Dorset

Dorset is rich in heritage; the historical roots go deep, beyond Anglo Saxon and Roman influences, earlier even than Iron Age, back to the days when dinosaurs roamed.

West Dorset is a unique part of the country, with a magnificent coastline of some 25 miles made up of rocks and stone that date back 1160 million years. The area was designated a UK World Heritage Site as a result of its Jurassic heritage and is particularly famous for the historic discovery of the world's first Ichthyosaur. With an abundance of fossils, the coastline offers a fantastic opportunity to hunt for undiscovered dinosaur remnants.

Film-makers, TV researchers, poets and authors have all been captivated by the outstanding beauty of Dorset's landscape and coastline. Jane Austen famously set-up home in the county and adaptations of her classic love stories have been filmed on location in Dorset, while Lyme Regis was home to author John Fowles and the movie adaptation of his classic novel, 'The French Lieutenant's Woman' was also filmed locally. Most notably however, Dorset is associated with novelist and poet Thomas Hardy whose tales were based in fictional Wessex with its county town of Casterbridge being the real county town of Dorchester. Scenes from such well-known novels as "Far from the Madding Crowd" are easy to indentify on a visit to the region.

The inland scenery is equally inviting and has some of the finest country homes and gardens in the south. The area is rich in archaeological remains, along with unspoilt rural villages set in lovely countryside. With ancient hedgerows and winding country lanes this is perfect walking territory where one can spend many hours exploring the maze of footpaths, cycle routes, coastal and woodland trails and bridleways. In the east there are extensive heath lands, whilst the chalk downs in the centre of Dorset is criss-crossed by rivers and streams.