Jacob's Ladder

The iconic white wooden steps of Jacob's Ladder are a familiar sight, a simple stairway connecting Sidmouth's western beach to the gardens above. Thousands climb them each year, pausing to admire the view of the red cliffs and sparkling sea. But what if this straightforward structure was more than just a path? What if it was a gateway to a much deeper story, one of geology, resilient life, and the vastness of deep time, all written into the surrounding landscape?

Jacob's Ladder is a distinct area on the western side of Sidmouth. It comprises not just the famous wooden staircase, but also the shingle beach below, the man-made Clifton Walkway, and the dramatic red cliffs that define this stretch of coast. The ladder itself provides the main pedestrian access from the beach to the beautifully maintained Connaught Gardens perched on the clifftop.

This entire area is a vital component of the Jurassic Coast, a UNESCO World Heritage Site recognized for its outstanding geological value. Although the land immediately surrounding the steps has been extensively landscaped over the years for pathways and access—leading to its official classification as a 'brownfield' site—it remains a rich and surprisingly wild natural environment, where geology and biology intersect in fascinating ways.

The most striking feature of the Sidmouth coastline is the vibrant colour of its cliffs. These red-rock formations are a window into the Triassic period, over 200 million years ago. The lower, orange-brown layers are the Otter Sandstone, while the cliffs higher up and to the west are composed of the red-brown Mercia Mudstone. Together, they tell a story of an ancient world—a vast, arid or semi-arid desert landscape crossed by powerful river systems. The rocks themselves hold clues to this lost world. Look closely at fallen blocks of Otter Sandstone and you may find rhizoconcretions—complex networks of carbonate-cemented tubes that are the fossilised root systems of plants that once struggled to survive in this desert.

Even more dramatically, east of Pennington Point, a very well-defined seismite bed reveals a history of violent upheaval. This "earthquake bed," with its characteristic "ball-and-pillow" structure, was formed when powerful Triassic earthquakes liquefied the water-saturated sediment, preserving a moment of ancient tectonic activity in the stone.

The specific topography of Jacob's Ladder owes its existence to a major geological fault that runs through this exact location. Tectonic forces pushed a slice of the older Otter Sandstone upwards against the younger Mercia Mudstones. This structural weakness facilitated the erosion of the wider Sid Valley and created the specific topography that allows the modern wooden steps to descend to the beach. This fundamental geological structure not only shaped the physical landscape we see today but also created the unique niches for the specialised wildlife that thrives on these precarious slopes.

The cliffs, walls, and grassy banks around Jacob's Ladder are a challenging place for plants to grow. Exposed to salt spray and drying winds, only the most specialized species can survive here. These plants, known as halophytes, have evolved remarkable adaptations to cope with the salty conditions. Many have succulent, waxy leaves to store water and prevent moisture loss, while others grow in low, dense cushions to protect themselves from the constant salt-laden winds.

The area is a showcase for these coastal specialists:

• Rock Samphire (Crithmum maritimum): A distinctive plant with fleshy, succulent leaves that can be cooked and eaten.

• Thrift (Armeria maritima): Also known as Sea Pink, its dense, cushion-like form helps it conserve water and withstand the wind.

• Sea Campion (Silene uniflora): This plant forms a low-growing carpet on the shingle, growing in compact clumps to survive the harsh beach environment.

• Buck's-horn Plantain (Plantago coronopus): Though common near coasts, this plant is primarily found around Jacob's Ladder in Sidmouth, its uniquely shaped leaves forming rosettes close to the ground.

• Silver Ragwort (Senecio cineraria): Found on the grassy banks below Connaught Gardens, its silver leaves are striking, and in mid-summer, its flower heads become a gathering point for colourful Six-spot Burnet Moths.

One of the most interesting botanical stories belongs to the Danish Scurvy-grass (Cochlearia danica). This salt-loving plant has a substantial colony along the access road but was completely absent from local Victorian botanical surveys. It is believed to have arrived relatively recently, its seeds likely transported to Sidmouth on the boots of sailors.

The high cliffs of Peak Hill provide the perfect hunting ground for the area's apex aerial predator, the Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus). This raptor, the fastest animal on Earth, uses the clifftop vantage points to spot its prey before executing a breathtaking high-speed dive, or "stoop," at speeds that can exceed 180 mph. Along the rocky sea defences by the walkway, you may also spot the Rock Pipit (Anthus petrosus), a small, streaky brown bird that is perfectly camouflaged against the stones as it forages for small invertebrates.

The rich plant life on the banks provides food and shelter for a variety of insects. On sunny summer days, the flowers attract butterflies like the Gatekeeper and Small Copper. The striking day-flying Six-spot Burnet Moth is a common sight, its bright red and black colouring a classic example of aposematism—a warning to predators that it is toxic, a defence derived from cyanide compounds sequestered from its food plants. The metallic green Rose Chafer beetle can also be seen flying clumsily between flowers.

Perhaps the most remarkable insect resident is one whose story is uniquely tied to this location. The Cliff Furrow Bee (Lasioglossum angusticeps) was first described to science from a specimen collected in Sidmouth in 1895. This insect's very existence here is a direct consequence of the local geology; it relies on the sun-baked clay of the Mercia Mudstone cliffs, exposed by coastal erosion, to build its nests.

Down on the shore, the intertidal zone at Chit Rocks presents one of the most hostile environments in the region, where organisms endure an "extreme amphibious life." Twice a day, they are submerged by the tide and then exposed to the drying sun and wind. The rock pools here provide a refuge for creatures like the Common Shore Crab. Perhaps the most perfectly adapted resident is the Limpet, which grazes on algae at high tide. As the water recedes, it returns to its own custom-made "home scar" on the rock—a groove it has ground down over time to create a perfect seal, protecting it from drying out and from being pulled from its home.

Jacob's Ladder is far more than a convenient staircase or a picturesque photo opportunity. It is a dynamic intersection where deep geological time, specialized botany, and tenacious zoology are woven together. Here, the story of the natural world is written on a grand scale, from an ancient fault line that dictates the shape of the land, to the specialist bees that carve their homes directly into the Triassic mudstone revealed by erosion. The next time you visit a familiar landmark, take a moment to look beyond the obvious. You may find that, like Jacob's Ladder, it holds a hidden world of natural history waiting to be discovered.