EDO6690 - Charmouth to Morcombelake, National Trust Golden Cap Estate; observations and recording

Observations and recording during laying of a new gas main from Ship Knapp, Morcombelake along the top of Stonebarrow Hill, then part way down Stonebarrow Lane, then north to Bellair Farm. Forty one inspection pits were excavated by machine and the gas main inserted between pits by an underground drilling rig. Small stretches on Stonebarrow Hill were laid in short lengths of open trench. Observations of trenching operations were partial. Some pits were not observed until after drilling, and were largely filled with drilling mud, as were most of the blow holes. Though a full section of these pits could not be observed, the upper part of nearly all was observable, and it was clear that there were no archaeological features cut into the natural. No archaeological finds or features ere recorded. The archaeologists felt that this may have been due to the constraints of the drilling method but noted that no archaeological finds or features were evident in the short lengths of open trench dug on Stonebarrow Hill.