The Devonian sandstones which make up this part of the coast were laid down 400 million years ago.

East of Lynton and Lynmouth are the Lynton Beds, a collection of mudstones, siltstones and sandstones, which are the oldest rocks in Devon. Where they meet the Foreland Grits there is a geological fault known as the Great Red.

The shapes of the cliffs, valleys and slopes of scree date from the Ice Age.

From Watersmeet, the East Lyn River has cut one of Britain's deepest gorges. It was eroded by the action of water over many centuries when sea levels fell as ice sheets were created. Today it falls to a level of some 200 metres below the local upland plateau.

Much of the Watersmeet area is protected as a Site of Special Scientific Interest because of it's important semi-natural woodlands, it's coastal heath and it's geology.

• Take a look at the Natural England website
  for more more information and a map