Walks near London: Lewes Circular

The Lewes Circular is “probably my favourite walk! From a challenging hilly trail to breathtaking views, I cannot recommend this walk enough. I went there back in September with a friend of mine on an organised day hike. I sometimes do go on a hike with a group, it does save you the trouble of planning and finding routes. It is always a great way to meet new people who share the same interest as you.

As general advice for this walk is that you go on a good day. I know you will tell me that any walk is better on a good day and that there is no bad day, just bad gear. However, for this walk, it is a must. Most of the hike is uphill, in the open with no trees to protect us from the rain and wind. And trust me, it is windy up there. Also, the main purpose of this hike, as I mentioned at the start of this article, is the panoramic view. After all, why go up there if you cannot see anything?

Disclaimer: May London-based hiking groups offer the Lewes Circular Walk, often following the exact same trail. For more information on these groups, please check my post ici.

Logistics for the Lewes Circular walk

Distance: 15 miles (24km)
Montée totale: 630m
Point culminant : 597 pi (182 m)
Point le plus bas : -2 m (-6.5 pieds)
Durée de l'accord6 heures et 35 minutes
Difficulté: Intermédiaire

Comment s'y rendre:
- Train de London Victoria à la gare de Lewes. Le trajet dure 1 heure.
- C'est une promenade circulaire, vous pouvez donc acheter un billet aller-retour pour la journée.

Ce qu'il faut emporter :
- Chaussures et vêtements confortables
- Crème solaire, lunettes de soleil et couvre-chef, s'il fait soleil car le sentier est assez exposé
- Équipement de pluie s'il doit pleuvoir pour la même raison que ci-dessus
- Couvre-chef car il y a du vent au sommet des collines.
- Eau (au moins 2 litres recommandés),
- Collations et déjeuner emporté car il n'y a pas de pub en cours de route
- Les bâtons de randonnée sont conseillés

Informations complémentaires
- Il n'y a pas de toilettes publiques sur cette promenade

Highlights of the Lewes Circular walk

Centre historique et château de Lewes
Fortifications et site funéraire du Mont Caburn
Glynde Place et Église paroissiale
Monk’s House
Moulin Ashcombe
Food at the Marquis of Westminster – London

Lewes Circular walk

Lewes

We start our circular walk in the well-preserved market town of Lewes, 1 hour by train from London Victoria. Its history dated back to the VI Century. You can roam around the high street and see the Castle built in the XI Century. We then leave the historic city centre and adventure onto the hills passing by the Lewes Golf Club.

The first hill

The landscape surrounding the town of Lewes was formed by glaciers during the last ice age. From the top of Cliff Hill, we can admire the river Ouse and its endless queue of houseboats. We can also clearly see the trail of this walk and the 3 hills we will be climbing.

View of the river Ouse and surrounding hills from Cliff Hill, Lewes — River Ouse and surrounding hills from Cliff Hill

The second hill

We then go down Cliff Hill to climb back up to Mount Carburn. This mount overlooked the city of Glynde. Nested at the top, we find the remains of an Iron Age hill fort. There are also 140 burial sites. The most recent studies show that they are not random but dug in an orderly manner.

View from Mount Caburn, Lewes circular — View from Mount Caburn

Glynde

Going down from Mount Carburn, we then cross the village of Glynde. If you have enough time to roam around the village, you can see Glynde Place et le Parish Church. Talking about walks near London, this reminds me of another great one: Glynde to Seaford. It’s challenging but worth the effort for the rewarding fish and chips at the end!

The last hill … finally

After leaving the village, we are going up the hill to Ilford Hill. When we arrive at the top, we can admire the panoramic view. We can see as far as the sea on a clear day. This is where I would recommend stopping for lunch. We then go down to Southsea and cross the train station to find cows in the pastures so happy to see us (they might not see a lot of people around here) that they followed us as long as they could.

The Channel view from Itford hill, Lewes circular — You can see as far as the sea on a good day

Moulin Ashcombe

After Southease, we continue the walk towards the village of Rodmell. This is where Virginia Woolfe lived in a cottage called Monk’s House. From the village, we follow the trail all the way to Ashcombe Mill, built in 1828. Then, in 2007, permission was granted to turn the mill into residential accommodation. Today, James Tasker lives in the mill, or more accurately in an underground home beneath the mill. From the mill, we can easily get back to Lewes.

Back in Lewes … and back in London

Once we have completed the Circular route and we are back in Lewes. I would recommend that you eat when you get back to London. There are plenty of options near Victoria Station, from chains such as Nandos to local pubs. My recommendation is to eat at The Marquis of Westminster – they have tables outside and nice comfort food after a good walk. Bon appetit!