Weather: Sunny & windy
Finds: 44
I had that sinking feeling when I arrived at Beltinge - The tide didn't seem to be going out that far. Probably because there was a strong, north-easterly wind blowing in.
I decided to go for a walk along the cliff-top to kill time before seeing if the tide would show any further signs of going out. In the end I found myself in Bishopstone Glen (Officially known as Oldhaven Gap). This little valley has been cut by a small stream through the soft rocks of the London Clay, Oldhaven, Woolwich & Reading beds. It's now the first point where you get a good look at these rocks on a walk from Herne Bay. Up to this, it's all overgrown, thanks to efforts to stabilise the cliffs with sea defences. It's said that you find the odd fossil in the glen, but I've never managed it myself.
By now, it was clear the tide was showing no signs of going out any further, so I decided to try some spots closer to the beach. At first, I got nothing. These areas seem to have been taken over by mussels, making it difficult to find the actual beds. But I persisted.
After a while, I found some decent spots that at least gave me something to show for my journey. Not sure if I'm imagining it but these areas seem to produce a few more rabbit fish and eagle ray fossils than my regular spots.
Finds: 24 x S.macrota, 10 x C.hopei, 3 x rabbit fish mouthparts, 1 x eagle ray 'bar', 1 x O.winkleri, 3 x P.rutoti, 1 x S.teretidens & possible bone fragment.