WALK
This month Robert Veitch and our former sales executive Lucy Sayers head to Lewes and Offham to enjoy a few miles in the hinterland of the river and racecourse; they set out from Lewes Station
LEWES & OFFHAM
WALK
F
rom Lewes station, head north along Station Road. Turn right into Lansdown Place and follow the brick pavement into the crescent of Friars Walk, evolving into Eastgate Street at the mini roundabout. Continue in the same general direction, past the bus station to the traffic island. Cross at the lights then take the flint wall bordered footpath opposite, which
Hart’s Tongue
Ferns
St. Peter’s Church, Offham
“I’m full of positive thoughts,” noted Lucy with a grin leads to Wellington Street. Turn right at the far end of Wellington Street and head downhill, turning left into Brook Street. After 200m turn right, into The Pells, and continue past Pells Pool to the River Ouse and Wiley’s Bridge. Do not cross the river. Instead, turn left and follow
the path atop the levee. After 300m a gate opens into fields and the path continues with the railway line in close attendance. It’s muddy in places, but that’s all part of the fun. “I’m full of positive thoughts,” noted Lucy with a grin. Continue for another ½ mile, to a metal 7-bar gate. Turn left, downhill from the levee, under the railway bridge and across the field. Keep left of the metal gate and find the wooden steps topped with a stile. A few steps beyond is a T-junction. Turn right and after 100m, turn right again, by the 2-way fingerpost and pair of metal posts. Continue through the avenue of ivy-clad trees into a glade populated with Hart’s Tongue Ferns. This is the base of what was the Offham Chalk Pit funicular railway, which had a vertical drop of 40m at a gradient of 30%, and operated from 1809-1870. Beyond the glade, the path begins to ascend, but not too steeply, passing to the left of the electricity pylon, and ending at a metal gate. February 2022 | SUSSEX LIVING 111
