Fossils and Geology of Daddy Hole, Torquay. Fossil Collecting & Geological Guides

Location Information
	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 Suitable) This location is too dangerous for family trips or children, this is really for the enthusiast or professional.
	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 Foreshore, Cliff 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.
ACCESS RIGHTS	Access is permitted NO HAMMERS PLEASE NO HAMMERING THE CLIFF

! IMPORTANT SAFETY NOTES !

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.

Please follow our national fossil collecting code

Other Locations for collecting Corals

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 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.

Stone Tumblers (Lapidary)

Microscopes

Test Sieves for Particle Analysis

Stone Tumblers are used for tumbling and polishing rough rock, stones and pebbles including those found on the beach and glass.

Whilst collecting fossils, on those days where you come back empty handed, you could collect rocks, stones and glass from the beach and tumble then at home.

These are all high quality machines to give a professional finish to your samples. The tumblers can be used with a variety of grits, most commonly Silicon Carbide Grit and Cerium Oxide. We have a wide range of rough rocks for sale too.

Microfossils are much easier to collect because they are so small that the vast majority of collections only concentrate on large finds. These small finds can simply be found by taking small samples of sands, crags, clays and soft rocks and examining them under a microscope.

We have a wide range of microscopes for sale, both for the study of fossils, but also educational and professional for use in the laboratory. We have Stereo microscopes, Compound Microscopes, Polarising Microscopes and Monocular Microscopes.

We have thousands of Test Sieves for Particle Analysis.

Endecotts Sieves: For accurate dependable results you can't buy a better test sieve than Endecotts. At every stage of manufacture each test sieve is individually inspected.

High Precision Tecan manufactures precision apertures as small as 3 microns for a wide array of applications such as filtering, sieving and nozzles. Its high-performance, ASTM/ISO compliant test sieves satisfy the most demanding fine particle grading requirements.

Fossils and Fossil Collecting in Daddy Hole Your Torquay Geological Guide and Geology Info

Fossils and Fossil Collecting in Daddy Hole
Your Torquay Geological Guide and Geology Info