Hooken Beach

This long stretch of pebble beach, set at the foot of dramatic 400ft cliffs, lies just to the west of Beer Head. Joining up with Branscombe beach to the west, this is probably the easiest way to access Hooken beach. Alternatively you can walk along the coast path from Beer.

Hooken Cliffs are widely regarded as one of the best spots for fossil hunting in Devon with fish, ammonites and brachiopods all regularly found here. However, as with many such sites the cliffs are unstable so car is needed.

The backdrop to the beach is the Hooken Undercliff. This is where the chalk cliff has in effect split into two distinct levels. Caused by a massive landslide in 1790 a 10 acre tract of land separated and slid 200 feet down the cliffs virtually in one piece. Today this forms a sheltered wooded area with chalk pinnacles and a cave. It is said this cave was used by the notorious smuggler Jack Rattenbury to store contraband in.