Blue Anchor slipway
Blue Anchor Bay is an open embayment of the Bristol Channel, part of the Blue Anchor to Lilstock Coast geological Site of Special Scientific Interest, whose Jurassic and Triassic cliffs are streaked with alabaster, a form of gypsum that gave rise to the colour name "Watchet Blue". The West Somerset Railway runs immediately behind the beach, with Watchet harbour about two miles east and the Welsh coast visible across the channel to the north.
The rock sequence here is notified for reptile fossils, including complete skeletons, preserved in the cliffs of Triassic and Early Jurassic rock.
A rock-armour scheme, completed by Somerset Council in 2023, now runs along the upper beach to protect the sea wall and the railway line immediately behind it. Blue Anchor station sits right behind the beach, with the view west taking in Minehead and Dunster.
Nearby
Beachside cafe and restaurant on Blue Anchor Bay Road, open all year.
Touring and camping site on the seafront; the Riverside area is open to non-members from March to October. A separate Camping and Caravanning Club area on the same site is members-only.
WebsiteHoliday park on the seafront with touring caravan pitches open to the public, alongside static holiday caravans.
WebsiteConditions to check
The Bristol Channel here has one of the world's largest tidal ranges, with a fast-rising tide that can cut people off.
SourceAt low water the sea retreats a long way from the slipway over sand and soft mud, which can trap people caught out as the tide turns.
SourceThe coast's intertidal shore platforms mean the foreshore is not consistently soft sand underfoot.
SourceQuestions
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