Lyme Regis

I was very eager to go to Lyme Regis as this is the “birthplace” of fossil hunting. It was one of those places we postponed, until now. On our day trip to Lyme Regis we had delicious food, including vegan ice cream, Volya came with us and behaved very well, and we found a fossil on the beach!! I couldn’t be happier.

Lyme Regis is a beautiful, clean, and friendly town in west Dorset. It’s over 5 hours away from Liverpool (without traffic), so it’s unlikely we would visit again soon. But I would love to go fossil hunting again, given the opportunity. Above is Broad Street.

We took Volya to the beach where dogs aren’t allowed. She didn’t want to leave her carrier. I would have hold her, but she was happy to stay there and enjoy the view, smells, and sounds. She hates water, so this was not a surprise.

We made our way through the lovely city towards the port. We were told by a local that a dolphin was in the port and that we can see him. So, we went there. On our way we found 2 types of vegan ice cream and got one each. Both were really nice and we shared the pots between us.

The port is a working port, with fishermen doing their business, which explains why the dolphin is so happy to stay there. I understood that he is there for a while, not just on the day.

This stone-built breakwater and jetty is called the Cobb. The first recorded mention of the Cobb was in a 1328 document, as it was damaged by storms. It was a busy port for 400 of its 700 years history, until the 1700s. It is a very small harbour by modern standards. It even made an appearance in Jane Austen’s 1818 Persuasion.

Volya was happy in her carrier, but looking closely most of the time. What is very funny is that just 1 dog spotted her, when we chatted with his owner. Otherwise, she looked down on the happy dogs below, as none saw her.

This is the dolphin. We saw him jump a few times and luckily once we could take a picture at just the right time. How lovely is this? We were lucky that the man told us about the friendly dolphin.

Next on our list was a walk on the Monmouth beach where fossils can be found. The beach is named after the Duke of Monmouth who, in 1685, landed here in a failed attempt to overthrow King James II, his uncle.

Volya was out of her carrier as the dogs were very far and we had good visibility on all sides. She looked at her carrier, but didn’t go in by herself, so she was enjoying the new sights. We walked a bit with her, which means we mostly stayed in one place. She was back in the carrier and we were back at hunting for fossils. Our hunt was successful, as you can see in the picture below.

That’s a fossil of a shrimp-like animal. A lady selling fossils in her shop looked at it and explained what it is. She said that it’s a good find. I would have bought a fossil if our search was not successful, but finding one is more special than buying.

On our way back to the town centre we walked through a beautiful garden, overseeing the harbour. Volya was still paying attention to everything around her. I assumed she will fall sleep at some point, but no, she didn’t.

We stopped for lunch, enjoying some lovely vegan pasties.

This is the statue of the pioneering 19th-century palaeontologist Mary Anning. What’s very special about this statue is that it was a successful 4-year campaign started by a schoolgirl Evie Swire, then aged 11, and her mother, Anya Pearson.

Guildhall, a municipal building, is a Grade II* listed. It looks beautiful.

Lyme Regis Museum is built on the site of Mary Anning’s home, but it was closed on the day we visited. In the picture above is the church where Mary Anning was buried and below is her headstone.

We had a lovely time and Volya did too. I will display the fossil on the bookshelves as soon as I arrive home.