Durdle Door
If you have a vivid imagination, Durdle Door, a natural stone arch near Lulworth Cove on the Dorset Coast, looks like a serpent, or a dinosaur rising from the sea. The idea seems less far fetched when you consider that this is part of England's Jurassic Coast, a UNESCO World Heritage site where tectonic forces have pushed some of the oldest rocks on earth to the surface.
Some of England's first dinosaur fossils were found here and fossil finds from as long ago as the Triassic Era (250 to 200 million years ago) can still be seen in the rock face or picked up on the beach. At Lulworth, most finds are from the Jurassic Era, 200 to 140 million years ago. Lucky fossil hunters have found ammonites, belemnites and ichthyosaur vertebrae.
You don't have to be into very ancient bones to enjoy the way the sun and sea create a changing play of colors on Durdle Door. It's beside a small shingle beach. But a short walk over the headlands (or from the car park above) will take you to the gentle waters of horseshoe-shaped Lulworth Bay and the soft, white pebble beach at Lulworth Cove — all the makings for a fine day out.
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How to See It
Durdle Door is just west of West Lulworth on the B3070. Access by path and steps is through the Durdle Door Holiday Park, or by the Southwest Coast path and steps over the hill from the Lulworth Cove car park (about a mile and a half walk). If you choose to come by train, you can catch the Monday through Saturday bus service (104) from Wool Station on the London Waterloo to Weymouth line to the holiday park entrance. (Check National Rail Enquiries for schedules). There are alsoboat trips to Durdle Door from Weymouth Harbour and Lulworth Cove.