High Peak, Devon

High Peak, Devon
Cliff
Peak Hill cliff face with view toSidmouthBeach
Coordinates:50.6640°N 3.2774°W/50.6640; -3.2774
Location	Devon,England

Peak Hill cliff face

High Peak(also known as Peak Hill) is a hill which is partially eroded, resulting in a cliff face, on theEnglish Channelcoastto the southwest ofSidmouth,Devon,southernEngland.Its highest point is about 157 metres (515 ft) above sea-level. It is a partially erodedIron Agehill fort, with pre-Romanand post Roman pottery found there.

History

On the edge of the cliff there are the remains of significant earthworks, which have been variously shown as having Iron Age, Roman andDark Ageoccupation. Geological study, and the lines of the earthworks suggest that the site once extended several tens of metres into what is now eroded away. General interpretation suggests that it was an Iron Age defensive site which saw re-use in the Dark Age period, perhaps as a coastal trading station.

Geology

Within the cliffs below High Peak andChit Rocksa number of very rare fossils ofTriassicfish, reptiles and amphibians have been found.

There are four rockstratain the cliff face of High Peak. The "Otter Sandstone Formation" that forms the base of the cliffs were deposited in a hot dry climates in the Triassic Period about 220 Million years ago. The deposits in the centre of the cliff face are from theMercia Mudstone Groupand were formed about 200 Million years ago.

Above these Triassic formations, there are layers ofUpper Greensand,aCretaceousrock formation about 80 Million years old.

The top of High Peak is underlain byflintgravel that was probably left behind following the solution of an original cover ofchalkduring the earlyPaleogeneperiod about 60 to 66 Million years ago.

Bibliography

• The Jurassic Coast Trust (2003).A Walk Through Time, the Official Guide to the Jurassic Coast.Coastal Publishing.ISBN978-0-9544845-0-7.