Chine forming on soft cliffs at Compton, Isle of Wight

Shanklin Chine c1910 - Project Gutenberg eText 17296

A chine () is a steep-sided coastal

gorge A canyon (from ; archaic British English spelling: ''cañon''), or gorge, is a deep cleft between escarpments or cliffs resulting from weathering and the erosion, erosive activity of a river over geologic time scales. Rivers have a natural tenden ...

where a river flows to the sea through, typically, soft eroding cliffs of sandstone or clays. The word is still in use in central Southern England—notably in East Devon, Dorset, Hampshire and the Isle of Wight—to describe such topographical features. The term 'bunny' is sometimes used to describe a chine in Hampshire. The term chine is also used in some Vancouver suburbs in Canada to describe similar features.

Formation and features

Chines appear at the outlet of small river valleys when a particular combination of geology, stream volume, and coastal recession rate creates a knickpoint, usually starting at a waterfall at the cliff edge, that initiates rapid erosion and deepening of the stream bed into a

gully A gully is a landform created by running water, mass movement, or commonly a combination of both eroding sharply into soil or other relatively erodible material, typically on a hillside or in river floodplains or terraces. Gullies resemble lar ...

leading down to the sea. All chines are in a state of constant change due to erosion. The Blackgang Chine on the Isle of Wight, for example, has been destroyed by landslides and coastal erosion during the 20th century. As the walls of the chines and cliffs are so unstable and erode continually, particularly those of the south coast of the Isle of Wight, the strata are clearly visible. Chines are, therefore, very important for their fossil records, their archaeology and the unique flora and fauna, such as invertebrates and rare insects, for which they provide shelter.Modelling flow, erosion and long-term evolution of incising channels: managing hydrology and geomorphology for ecology, Norton, Leyland & Darby, ''Sediment Dynamics and the Hydromorphology of Fluvial Systems'', International Association of Hydrological Sciences, 2006,
Google Books, retrieved 3 August 2008
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On the UK mainland

In Devon, Sherbrooke Chine is west of Budleigh Salterton, and Seaton Chine is at the western end of the West Walk esplanade, Seaton. In Dorset, west of

Bournemouth Bournemouth () is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole council area of Dorset, England. At the 2011 census, the town had a population of 183,491, making it the largest town in Dorset. It is situated on the Southern ...

are found Flaghead Chine, Branksome Chine, Alum Chine, Middle Chine and Durley Chine, and east towards Boscombe, Boscombe Chine and Honeycombe Chine. Bournemouth Town Centre itself is built in the former Bourne Chine (the Pleasure Gardens being the original valley floor), although urban development since the late 19th century has altered the topography somewhat. Becton Bunny and Chewton Bunny are other examples of chines near Barton on Sea, Hampshire ("Bunny" being the New Forest equivalent to "Chine"). In

Ramsgate Ramsgate is a seaside resort, seaside town in the district of Thanet District, Thanet in east Kent, England. It was one of the great English seaside towns of the 19th century. In 2001 it had a population of about 40,000. In 2011, according to t ...

, Kent, there is Courtstairs Chine, leading from the cliff top to the undercliff promenade. A rare example of the use of 'Chine' in a non-coastal setting is Chineham, a civil parish near

Basingstoke Basingstoke ( ) is the largest town in the county of Hampshire. It is situated in south-central England and lies across a valley at the source of the River Loddon, at the far western edge of The North Downs. It is located north-east of Southa ...

On the Isle of Wight

There are twenty chines on the Isle of Wight, to which fascinating folklore is attached because of their history with local smuggling, fishing and shipwrecks. The popular tourist attraction of Shanklin Chine is also famous for its involvement in the Second World War, when it was used to carry one of the

Operation Pluto Operation Pluto (Pipeline Under the Ocean or Pipeline Underwater Transportation of Oil, also written Operation PLUTO) was an operation by British engineers, oil companies and the British Armed Forces to construct submarine oil pipelines un ...

pipelines and as training area for the 40 Royal Marine Commando battalion before the 1942

Dieppe Raid Operation Jubilee or the Dieppe Raid (19 August 1942) was an Allied amphibious attack on the German-occupied port of Dieppe in northern France, during the Second World War. Over 6,050 infantry, predominantly Canadian, supported by a regiment o ...

. Geologically, the chines in

Alum Bay Alum Bay is a bay near the westernmost point of the Isle of Wight, England, within close sight of the Needles rock formation. Of geological interest and a tourist attraction, the bay is noted for its multi-coloured sand cliffs. The waters and adj ...

, in Totland (

Widdick Chine Widdick Chine is a geological feature on the west coast of the Isle of Wight, England. It is west of the village of Totland. It is a steep coastal gully, which is overgrown with vegetation. The water that used to flow down the slope has been red ...

), and the three in Colwell Bay ( Colwell Chine, Brambles Chine and Linstone Chine) are in Tertiary rocks. The remainder on the island's south coast are in Cretaceous rocks. An inventory of chines on the Isle of Wight follows, listing chines clockwise from Cowes: * Shanklin Chine *

Luccombe Chine Luccombe Chine is a geological feature and visitor attraction south of the village of Luccombe on the Isle of Wight, England. A wooded coastal ravine, one of a number of such chines on the island created by stream erosion of soft Cretaceous ro ...

* Blackgang Chine * New Chine * Walpen Chine or Old Walpen Chine *

Ladder Chine Ladder Chine is a geological feature on the south west coast of the Isle of Wight, England ( the Back of the Wight). It is west of the village of Chale. It is a sandy coastal ravine, one of a number of such chines on the island created by s ...

* Whale Chine *

Shepherd's Chine Shepherd's Chine is a geological feature on the south west coast of the Isle of Wight, England. It lies to the west of the village of Little Atherfield. This chine is one of the largest on the Isle of Wight. It starts at the side of the A3 ...

Cowleaze Chine Cowleaze Chine is a geological feature on the south west coast of the Isle of Wight, England. It lies to the west of the village of Little Atherfield. This chine is just to the west of the larger Shepherd's Chine. It starts just off the side ...

* Barnes Chine *

Grange/Marsh Chine Grange Chine and Marsh Chine form a geological feature on the south west coast of the Isle of Wight, England. They lie to the south of the village of Brighstone. These two chines form the largest chine feature on the Isle of Wight. The Gran ...

Chilton Chine The Chilton Chine is a geological feature on the south west coast of the Isle of Wight, England. It lies to the west of the village of Brighstone. It is a small coastal gully, one of a number of such chines on the island created by stream ero ...

Brook Chine Brook Chine is a geological feature on the south west coast of the Isle of Wight, England. It lies just to the west of the village of Brook. The hamlet of Brookgreen runs along its southern edge. It is a small coastal gully, one of a number o ...

Churchill Chine Churchill Chine is a geological feature on the south west coast of the Isle of Wight, England. It is west of the village of Brook and just east of Hanover Point. It is a small sandy coastal gully, one of a number of such chines on the island ...

* Shippards Chine *

Compton Chine Compton Chine is a geological feature on the south west coast of the Isle of Wight, England. It lies between the village of Brook to the east and Freshwater Bay to the west. It is a small sandy coastal gully, one of a number of such chines on ...

* Alum Bay Chine *

* Colwell Chine * Brambles Chine * Linstone Chine

In Canada

The Vancouver suburb of Coquitlam has a neighbourhood called ''Harbour Chines'' that was built in the 1950s, along with the adjoining neighbourhood of ''Chineside'' to the east. Both are situated upon the tops of cliffs that overlook a large number of streams flowing down to the adjoining suburb of Port Moody's ''Chines Park'', from where they flow to Burrard Inlet, onwards out to the

Georgia Strait The Strait of Georgia (french: Détroit de Géorgie) or the Georgia Strait is an arm of the Salish Sea between Vancouver Island and the extreme southwestern mainland coast of British Columbia, Canada and the extreme northwestern mainland coast ...

of the Salish Sea, and the Pacific Ocean. Map of Harbour Chines and Chineside neighbourhoods, Coquitlam, BC, Canad

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References

{{Authority control Erosion landforms Fluvial landforms Geology of England Ravines

Formation and features

On the UK mainland

On the Isle of Wight

In Canada

See also

References