Southease to Eastbourne- A long walk along the South Downs (+ swim in the sea!)

You must read and agree to our Covid 19 measures before signing up:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Z4gJqsCMYP_6HZttUE0qejWZkuTFtH5YCyCTTyF7_uQ/edit?usp=sharing

Join me for a very long (but rewarding!) 17 mile/27km hilly hike in the South Downs National Park. There are three big hill climbs to tackle- a total of 700 meters elevation gain. From Southease Station, we immediately tackle the biggest climb of the day to Firle Beacon. After a picnic lunch, we will have two more hills to climb before we reach the sea at Beachy Head. On a clear day, we will have amazing views with nary a tree to get in our way- however, it’s a very exposed walk with no shade or shelter from the wind. If you are keen to end the day with a cooling swim when we reach Eastbourne, bring a towel and a change of clothes. The hike ends at Eastbourne, where there are trains back to Lewes/London.

Please be realistic about your current level of fitness before signing up. If you haven’t done much these past months aside from melding with your sofa, this may not be for you. Be prepared for at least 7 hours of active walking time.

GRADE: Challenging. 17 miles/27km with 700m elevation. 7 hours walking time. On good paths but very exposed to the elements.

Meeting Point: Due to Covid, we can not travel together and organise cheaper group tickets at this time (however, you are welcome to self-organise if there is a lot of you leaving from the same place!). There are also a number of discounted tickets available if you book in advance via trainline.com. Meet me outside of Southease Station at 10:12. I’ll be dressed for hiking and wearing a day-glo yellow shirt.

There is a train that leaves Victoria at 8:45 (change at Lewes) that will get you there in good time. If you choose to drive, your best bet might be to park in Lewes and get on the 10:00 train to Southease. As this is a linear walk, you can take the train from Eastbourne to Lewes at the end of the day.

Cost £10 organiser fee payable on RSVP. We have temporarily raised the price of walks to be able to accommodate smaller groups. As soon as it is safe to take larger groups, we will re-asses our pricing. For this hike, I will be taking a maximum of 18.

What to bring: PPE, Lunch, extra snacks and at least 2 litres of water, suitable clothing and hiking footwear. We will not be stopping at a shop or a pub along the way so have everything you need for the day! Click here-https://docs.google.com/document/d/1FLjSAczjgbZ26OKE4Iy_zX2IFqkybdXCmK9AkVfqI1w/edit?usp=sharing

Terms and conditions: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1XSic4Aj9VJguTQuiWrTd6I1A-EmvmQCqCHggB0omlX8/edit?usp=sharing

Warning: Use of undefined constant IMEPRO_GM_APIKEY - assumed 'IMEPRO_GM_APIKEY' (this will throw an Error in a future version of PHP) in /var/www/wp-content/plugins/import-meetup-events/templates/event-meta.php on line 144