Devil's Dyke is a great climb, but it's worth being prepared! Coming towards the Dyke from Pyecombe there is a valley at Saddlescombe Farm with a steep hill heading towards the Dyke. At the top of the hill you turn right and then .... continue to climb more steeply. Well worth making sure your gears are sorted out beforehand.
On the plus side, there is a restaurant at the top, as well as an ice-cream van and extensive views looking out across the Weald.

The Yawning Kea

December 29, 2020

A very popular spot on the South Downs near Brighton, Devil's Dyke is Britain's deepest dry valley and its an impressive geomorphological feature. It's accessible by road and via the South Downs Way, which runs along the southern rim of the bowl.

Apparently it was excavated by the notorious Devil in an attempt to dig a ditch between the Low Weald and the English Channel, to flood the churches of Sussex and drown the churchgoers. While furiously digging, the Devil through clods of earth all around the surrounding countryside, creating hills including Chanctonbury Ring, Cissbury Ring, Mount Caburn and other well known downland locations. However, the Devil never got to complete the ditch and Christianity became the dominant religion in Sussex, the last English county to abandon its pagan beliefs. Personally, I find all this quite hard to believe, so prefer the evidence based geological evolution of the landform.

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Elevation 210 m

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Monday 10 November

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Max wind speed: 26.0 km/h

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Take Me There

Location: Poynings, Mid Sussex, West Sussex, South East England, England, United Kingdom

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Path to Devil's Dyke

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Devil's Dyke

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