Ringstead Bay

Spend a day on this quiet stretch of the West Dorset coast where you can take a walk across the cliff tops above Ringstead, bring a kite, or pack a picnic and follow one of the steep ancient tracks down to the shingle beach. The water is incredibly clear and safe for bathing.

Part of the Jurassic coastline, on a fine day there are great views across Weymouth Bay to Portland. If you walk out to White Nothe, you will pass above Burning Cliff which once caught fire due its composition of oil shale and iron pyorites.

The chalk grassland around Ringstead is home to a profusion of birds, rare butterflies and wild flowers.

Winged wonders: Skylarks and butterfly varieties, including chalk-hill blue and Lulworth skipper

Wildflowers: Knapweed, field scabious, lady's bedstraw and bird's foot trefoil

The undercliff beneath White Nothe was formed by recurring landslides over the centuries. This tangled area is a haven for wildlife including roe deer, foxes and badgers.