A couple of weeks ago we took the bus up to the Devil’s Dyke and walked home from there.
Devil’s Dyke, just five miles north of Brighton, offers stunning panoramas, a record breaking valley, a curious history and England’s most colourful habitat.
At nearly a mile long, the Dyke valley is the longest, deepest and widest ‘dry valley’ in the UK. Legend has it that the Devil dug this chasm to drown the parishioners of the Weald. On the other hand, scientists believe it was formed naturally just over 10,000 years ago in the last ice age.
With a little exploring the Dyke’s story starts to reveal itself: The ramparts or walls of the Iron Age hill fort can be seen when you walk around the hill and the remains of the curious Victorian funfair can be found just a few minutes from the car park. Venture into the valley and you will discover a living carpet of flowers and a myriad of colourful insects.
When John Constable described the panorama from Devil’s Dyke as ‘the grandest view in the world’, he wasn’t wrong, but there is so much more to discover here than just a beautiful view.
Over the next few days I’ll be posting images from that walk.
