Heyshott Down from Cocking Hill

From the car park at the top of Cocking Hill the walk crosses the A286 and follows the South Downs Way east. It is a farm track at first, past Hill Barn, climbing gently between big fields onto Heyshott Down, where Bronze Age barrows and cross dykes lie beside the Way. The walk then leaves the ridge and drops north down the wooded scarp, by the old chalk quarry of Heyshott Escarpment, to Heyshott village. Field paths lead west below the downs to Cocking, and a track climbs from the church back to the South Downs Way and the car park.

It is 7.8 km with 210 m of ascent; allow about 2½ hours. The grade is Easy: the tracks are clear, with one long climb back from Cocking at the end.

The path down the scarp to Heyshott is steep and very slippery when wet. A field path near Heyshott crosses arable ground and may be cropped over, and the low paths are muddy in winter. Sheep graze the top of the scarp and cattle the escarpment, so keep dogs on leads near stock. Take care crossing the A286 at the start and finish.

The car park is free, but it is isolated and a known target for thieves: leave nothing on show. There is no station near; bus 60 between Chichester and Midhurst stops at the car park.

Route drawn by Global Adventurer along OpenStreetMap paths (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL), with figures worked out from it. Check the forecast and the ground on the day: paths change.