Samphire Hoe Country Park
Encyclopedia
Samphire Hoe Country Park is a country park
situated 3 kilometres west of Dover
in southeast England. The park was created by using 4.9 million cubic metres of chalk
marl
from the Channel Tunnel
excavations and is found at the bottom of a section of the White Cliffs of Dover
. The site is owned by Eurotunnel
Ltd., and managed by the White Cliffs Countryside Project.
that was once collected from the Dover cliffs; its fleshy green leaves were picked in May and pickled in barrels of brine and sent to London, where it was served as a dish to accompany meat. A 'hoe' is a piece of land which sticks out into the sea.
railway. In 1880 an attempt was made from the site to create a tunnel that would pass under the English Channel
but it failed shortly afterwards. In 1895 a coal mine was sunk there but this closed in 1921 after being very unsuccessful. These activities were served by Shakespeare Cliff Halt railway station
at the western end of the Shakespeare Cliff tunnel; the remains of the platforms can be seen from the road to the car park.
In the 1980s the site was deemed the most suitable out of 60 proposed to dump chalk from Channel Tunnel excavations and work began on it in 1988. As the 30 hectares that make up the park were totally reclaimed from the sea the first job to be completed was the building of walls in the sea to create an artificial lagoon
. It was completed in 1994 and opened by Queen Elizabeth II and President François Mitterrand
. It became open to the public in 1997.
on the sea wall and bird watching are some of the activities available. The park is open between 7am and dusk
admittance is free and car parking is £1. It is very wheelchair friendly and an education room is available for school use.
Country park
A country park is an area designated for people to visit and enjoy recreation in a countryside environment.-History:In the United Kingdom the term 'Country Park' has a special meaning. There are over 400 Country Parks in England alone . Most Country Parks were designated in the 1970s, under the...
situated 3 kilometres west of Dover
Dover
Dover is a town and major ferry port in the home county of Kent, in South East England. It faces France across the narrowest part of the English Channel, and lies south-east of Canterbury; east of Kent's administrative capital Maidstone; and north-east along the coastline from Dungeness and Hastings...
in southeast England. The park was created by using 4.9 million cubic metres of chalk
Chalk
Chalk is a soft, white, porous sedimentary rock, a form of limestone composed of the mineral calcite. Calcite is calcium carbonate or CaCO3. It forms under reasonably deep marine conditions from the gradual accumulation of minute calcite plates shed from micro-organisms called coccolithophores....
marl
Marl
Marl or marlstone is a calcium carbonate or lime-rich mud or mudstone which contains variable amounts of clays and aragonite. Marl was originally an old term loosely applied to a variety of materials, most of which occur as loose, earthy deposits consisting chiefly of an intimate mixture of clay...
from the Channel Tunnel
Channel Tunnel
The Channel Tunnel is a undersea rail tunnel linking Folkestone, Kent in the United Kingdom with Coquelles, Pas-de-Calais near Calais in northern France beneath the English Channel at the Strait of Dover. At its lowest point, it is deep...
excavations and is found at the bottom of a section of the White Cliffs of Dover
White cliffs of Dover
The White Cliffs of Dover are cliffs which form part of the British coastline facing the Strait of Dover and France. The cliffs are part of the North Downs formation. The cliff face, which reaches up to , owes its striking façade to its composition of chalk accentuated by streaks of black flint...
. The site is owned by Eurotunnel
Eurotunnel
Groupe Eurotunnel S.A. manages and operates the Channel Tunnel between Britain and France. The Company operates the car shuttle services and earns revenue on other trains passing through the tunnel...
Ltd., and managed by the White Cliffs Countryside Project.
Origin of the name
Samphire Hoe is named after the rock samphireRock samphire
Samphire or rock samphire, Crithmum maritimum, is the sole species of the genus Crithmum. It is an edible wild plant found on southern and western coasts of Britain and Ireland, on mediterranean and western coasts of Europe including the Canary Islands, North Africa and the Black Sea...
that was once collected from the Dover cliffs; its fleshy green leaves were picked in May and pickled in barrels of brine and sent to London, where it was served as a dish to accompany meat. A 'hoe' is a piece of land which sticks out into the sea.
History of the area
The cliffs above the current park were blown up with gunpowder in 1843 to aid the creation of the Dover to FolkestoneFolkestone
Folkestone is the principal town in the Shepway District of Kent, England. Its original site was in a valley in the sea cliffs and it developed through fishing and its closeness to the Continent as a landing place and trading port. The coming of the railways, the building of a ferry port, and its...
railway. In 1880 an attempt was made from the site to create a tunnel that would pass under the English Channel
English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
but it failed shortly afterwards. In 1895 a coal mine was sunk there but this closed in 1921 after being very unsuccessful. These activities were served by Shakespeare Cliff Halt railway station
Shakespeare Cliff Halt railway station
Shakespeare Cliff Halt is a private halt station on the South Eastern Main Line. It is located to the western end of the dual bore Shakespeare Cliff tunnel on the South Eastern Main Line to Folkestone...
at the western end of the Shakespeare Cliff tunnel; the remains of the platforms can be seen from the road to the car park.
In the 1980s the site was deemed the most suitable out of 60 proposed to dump chalk from Channel Tunnel excavations and work began on it in 1988. As the 30 hectares that make up the park were totally reclaimed from the sea the first job to be completed was the building of walls in the sea to create an artificial lagoon
Lagoon
A lagoon is a body of shallow sea water or brackish water separated from the sea by some form of barrier. The EU's habitat directive defines lagoons as "expanses of shallow coastal salt water, of varying salinity or water volume, wholly or partially separated from the sea by sand banks or shingle,...
. It was completed in 1994 and opened by Queen Elizabeth II and President François Mitterrand
François Mitterrand
François Maurice Adrien Marie Mitterrand was the 21st President of the French Republic and ex officio Co-Prince of Andorra, serving from 1981 until 1995. He is the longest-serving President of France and, as leader of the Socialist Party, the only figure from the left so far elected President...
. It became open to the public in 1997.
Tourism
The park now attracts around 110,000 visitors per year. Walking, cycling, anglingAngling
Angling is a method of fishing by means of an "angle" . The hook is usually attached to a fishing line and the line is often attached to a fishing rod. Fishing rods are usually fitted with a fishing reel that functions as a mechanism for storing, retrieving and paying out the line. The hook itself...
on the sea wall and bird watching are some of the activities available. The park is open between 7am and dusk
Dusk
Dusk is the beginning of darkness in the evening, and occurs after twilight, when the sky generally remains bright and blue. Civil dusk is when the earth has rotated enough that the center of the sun is at 6° below the local horizon...
admittance is free and car parking is £1. It is very wheelchair friendly and an education room is available for school use.