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Ditchling Beacon is the third-highest point on the South Downs in south-east England, consisting of a large chalk hill with a particularly steep northern face, covered with open grassland and sheep-grazing areas. Situated just south of the East Sussex village of Ditchling and to the north-east of the city of Brighton, it is the highest point in the county of East Sussex. A road runs from Ditchling up and across the northern face and down into the northern suburbs of Brighton, and there are car parks at the summit and the northern base. Various charity, sporting and other events which are run regularly between London and Brighton incorporate this steep road as a challenging part of their route. Hassocks is a village found in West Sussex, England. ...
Burgess Hill is a town and civil parish in the Mid Sussex District of West Sussex, England. ...
October 27 is the 300th day of the year (301st in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 65 days remaining. ...
2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...
A topographical summit is a point on a surface which is higher in elevation than all points immediately adjacent to it. ...
The metre, or meter (U.S.), is a measure of length. ...
A foot (plural: feet; symbol or abbreviation: ft or, sometimes, ′ – a prime) is a unit of length, in a number of different systems, including English units, Imperial units, and United States customary units. ...
Near Beachy Head The South Downs is one of the two areas of chalk downland in southern England. ...
Motto: (French for God and my right) Anthem: God Save the King/Queen Capital London Largest city London Official language(s) English (de facto) Unification - by Athelstan AD 927 Area - Total 130,395 km² (1st in UK) 50,346 sq mi Population - 2005 est. ...
In topography, prominence, also known as autonomous height, relative height or shoulder drop (in America) or prime factor (in Europe), is a concept used in the categorization of hills and mountains, also known as peaks. ...
Map of Earth showing lines of latitude (horizontally) and longitude (vertically), Eckert VI projection; large version (pdf, 1. ...
Example of a topographic map with contour lines Part of the same map in a perspective shaded relief view illustrates how the contour lines of the original follow the terrain Topographic maps are a variety of map characterized by large-scale detail and quantitative representation of relief, usually using contour...
Image produced from the Ordnance Survey Get-a-map service. ...
The British national grid reference system is a system of geographic grid references commonly used in Great Britain, different from using latitude or longitude. ...
The mountains and hills of Great Britain, and to a lesser extent Ireland, are the subject of a considerable number of lists which categorise them by height, topographic prominence, or other criteria. ...
A Marilyn is a hill with a relative height of at least 150 metres, regardless of absolute height or other merit. ...
Near Beachy Head The South Downs is one of the two areas of chalk downland in southern England. ...
Motto: (French for God and my right) Anthem: God Save the King/Queen Capital London Largest city London Official language(s) English (de facto) Unification - by Athelstan AD 927 Area - Total 130,395 km² (1st in UK) 50,346 sq mi Population - 2005 est. ...
East Sussex is a county in South East England. ...
Ditchling is a village and civil parish in the Lewes District of East Sussex, England. ...
For other places with the same name, see Brighton (disambiguation). ...
Finish line of the London to Brighton Veteran Car Run, 2005. ...
Location
The hill dominates the surrounding parts of the South Downs ridge, and particularly the much lower ground of the Lower Weald to the north (where the villages and towns of Mid Sussex are now located). This represents an excellent position for defensive purposes, and indeed it is known to be the site of an early Iron Age hill fort. A single defensive bank and ditch enclosed an area of approximately 5.5 hectares (13.6 acres). [1] Relatively little excavation of the fort has been carried out, however, and the existence of dew ponds, paths and tracks, as well as regular ploughing activity over the years, reduces the likelihood of any significant discoveries in the future. 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. ...
Mid Sussex is a local government district in South East England - part of the county of West Sussex. ...
In the British Isles, the Iron Age lasted from about the 7th century BC until the Roman conquest and until the 5th century in non-Romanised parts. ...
A hill fort is a fortified refuge or defended settlement, located to exploit a rise in elevation for military advantage. ...
Dew pond near Chanctonbury Ring, West Sussex. ...
Access The only road access to the summit is via the steep and narrow Beacon Road, which runs from the centre of Ditchling village and takes the name Ditchling Road once the summit is reached and the descent into Brighton commences. Beacon Road connects with the B2116, which connects several villages close to the foot of the South Downs with the outskirts of Lewes, the county town of East Sussex. Underhill Lane, a minor road directly at the foot of the Downs, crosses Beacon Road adjacent to the car park. The road then commences its steep ascent, rising from 90 metres above sea level to the summit at 248 metres in just over 1.6 kilometres (one mile), and sweeping from side to side and around a number of sharp bends across the northern slope of the hill. Statistics Population: 16,000 Ordnance Survey OS grid reference: TQ414101 Administration District: Lewes Shire county: East Sussex Region: South East England Constituent country: England Sovereign state: United Kingdom Other Ceremonial county: East Sussex Historic county: Sussex Services Police force: Sussex Police Fire and rescue: {{{Fire}}} Ambulance: South East Coast Post...
At the summit is a large car park, owned and operated by the National Trust (which also owns and manages approximately 1.6 hectares (4 acres) of land on the hill). Controversy occurred in November 2005 when a £2.00 charge for parking at this car park (and five others at National Trust-owned sites on the South Downs) was introduced. The standard of the National Trust The National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, usually known as The National Trust, is a British preservation organization. ...
View from just south of the summit, looking towards the eastern side of Brighton. The road is named Ditchling Road at this point. From this point, Ditchling Road descends through open downland for approximately 4 kilometres (2.5 miles) until the edge of the Brighton built-up area is reached at Hollingbury. The road crosses the A27 Brighton Bypass and continues as a busy suburban road for more than 5 kilometres (3 miles) into the centre of Brighton. For other places with the same name, see Brighton (disambiguation). ...
The A27 near Southwick The A27 is a major road in England. ...
The Brighton & Hove Bus and Coach Company, Brighton's main bus operator, has operated special services from locations in the city centre to Ditchling Beacon, via Ditchling Road, since 2002. Route 79, often operated using open-topped buses, originally ran during the summer only, but its increasing popularity means that as from 2006, some journeys have also been operated during the winter. Brighton & Hove Bus and Coach Company operates almost all bus services in the city of Brighton and Hove, United Kingdom. ...
A footpath and bridleway runs across the ridge from east to west, taking in the summit; this forms part of the South Downs Way. Various footpaths and bridleways run down both the northern and southern slopes towards Brighton, Ditchling and other nearby villages such as Westmeston and Clayton. The road is considered too dangerous to walk along. In England and Wales, a bridleway is a way over which the public have the following, but no other, rights of way: a right of way on foot and a right of way on horseback or leading a horse, with or without a right to drive animals of any description...
Near Beachy Head The South Downs Way is a long-distance bridleway, running along the South Downs in southern England. ...
View from the summit towards the north-east. Access by rail can be achieved from Hassocks, from where a well-used path runs alongside the line to Clayton, at the western end of Underhill Lane. From here, access can be gained to several paths and bridleways leading up to Ditchling Beacon itself, or points slightly to the west on the South Downs Way. Hassocks is a village found in West Sussex, England. ...
Flora and fauna A wide variety of plants can be found on Ditchling Beacon, especially during the summer. Flowers and herbs suited to chalk grassland, such as marjoram, thyme and certain types of orchid (notably the common spotted orchid), are often reported. (Some parts of the surrounding land are merely scrubland, however.) Butterflies are common; a notable example is the Chalkhill Blue, which is particularly well suited to uncultivated chalk downland areas. Some parts of the hill and the surrounding fields (particularly Ditchling Down, a large open area near the base of the northern face, close to the Beacon Road car park) are used for the grazing of sheep. Binomial name Origanum majorana L. Marjoram (Origanum majorana, Lamiaceae) is a cold-sensitive perennial herb or undershrub with sweet pine and citrus flavors. ...
Species About 350 species, including: Thymus adamovicii Thymus bracteosus Thymus broussonetii Thymus caespititius Thymus camphoratus Thymus capitatus Thymus capitellatus Thymus carnosus Thymus cephalotus Thymus cherlerioides Thymus ciliatus Thymus cilicicus Thymus cimicinus Thymus comosus Thymus comptus Thymus doerfleri Thymus glabrescens Thymus herba-barona Thymus hirsutus Thymus hyemalis Thymus integer Thymus lanuginosus...
Orchid re-directs here; for alternate uses see Orchid (disambiguation) Genera Over 800 See List of Orchidaceae genera. ...
Binomial name Dactylorhiza fuchsii The Common Spotted Orchid (Dactylorhiza fuchsii) is the most commonly occurring species of orchid in Great Britain. ...
Scrubland is plant community characterized by scrub vegetation. ...
Binomial name Polyommatus coridon (Poda, 1761) The Chalkhill Blue (Polyommatus coridon) is a butterfly in the family Lycaenidae. ...
Westward view from part way up Ditchling Beacon (north face), showing Wolstonbury Hill. Ditchling Down is in the foreground.
Blackdog Hill Close to Ditchling Beacon is a small spur known as Blackdog Hill, which is reputedly haunted by a headless black dog. This is also occasionally said to appear on the section of Underhill Lane between Ditchling and Westmeston villages, which runs alongside the foot of the hill and follows its contours. A straight path runs diagonally across the hill, taking no account of the extent of the slope, and appears to point directly towards the church of St Martin in Westmeston; the supposed presence of the black dog is sometimes attributed to the former use of this path as a "coffin road", allowing for the transportation of dead bodies in a straight line to their burial place.
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