This bank holiday weekend marks 2 years since the excavation of the Rutland Sea Dragon.

To celebrate, the team at Rutland Water have got plenty of exciting activities in store for the whole family.

The 'Sea Dragon' was discovered at Rutland Water. Image credit: Nub News.

The 10.5m long ichthyosaur, nicknamed the Rutland Sea Dragon was discovered by Joe Davis and Paul Trevor from Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust in February 2021.

Following this, excavation took place quietly two years ago after the routine draining of a lagoon exposed the incredible find.

Only in January 2022 was this discovery announced to the world, featuring on BBC Two's Digging for Britain, on Tuesday 11th January 2022 at 8pm. This drew 2.5 million viewers, who watched with amazement. 

That number is one of the highest overnight audiences Digging For Britain had seen in its history.

The Sea Dragon is the biggest and most complete skeleton of its kind found to date in the UK and is also thought to be the first ichthyosaur of its species (Temnodontosaurus trigonodon) found in the country.

Look back on this amazing discovery.

Since then, locals and visitors to Rutland have been captivated by the find, celebrating it with a new Aqua Park inflatable, a writing competition and a 'pavement portrait' of the creature, undertaken by Julian Beever.

The discovery also enabled Rutland County Council to secure a grant more than £40,000 of grant funding to help plan the future of two 'incredible' archaeological and palaeontological discoveries made locally in recent months.

Now, Rutland Water is marking the two year anniversary of the excavation with a brand new trail, launching this bank holiday weekend.

The team said: "Save the date in your diaries to come and explore our brand new, free Rutland Sea Dragon trail launching on Saturday 26 August, and head to our cafés for some Sea Dragon-themed treats!

"In the meantime, you can find out more about the excavation at our Visitor Centre and Birdwatching Centre, or slip and slide on Aqua Park Rutland's 10m long inflatable Sea Dragon - the same length as the real Rutland Sea Dragon fossil!"

Alternatively, check out our What's On in Oakham this weekend feature to find out about more bank holiday events taking place this weekend, or head to our What's On page for more summer holiday fun.