Unusual things found on the beach in Dorset

In 2022, the Daily Echo reported a Portuguese man o war was spotted on Bournemouth beaches thanks to recent storms.

Visitors to our beaches have encountered some unusual things which have hit the headlines in the past.

Here we take a look at what’s been spotted, when and where.

Whale vomit

In 2012, a Christchurch schoolboy discovered a rare piece of whale vomit (yes, you read that currently) at Hengistbury Head which was reportedly worth between £10,000 and £40,000.

Most of us would probably walk straight past it and not even realise its worth.

Officially called ambergris, the substance is highly sought after and is used to prolong the scent of perfume.

 It initially has a foul smell but after years of floating on the ocean, exposure to sun and salt turn it into a smooth lump of compact rock which feels waxy and has a sweet smell.

A mysterious box 

Remember when this mysterious box washed up in Boscombe in 2016? 

The black wooden box covered in goose barnacles was found near the pier. 

After a great deal of speculation from Echo readers about what might be inside, ranging from lost episodes of Doctor Who to Lord Lucan, Elvis and Shergar via Pandora and horror film Se7en, it was revealed there was actually nothing inside except foam. 

Gilbert the whale

In 2009, a female northern bottlenose was found washed up dead on a Bournemouth beach.

The six-metre long whale had enthralled people for days with displays of tail flapping and water breaching, usually in the mornings and evenings and for up to 15 minutes at a time.

Experts had hoped she had managed to move on to the deep waters around the Bay of Biscay before migrating to South Africa.

However, around a week later she was found dead on the beach. 

Gilbert was nicknamed after Nick 'Gilbert' Smith, an RNLI lifeguard who took the first picture of her.

A box of ashes

A box of ashes came to be washed up on a Christchurch beach in 2019.

Then Mayor of Christchurch, Lesley Dedman, found the wooden box on the beach at Mudeford while walking her dogs.

The casket featured a brass plaque bearing the name Audrey Maguire.

Following an appeal for information in the Echo at the time, Ms Dedman had messages from people far afield as Thailand and the Netherlands.

The Surf Reef

Debris believed to be from Boscombe's surf reef was found washed up on the beach by the pier following a night of wind and rain in 2017.

It was supposed to be the ‘wow factor’ project which would bring new life and money to one of Bournemouth’s most deprived areas and put the town on the surfing map.

Instead the reef, made of 55 giant sandbags and costing hundreds of thousands of pounds, opened in 2009 after lengthy delays.

It promised large waves that would bring surfers from across Britain but was barely used.