The Unconformity

The coast around Sidmouth offers beautiful coastal scenery and rich geology.  The red rocks, capped by yellow Upper Greensand and white Chalk, dominate the views.

This contrast is produced because the gap between the Triassic and the Cretaceous is such a well marked ‘unconformity' between rocks of different ages.  In this part of the World Heritage Site, the Jurassic rocks have been completely eroded away.

The surrounding hills form a plateau rising inland from 200 to 350 metres.  This is an ancient land surface produced by erosion over 40 million years ago in tropical climate.