| Dorset shares its
borders with Devon, Somerset, Wiltshire, Hampshire, and the sea.
The jewel
in Dorset's crown is its coast, most of it designated a Heritage Coast .
Lulworth Cove, Durdle Door, Chesil Beach and Weymouth are well known, but
a short walk from these places leads to equally spectacular but much
quieter areas.
Inland are the chalk and limestone hills extending up to central
Dorset. Here are the wide spaces, the open skies and extensive views. Two ridge ways
extend across Dorset. The southernmost runs eastward from
Abbotsbury to the coast at Ringstead and eastward again across the
Isle of Purbeck to the chalk cliffs near Swanage. The northern ridge way cuts across central Dorset and links the East Devon hills to the
downs of Cranborne Chase.
The vales of Dorset, to the west, have retained
a pattern of small fields, mature hedgerows and small fields. This is a
more compact and secretive type of landscape with hidden villages and
lanes, lush meadows and rivers banked with willow and alder. The highest point in
Dorset Lewesdon Hill is in the west as is Pilsdon Pen
which many people mistakenly believe to be the highest.
In the east, around
the towns of Christchurch, Bournemouth, Poole also the valley of the river Frome north
of the Purbeck chalk downs, are remains of heath land - once part of a great area
of heath stretching from the New Forest into the heart of Dorset , and
much featured in the novels of Thomas Hardy.
Dorset Facts:
- The county covers 2653 square kilometers
- 1,126 sq kilometers of Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty covering 50% of
the County
- A coastline, virtually all of which is defined as Heritage Coast
- 143 Sites of Scientific Interest
- 9 National Nature Reserves
- 861 Scheduled Ancient Monuments
- 224 Conservation Areas
- 53% of the county is designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural
Beauty
- 50 % of the population of the county is in the Bournemouth/Poole
conurbation
- 3,000 miles of rights of way made
up of approximately 4700 footpaths, 1700 bridleways and 37 byways open
to all traffic. The majority of these are maintained by
Dorset County Council, the remainder by the Unitary
Authorities of Poole and Bournemouth.
- There is moor, heath and down, but no mountains
- There are no motorways in the county
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The
Ramblers’ Association is a company limited by guarantee, registered in
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Charity in England and Wales number: 1093577. Registered office: 2nd
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