Suffolk Geosites

Everything listed in this section is publicly accessible or easily viewable and the huge variety means there is 'something for everyone'.

GeoSuffolk is not responsible for information on or safety of sites listed; consult tide times for extra beach safety.

Geodiversity in Babergh

This is a fine area to enjoy estuaries – be aware of tide times. The local ‘London Clay’ plays a major part - in cliff exposures and on foreshores, as a feature of landslipping, and, when recycled by the rivers, as a contributor to the modern estuary mud. In the west the River Stour has dissected the landscape giving this area some of the steepest slopes in Suffolk and it has cut down into the underlying Chalk around Sudbury.

Geodiversity in Forest Heath

The oldest Chalk in Suffolk underlies this district; hard bands were once much used for buildings. Flint occurs in the Chalk in the Brandon area and was once in demand (for guns) over much of the world; it is also seen in many buildings. Some of the earliest flint implements of humans in north-west Europe have been found here in gravels of a long-lost river system destroyed by the vast ice sheets which deposited ‘ice age’ clays and sands. The former extent of present day river systems is preserved as gravel terraces above the modern flood plains.

Geodiversity in Ipswich

Ipswich is well worth exploring for geological interest. The local Sarsen stones are great favourites. Some parks have unexpected seepages of ground water at the Red Crag/London Clay boundary – some are left in their natural state, others are gathered into ponds. The Museum’s collections are especially rich in local fossils, but also contain surprises such as Indian fossil mammals. A walk through the town centre will reveal a wealth of building stones and surely everyone should have their photograph taken in ‘Fossil Animal Dropping Street’ (Coprolite Street) – a reminder of the former artificial fertiliser industry. Take a look at our GeoIpswich leaflet.

Geodiversity in Mid-Suffolk

The River Gipping has cut a swathe through the Mid-Suffolk landscape, exposing a full range of Suffolk geological strata – Chalk, Tertiary deposits, Crag sands and glacial deposits. For well over a century it has been the scene of economic use of geology – Chalk for agriculture and cement, glacial boulder clay for cement, and sand and gravel for the construction industry. Gravel has been excavated from several geological horizons including valley-bottom sites now occupied by lakes. Smaller valleys often show characteristic solution and erosion features.

Geodiversity in St Edmundsbury

Chalk underlies the area, and old underground workings have been prone to collapse. Overlying glacial clay is seldom exposed but periglacial features are recorded from several localities, as are interglacial river deposits (not well exposed and mainly on private ground). Bury St Edmunds Cathedral is built of a fine selection of (non-local) limestones.

Geodiversity in Suffolk Coastal

A wonderful coast for geological variety: Red Crag on London Clay at Bawdsey with other crags to the north; landslips in the estuaries, natural cliffs and the magnificent Orford Ness shingle spit. The fine tourist resorts of Felixstowe and Aldeburgh make excellent bases for exploring the coast. Ninety per cent of the Coralline Crag – a rock type unique to Suffolk – occurs in Suffolk Coastal DC. ‘Boxstones’ (brown sandstone nodules), the debris of the Victorian ‘coprolite industry, may be seen in the walls of Sutton and Shottisham churches. Searles Valentine Wood, a local geologist hero lies commemorated at Melton Old Church.

Geodiversity in Waveney

The easternmost District of England has much to offer the geologist and the tourist. Miles of sea-cliffs expose Crag sands and gravels, ‘Forest Bed’ deposits, with very rare flint implements of early humans, and ‘chalky boulder clay’ deposited by ice-sheets during the Ice Age. Modern coastal processes form cliffs and beaches, often changing within a year or even hours. Inland, the Waveney river valley and its gravel and peat deposits forms an attractive landscape.