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Today at Kimmeridge Bay
FairBig tide today (spring tide) — more beach exposed, but it comes back in fast.
Why: A big 0.4 m low tide falls at lunchtime.
Safe window: 11:23am – 2:23pm
Leave the beach by 2:23pm — 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 0.4 m low tide falls at lunchtime.
18° · overcast · Low tide: 1:10am (0.3 m), 4:41am (0.5 m), 1:23pm (0.4 m), 5:01pm (0.7 m) · Wind up to 30 km/h · Waves 0.9 m
Safe window: 12:01pm – 3:01pm
Leave the beach by 3:01pm — 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 0.4 m low tide falls mid-afternoon.
20° · overcast · Low tide: 1:46am (0.3 m), 5:17am (0.5 m), 2:01pm (0.4 m), 5:33pm (0.7 m) · Wind up to 23 km/h · Waves 0.8 m
Safe window: 12:39pm – 3:39pm
Leave the beach by 3:39pm — 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 0.4 m low tide falls mid-afternoon.
22° · clear · Low tide: 2:23am (0.3 m), 5:39am (0.6 m), 2:39pm (0.4 m) · Wind up to 18 km/h · Waves 0.6 m
Safe window: 1:20pm – 4:20pm
Leave the beach by 4:20pm — 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 0.5 m low tide falls mid-afternoon.
21° · overcast · Low tide: 3:01am (0.4 m), 3:20pm (0.5 m) · Wind up to 18 km/h · Waves 0.6 m
Safe window: 2:19pm – 5:19pm
Leave the beach by 5:19pm — 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 mid-afternoon.
19° · mostly clear · Low tide: 3:46am (0.5 m), 4:19pm (0.7 m) · Wind up to 21 km/h · Waves 0.7 m
Safe window: 3:31pm – 6:31pm
Leave the beach by 6:31pm — 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 0.8 m low tide falls towards evening.
18° · overcast · Low tide: 4:50am (0.7 m), 5:31pm (0.8 m) · Wind up to 24 km/h · Waves 1.3 m
Safe window: 6:16am – 6:50am
Leave the beach by 6:50am — 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 0.8 m low tide falls first thing. Daylight cuts the collecting window to under 45 minutes, so don't plan a long session.
17° · overcast · Low tide: 5:50am (0.8 m), 6:26pm (0.9 m) · Wind up to 24 km/h · Waves 1.2 m
Look among the loose flat stones between the ledges at low water — ammonites show as coiled outlines on slab surfaces. The big spectacle here is in the ledges themselves: photograph, don't extract. The Etches Collection in the village shows what this bay can produce.
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: Small loose fossils from the beach may be collected for personal use.
Never allowed: No hammering, digging or extraction from bedrock or ledges — Kimmeridge sits in a Marine Conservation Zone with stricter rules than neighbouring beaches.
Important finds: Check current rules with the Wild Seas Centre before collecting; scientifically significant finds belong with The Etches Collection in the village.
Rules can change — check locally before you collect.
Detailed location guide at UK Fossils →
Toll road to a car park above the bay (Smedmore Estate).
Toilets and the Wild Seas Centre; The Etches Collection museum in the village.
Short walk down to the ledges; slipway access.
Wave-cut ledges are extremely slippery and flood quickly on a rising tide. Cliff falls east and west of the bay — keep off the cliff base.
Fossil Forecast