Tag: fossils

Sandown..Isle of Wight.

Sandown is a beautiful seaside town just about five miles from where I live in Bembridge . The sand is great and clean and you can walk for miles and the views are amazing . In the distance you can see Culver down with its monument easy to see.

Sandown has a pier that opened in 1875 and is 260 metres long . Today it holds an amusement arcade , indoor ten pin bowling and a children’s play area it is open all the year round but the end of the pier is open from April.

Sandown nearest neighbours are Shanklin with its wonderful thatched roofed houses and cottages and a theatre which is over 100 years old and in regular use for shows and plays . also a beautiful beach and a great walk along the beach back to Sandown about a mile ..A few miles away is the Roman villa and museum at nearby Brading . , which is a must to visit .

Things to do ..

Dinosaur museum

(these 4 photos are from Dinosaur museum site )

The island is a great place for fossils so no better to have the Dinosaur museum in Sandown within walking distance of the beach .

It is the Uk’s first purpose built dinosaur museum , Walk back through fossilised time where you will find wonderful fossils found on the island. You will also find life-sized dinosaur including Neovenator.. Guided fossil hunts ( which must be booked ) are also available.

http://www.dinosaurisle.com

Wildheart trust

The Wildheart trust is in Sandown next to the Dinosaur museum ,it is a registered charity which is dedicated to saving endangered species and animals especially lions and tigers that have been ill treated in circuses and zoos across the world .

Visit the Wildlife sanctuary and see for yourself the difference they are making to the lives of the rescued animals .

There is an incredible variety of animals from lemurs and lions to meerkats that they have rescued but at the same time hope to raise peoples awareness of our planet and the animals we share it with .

www.wildheartanimalsanctuary.org

Brading Roman villa.

The Roman villa is situated overlooking Sandown , the Roman villa is one of the finest Roman sites in the UK. The award winning visitor centre and museum offer unique insight into Roman life in Britain from beautiful mosaic floors an extensive collection of Roman archaeology.

www.bradingromanvilla.org.uk

All photos on here are taken by me unless otherwise stated .

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Whitecliff Bay…Bembridge.

Whitecliff Bay is a sandy bay which is at the eastern most point of the Isle of Wight and about a mile from where I live in Bembridge . It is one of my favourite beaches especially at the end of the tourist season when the beach is usually quiet , perfect place for walking a dog which you can do on this beach all year. When people ask on Social media what are the best beaches to go to on the island I am often reluctant to comment as I love the quiet . The island is very often like a retreat and I would not want to be anywhere else .

To get to the bay you have to go through one of two caravan park which are private owned but once there it is so worthwhile with miles of walking ….but don’t get cut off by the tide… .Access is limited and only possible down two steep sloping concrete tracks.

Whitecliff Bay is renowned for its fossils and wildlife.

The site is of major geological interest being part of the Whitecliff bay and Bembridge ledges. Many groups enjoy the bay to research and explore findings.

It is a Site of Special Scientific interest which is from Bembridge Harbour around Foreland to Whitecliff bay. The site was notified in 1955 for both it’s biological and geological features.

Below are a few cliffs that are by the beach and most have fossils in .The first one has a seam of thousands of tiny shells going from top to bottom , the others have shells imbedded in them .

There are always treasures to be found, Sea glass which has been in the solent for possibly hundreds of years and china that has probably at some stage been thrown overboard from boats . Below a few of my finds which I have collected along with rubbish.

Culver Down.

The beach is surrounded by cliffs with access to Culver down with stunning views looking towards Sandown and beyond. Anyone can walk along the coastal path from here and get to the top of Culver Down within about twenty minutes.

Historically Culver has been known for breeding Peregrines as well as common Woodpigeons ( Culvers) the source of the cliffs name.You often see Cattle grazing there now plus there are wild flowers and orchids to be found .

French invasion 1545

Whitecliff Bay was invaded by the French in 1545 .On the 21st July the French landed on the Isle of Wight on Whitecliff Bay and would try and cross Bembridge Down in order to attack Sandown , another party landed at Bonchurch with the intention of linking up at Sandown .

The French force was intercepted crossing from it’s beachhead at Whitecliff bay to attack Sandown by locals under Sir John Oglander and a skirmish was fought on the down . The French were finally repulsed at Sandown.

The Battle of the Solent on 19th July 1545 saw 200 French ships attempt to invade England .It also saw the last action of the Mary Rose.

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Findings on the beach.

While walking on the beaches on the island , its amazing what you can find while walking and keeping your head down . ..and having patience ! But you can come across some lovely bits of china or sea glass that have usually fallen from ships or boats.

We have mainly found china pieces along the beach by the side of Ryde or Sandown pier as well as sea glass. I love the bits that have writing on that would have started out as an earthen ware container.

My favourite to collect is blue china , which is usually well worn and and a bit faded in colour but amazing how the colours are still good considering the time some of it has been in the solent .

Then there are handles which of course at one time would have been joined to a cup , mug or jug .

My best find was down by Ryde Pier it is what they apparently call a pie crust dish obviously because of the base . We took it to Newport museum to be checked and was told by the expert there that it was 16th century which makes it round about Henry VIII s reign..So exciting . One of my most treasured pieces.

Sea Glass

Sea glass is naturally weathered glass which often looks like tumbled stones and is found along shores and beaches. It looks like frosted glass and is tumbled and tossed about in salt water until the edges are smooth and the glass loses its slick appearance .

Sea glass takes 20 – 40 years and sometimes over 100 years to get its appearance.

most common colours are colours of sea glass are brown , green white and clear and generally come from beverage bottles. Less common are types of green which comes from early to mid 1900s they come from ink , fruit and baking soda bottles . These are found in every 50 – 100 pieces.

Less common also is blue from early milk and magnesia bottles ,poison bottles and Vick vapour rub containers.These colours are found once for every 200 – 1000 pieces found.

All photos on this site are my originals taken by me on the beautiful island of the Isle of Wight.

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