View from Devil's Dyke

Devil's Dyke is a V-Shaped valley on the South Downs Way in southern England, near Brighton and Hove. It is part of the Southern England Chalk Formation. Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... Download high resolution version (1152x768, 210 KB)A view of the South Downs in from Devils Dyke in southern England, near Brighton & Hove. ... Download high resolution version (1152x768, 210 KB)A view of the South Downs in from Devils Dyke in southern England, near Brighton & Hove. ... A coombe or coomb were often formed in periglacial conditions. ... Near Beachy Head The South Downs Way is a long-distance bridleway, running along the South Downs in southern England. ... Brighton and Hove is a city on the south coast of England. ... In this geological map of Great Britain the Chalk is labled 6 The Chalk Formation of Southern England is a system of chalk downland in the south of England. ...

Geological history

It is a common misconception that the valley was formed by glacial action. The formation is instead the consequence of a geological action, known as solifluction, where under tundra conditions during the last ice age, summer temperatures caused the top layer of soil to melt and become saturated. Thus, over a period of time, the waterlogged sediment moved down the gradient, over the permanently frozen layers beneath to carve out the valley ^[1]. Solifluction, also known as soil fluction, is a type of mass wasting where waterlogged sediment slowly moves downslope over impermeable material. ... For other uses, see Tundra (disambiguation). ... Variations in CO2, temperature and dust from the Vostok ice core over the last 400 000 years For the animated movie, see Ice Age (movie). ...

Geography

The hills surrounding the valley offer views of the South Downs, The Weald, and – on a clear day – the Isle of Wight. It is the site of ramparts, all that remain of an Iron Age hillfort, and a pub. Near Beachy Head The South Downs is one of the two areas of chalk downland in southern England. ... A weald once meant a dense forest, especially the famous great wood once stretching far beyond the ancient counties of Sussex and Kent, England, where this country of smaller woods is still called the Weald. ... For other uses, see Isle of Wight (disambiguation). ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Separation barrier. ... Iron Age Axe found on Gotland This article is about the archaeological period known as the Iron Age, for the mythological Iron Age see Iron Age (mythology). ... The term hill fort is commonly used by archeologists to describe fortified enclosures located to exploit a rise in elevation for defensive advantage. ... An amusingly named pub (the Old New Inn) at Bourton-on-the-Water, in the Cotswold Hills of South West England A pub in the Haymarket area of Edinburgh, Scotland A public house, usually known as a pub, is a drinking establishment found mainly in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada...

Myths regarding the formation of Devil's Dyke

Local folklore explains the valley as the work of the devil. The legend holds that the devil was digging a trench to allow the sea to flood the many churches in the Weald of Sussex. The digging disturbed an old woman who lit a candle, or angere causing a rooster to crow, making the devil believe the morning was fast approaching. The devil then fled, leaving his trench uncompleted. This is an overview of the Devil. ... A weald once meant a dense forest, especially the famous great wood once stretching far beyond the ancient counties of Sussex and Kent, England, where this country of smaller woods is still called the Weald. ... Sussex is a historic county in South East England corresponding roughly in area to the ancient Kingdom of Sussex. ...

Another story holds that rather than digging to flood Sussex, he was simply in a huge goatlike form, intending to crush the surrounding area. He smelt the tang of salt water in the wind, and fearing his coat would get damp (for he is vain to the point of sin), he fled leaving nothing but a hoof-print, now known as Devil's Dyke.

History

The Devils Dyke

Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 800 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (1600 × 1200 pixels, file size: 432 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) devils dyke sussex august 28th 2006 ukbn2 I, the copyright holder of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. ... Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 800 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (1600 × 1200 pixels, file size: 432 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) devils dyke sussex august 28th 2006 ukbn2 I, the copyright holder of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. ...

Main History

Prior to the Iron Age, and also after, Devil's Dyke was used as a defensive site. This was probably because of first of all the large area of land which could be seen from it and also its ideal location as a high area with steep edges surrounded by large expanses of flat land. Iron Age Axe found on Gotland This article is about the archaeological period known as the Iron Age, for the mythological Iron Age see Iron Age (mythology). ...

In the Iron Age, Devil's Dyke stood as an important iron age site. All the plant matter was scraped away from the white chalk, leaving Devil's Dyke as an impressive monument to both attract and intimidate people living the area.

Victorian Times

In late Victorian times Devil's Dyke became a tourist attraction, complete with a fairground, and a variety of transport infrastructure was constructed: Queen Victoria (shown here on the morning of her ascension to the Throne, 20 June 1837) gave her name to the historic era The Victorian era of the United Kingdom marked the height of the British Industrial Revolution and the apex of the British Empire. ...

• From 1887-1938 a railway branch line operated from near Aldrington in Hove to the current Dyke Farm location
• From 1894-1909 a cable car operated across the valley itself, covering a distance of 350 m, but hanging 70 m above the valley floor.
• From 1897-1907 there was a "Steep Grade Railway", a funicular rising 100 m from near Poynings to the northern edge of the hillfort.

Steep Grade Railway about 1908

Traces remain of all three ventures; for example stubby concrete bases, once used to support pylons forming part of the cable car system. Aldrington railway station is a railway station in East Sussex, in the village of Aldrington in the former borough of Hove. ... Floral Clock, Palmeira Square Hove promenade facing towards Brighton Hove is a town on the south coast of England immediately to the west of its larger neighbour, Brighton. ... Angels Flight, Los Angeles, California with gantlet track configuration Duquesne Incline, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with full length parallel tracks The Gütschbahn in Lucerne, Switzerland – from an 1893 guidebook A funicular, also called funicular railway, inclined railway, inclined plane, or, in the United Kingdom, a cliff railway, is a system of... Poynings is a village and civil parish in the Mid Sussex District of West Sussex, England. ... Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 374 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (672 × 1076 pixels, file size: 275 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Image on a postcard dated August 8th, 1908. ... Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 374 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (672 × 1076 pixels, file size: 275 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Image on a postcard dated August 8th, 1908. ...

References

See also

• Devil's Dyke railway station

Dyke Railway Trail sign Devils Dyke railway station was a railway station north of Hove, in East Sussex, England which opened in 1891 and closed in 1938[1]. The station served the Devils Dyke. ...

External links

• Country File video
• Abandoned Lines and Railways
• [1] [2] [3] Videos of paragliding etc.