Kingsgate fossils and fossil collecting

Park on Marine Drive, off of Kingsgate Avenue and Percy Avenue.
There is a path down to the beach at the north-western end of the road.
Follow the path down to the beach and slowly work your way east while fossil hunting on the foreshore.
This is a beach location frequented by families and dog walkers. This location is very suitable for families.
There is plenty of free parking at the top of the cliff and a fairly short walk down to the beach via a slope and steps.

GRID REF: 51.38782°N, 1.43884°E

Echinoids brachiopods, bivalves, sponges, belemnites, corals.

This is a popular location for families and dog walkers. The chalk of the foreshore and any fallen boulders or cobbles can be investigated for fossils. Although finds are fairly plentiful, they are often broken.

Low

On a good day, numerous well preserved echinoid fossils may be found at Kingsgate. There are also bivalves, brachiopods, belemnites, crinoid pieces, fish remains etc. to collect. Unfortunately, however, on a bad day very little can be found.

Suitable for Children

This is a beach location frequented by families and dog walkers. Most of the beach is sandy, with areas of flint, and chalk exposed lower down. This location is very suitable for families.

Good Access

There is plenty of free parking at the top of the cliff and a fairly short walk down to the beach via a slope and steps. Once on the beach walking is easy enough in most areas.

Foreshore / Boulders

Fossils can be found in the chalk of the foreshore and also within boulders and cobbles. The cliffs should be avoided however.

No Restrictions

There are no restrictions at this location, but please follow our own code of conduct for all locations.

Kingsgate
Tide Times

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Keep a safe distance from the cliffs. In some places weed on the foreshore make it slippery. It is possible to become cut off by the tide so make sure you collect on a retreating tide. Make sure someone knows where you have gone and what time you expect to be back.

Last updated:	2008
last visited:	2008
Written by:	Joe Shimmin

Other Locations similar to Kingsgate

In Sussex, there are many excellent locations for collecting chalk fossils. Newhaven, Seaford, Eastbourne, Seven Sisters, Peacehaven and Beachy Head.

Kent also has some excellent locations, including Dumpton, Kingsgate, Birchington, Samphire Hoe, Pegwell Bay, Dover and St Margarets Bay.

You can also find middle chalk at Hookend Cliff, and Pinhay Bay in Devon, and at Hunstanton in Norfolk.

A good, sturdy bag and plenty of packing material, as well as a hammer and chisel are need at this location. Waterproof boots with a good grip will also come in handy.

Video: View of Kingsgate


From the foreshore where you access the beach, to the arch to the east, and beyond, is productive. Collecting must be carried out at or near to low tide to ensure that the chalk wave cut platform is accessible. In areas not covered by weed or sediment look out for echinoids, bivalves, belemnites and sponges. You will encounter many partial examples before you find a whole one. Near the arch there has been a recent cliff fall (Summer 08), the debris from which should be around for a year or so. Within the boulders and cobbles from this fall good echinoid specimens have been found as well as plentiful Marsupites crinoid pieces. In some places there are accumulations of flint pebbles. Fossils can be found amongst these too, with patience. The cliffs contain fossils also but should be avoided for safety’s sake. Foreshore chalk at Kingsgate

	Cretaceous, 85mya
At Kingsgate, the chalk is of Santonian age. It is the Margate Chalk Member. This member is Marl-free smooth white chalk with little flint and is weakly developed with iron-stained sponge beds...[more]


Cidaroid echinoid...[more]

Related Books

Microscopes

Test Sieves for Microfossils

Fossils of the Chalk

A fantastic book covering the chalk of the UK. This book covers most of the fossils that can be found in the chalk. It is a fully illustrated guide. This is the second edition of this popular book and is available from our own UK Fosils/UKGE Store.

All of our books have FREE UK Delivery, We have hundreds of geological books for sale.

At Kingsgate, you can find Microfossils from the chalk. They are much easier to collect because they are so small that you only need a small amount of chalk sample. You then need to break it down in water and view using a microscope to view these.

Chalk is actually composed of fossil shells, so you only need a small amount of sample on your microscope.

We have a wide range of microscopes for sale, you will need a Stereo microscope for viewing microfossils.

Test Sieves are used when searching for microfossils. We recommend that you use a test sieve with water at different levels. Test sieves for chalk fossils should be 300 microns, and 500 microns.

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 fully certificated to EU Standards.

Specimen Boxes for Fossil Storage