Daddy Hole fossils and fossil collecting

Head into Torquay. The best way to find Daddy Hole is to follow signposts to 'Kents Cavern'. When you reach Kents Cavern, the narrow road winds down and around heading towards Torbay. Follow this road. The road then runs along the promenade, you will immediately see cliffs, part of Hopes Nose. Follow this road to the end of the Promenade and it will start to veer inland and climb a hill. These cliffs form part of Daddy Hole. There is a car park halfway up the hill on the left with some bottle banks in it. Park here and walk down the footpath to the promenade. Alternatively you can park along the promenade and walk to Daddy Hole. Climb up and over the large rock and you will immediately see Daddy Hole Quarry.

GRID REF: 50.45556°N, 3.51283°W

corals, trilobites, bivalves

Daddy Hole once a highly productive quarry now forms part of the Torquay Coastline, rich in Devonian Corals this site is now a special site of scientific interest. Corals can be found both within the quarry and foreshore scree slopes.

Medium

Although the find frequency is set at 'Medium', collecting Devonian Corals is something that requires a little understanding and acceptance that these fossils are poorly preserved and often difficult to see. They are still just as important as lets say 'ammonites from the Jurassic', you just have to take a step backwards and be satisfied with the finds you make.

Not for Children

This location is too dangerous for family trips or children, this is really for the enthusiast or professional.

Fairly Good Access

Although there is a good car park at the top of the hill, access is limited and poor due to the lack of a beach. The tidal conditions make this location quite dangerous.

Quarry, Cliffs, Foreshore

Daddy Hole used to be a quarry which has now been cut by the tide. There are also foreshore ledges which contain corals as well as within the scree slopes and the old quarry itself.

SSSI - No Collecting
No Hammering

This location is an SSSI and has strict rules for fossil hunters, which includes no hammering and no collecting of specimens. You can of course photograph the specimens.

Common sense when collecting at all locations should be taken. Daddy Hole Quarry has some very steep and tall faces, please keep away from the base of these faces as rocks do occasionally fall. Hard Hats are recommended. The biggest danger at Daddy Hole is the tides. Because Daddy Hole now forms part of the coast, the tides can become very fierce. It is very easy to become cut off from the tide and during extreme high water, it is impossible to get down to Daddy Hole. The Rocks form large deep channels and are slippery. Extreme care must be taken at this location at all times.

Daddy Hole
Tide Times

UK Tidal data is owned by Crown Copyright, and therefore sadly we are not allowed to display tide times without paying expensive annual contracts. However we sell them via our store, including FREE POSTAGE
Click here to buy a tide table

Last updated:	2008
last visited:	2003
Written by:	Alister and Alison Cruickshanks

Other Locations similar to Hookend

There are a number of locations along the Torquay Coastline that are good for corals, another is Hopes Nose . There are other areas such as Derbyshire and the Lake District where you can find Carboniferous Corals, but by far the most famous county is Shropshire, locations such as Llanymynech Quarry with its Carboniferous Limestone which is on the Welsh Borderline, Upper Millichope, Shadwell Quarry, Wenlock Quarry, Wenlock Edge, Mortimer Forest, and The Onny Trail all Silurian rocks and highly fossilferious.

In Avon, you can collect Corals from Weston-Super-Mare and Portishead and Castleton, Parkhouse Hill, in the Derbyshire district. In South West Wales, you can also find Silurian Corals from Freshwater East, Marloes Sands. In Scotland, you can also find corals at St Monans.

From South Wales, Carboniferous Corals can be found at Lydstep Headland, West Angle Bay and Manorbier Bay. For Corals from Younger period, the Coralline Crag at Ramsholt makes ideal collecting. For collecting Bryozoans, Ramsholt and Thorpeness in Suffolk is another good location, you can also find Bryozoans from Aberlady in Scotland.


Torquay is rich in Devonian Corals, if your lucky you can find superb corals that standout from the rocks. The best place to look is firstly from the scree slopes at Daddy hole, this is much easier to collect since the bedrock is very hard and scree slopes do all the work for you. The other very good place to look is on the rocks from the foreshore, these contain corals which can be knocked out using a hammer and chisel, the sea keeps them fresh and makes it easier to see the corals. The corals are more harder to see when they are dry. There is plenty of corals to be found, it can take time to get used to the shape, pattern and colour if you are not used to collecting corals from the Devonian period.

Devonian, 385mya

Daddyhole Limestone

At Daddy Hole, the rocks are Middle Devonian of the Eifelian Stage. Approximately 380 to 391 million years ago. Indications suggest that at Daddy Hole, the marine life lived and died in shallow. quiet water. The Thinly bedded limestone's vary from calcareous mud's to fragmental limestone's. Fossils can be found both in the limestone's and the calcareous mud within sandy deposits and were abundant in colonies which is why groups of fossils can be found together...[more]


The Corals from the Devonian Rocks of Torquay are well documented. Some of the best corals come from here. They are normally a pinkish white which stands out from the rocks. There are quite a few different species of Coral, the most common is the round type. Trilobites can also be found in the past along the Torquay Coastline but these are quite rare. Coral from Daddy Hole, Devon. Coral from Daddy Hole, Devon.

Geological Tools

The rocks at Daddy Hole are very hard, but the fossils can be easily extracted using the right tools. You may also find that some corals that show up clearly on the day, may look very faded when you take them home, wash them well and polish them and they will look as good as they did on the day.

Stone Tumblers

Microscopes

Test Sieves for Microfossils

If you are interested in fossil collecting, then you may also be interested in a stone tumbler (Lapidary). You can polish stones and rocks from the beach which will look fantastic polished using a stone tumbler.

You can polish rough rock and beach glass whilst collecting fossils, on those days where you come back empty handed. These are all high quality machines to give a professional finish to your samples. They can even be used for amber and fossils.

At most locations, you can find microfossils. You only need a small sample of the sand. You then need to wash it in water and sieve using a test sieve. Once the sand is processed, you can then view the contents using a microscope.

We have a wide range of microscopes for sale, you will need a Stereomicroscope for viewing microfossils. The best one we sell is the IMXZ, but a basic microscope will be fine. Once you have found microfossils, you will need to store these microfossils.

Test Sieves are used when searching for microfossils. Microfossils can be found in many locations, and all you need is a small amount of sample such as clays, sands and shales, or if you have acid, limestone, oolite or chalk.

Our UKGE Store sells Endecotts Test Sieves, which are the highest in accuracy and extremely durable and long lasting. These Test Sieves are fantastic for microfossils. Endecotts Test Sieves come in a variety of sizes, frame material and types, they are certificated to EU Standards.

Our International Rock and Fossil Magazine