Shipton Gorge

Shipton Gorge is a village in west Dorset, 3 miles east of Bridport, in hilly country. The Domesday Book of 1086 records it as Sepetone, and the later name comes from the de Gorges family, who owned the land.

Shipton Hill rises north-east of the village to a 170 metre (560 ft) summit with good views of the surrounding countryside. The hilltop carries the earthworks of an Iron Age defended settlement, a scheduled monument.

St Martin’s, the parish church, used to be a chapel of Burton Bradstock. It was rebuilt in 1862, except for the west tower, which dates from around 1400. Burton Bradstock sits half a mile inland from Chesil Beach, and Bridport is the town 3 miles to the west.

The New Inn is the village pub. Palmers Brewery closed it as non-viable in 2005, and the village took on the lease and now runs it as a community pub. It serves cask ale and real cider and suits walkers, but check its opening hours before you plan a meal there.