairBig tide today (spring tide) — more beach exposed, but it comes back in fast.
Why: A big 0.7 m low tide falls at lunchtime.
Safe window: 11:21am – 2:21pm
Leave the beach by 2:21pm — the tide will cut off your route back.
Big tide today (spring tide) — more beach exposed, but it comes back in fast.
Why: A big 0.7 m low tide falls at lunchtime.
19° · overcast · Low tide: 1:07am (0.6 m), 1:21pm (0.7 m) · Wind up to 36 km/h · Waves 0.8 m
Safe window: 11:59am – 2:59pm
Leave the beach by 2:59pm — the tide will cut off your route back.
Big tide today (spring tide) — more beach exposed, but it comes back in fast.
Why: A recent south-westerly blow should have brought fresh cliff material onto the beach. An early-autumn blow like this restocks beaches after the quiet summer. A big 0.7 m low tide falls at lunchtime.
20° · overcast · Low tide: 1:45am (0.6 m), 1:59pm (0.7 m) · Wind up to 28 km/h · Waves 0.8 m
Safe window: 12:34pm – 3:34pm
Leave the beach by 3:34pm — the tide will cut off your route back.
Big tide today (spring tide) — more beach exposed, but it comes back in fast.
Why: A recent south-westerly blow should have brought fresh cliff material onto the beach. An early-autumn blow like this restocks beaches after the quiet summer. A big 0.8 m low tide falls mid-afternoon.
23° · overcast · Low tide: 2:20am (0.6 m), 2:34pm (0.8 m) · Wind up to 18 km/h · Waves 0.6 m
Safe window: 1:06pm – 4:06pm
Leave the beach by 4:06pm — the tide will cut off your route back.
Why: A recent south-westerly blow should have brought fresh cliff material onto the beach. An early-autumn blow like this restocks beaches after the quiet summer. Low tide falls mid-afternoon, though it is not an especially big one.
20° · clear · Low tide: 2:52am (0.8 m), 3:06pm (0.9 m) · Wind up to 23 km/h · Waves 0.5 m
Safe window: 1:37pm – 4:37pm
Leave the beach by 4:37pm — 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.
18° · clear · Low tide: 3:22am (1.0 m), 3:37pm (1.1 m) · Wind up to 22 km/h · Waves 0.6 m
Safe window: 2:06pm – 5:06pm
Leave the beach by 5:06pm — 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.
18° · mostly clear · Low tide: 3:50am (1.2 m), 4:06pm (1.4 m) · Wind up to 26 km/h · Waves 1.2 m
Safe window: 2:36pm – 5:36pm
Leave the beach by 5:36pm — 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.
17° · drizzle · Low tide: 4:16am (1.5 m), 4:36pm (1.7 m) · Wind up to 19 km/h · Waves 1.0 m
Search the gravel patches and rock pools below Thorncombe Beacon at low water. This quiet beach is rarely picked over — the tideline after a south-westerly blow rewards a slow, patient walk.
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 →
Small car park at Eype Mouth, down a narrow lane.
None on the beach; nearest facilities in West Bay.
Short steep path to the beach; walk west below Thorncombe Beacon.
Regular cliff falls from the sandstone above — stay off the fresh fall debris cones. Quiet beach: tell someone where you are going.
Fossil Forecast