Langton Herring to Portland Harbour Shore
The influence of the Weymouth anticline is evidenced on this stretch of the World Heritage Site between Abbotsbury and White Nothe. This major geological fold, which controls the rock exposure in the Weymouth area, is associated with the formation of the Alps approximately 25 million years ago.
The Jurassic geology (168-157 million years old) exposed here records a time of changing sea levels, from which an abundance of marine fossils have been unearthed, including an important record of ammonites and exquisite trace fossils in the Corallian along the shore of Portland Harbour.
Chesil Beach is one of the finest examples of a barrier beach in the World and continues to demonstrate the evolution of a dynamic shingle beach and its associated habitats. Behind Chesil beach, the Fleet Lagoon creates extensive internationally important habitats for many rare birds.
Must see areas include:
- Chesil beach
- Portland Harbour
- 2012 Olympic rings (Portland)
- Fleet Lagoon
- Abbotsbury Swannery
