Day 7

 Whilst it was a stormy night, I was quite sheltered where I was and didn’t suffer any damage. I slept reasonably, considering the noise. 

I was awoken by giggly D of E students at 6:15, despite the fact they were camped 100m away from me! 

I broke camp and set off just before 8am. 

Initially, the trail took me alongside the River Cuckmere.

There were then some steep climbs through Friston Forest up steep flights of steps , 82  the first time then 112 then next!

All that hard work made me hungry, so it was fortunate that there was a delightful cafe at Exceat, that made me a huge cooked breakfast! 

I managed to eat most of it and it was just as well that I did, because immediately upon leaving Exceat I was entering Seven Sisters Country Park. 

For those of you that don’t know, the seven “sisters” are chalk cliffs, with steep valleys in between. 

Initially there was some undulating walking to the coast with views down into Cuckmere Haven. 

The wind was incredibly blustery by this stage. You would have thought that carrying a heavy backpack would weigh me down anchoring me to the ground but in fact, it acted like a giant sail. A couple of times, the backpack seemed quite keen to finish this walk, because it kept trying to overtake me, such was the strength of the gusts! 

The going was quite tough, because although the wind was helping to push me up the hills, it was also pushing me down like a runaway train, sometimes towards the cliffs. I was having to use all the strength in my legs to slow me down and stop myself falling over the edge!

The views were spectacular and in no time I had reached Birling Gap, which had plenty of Japanese tourists, but nothing open. 

There was then some stiff climbs up to Beachy Head. Unbeknownst to me, there was a pub on the summit, so I had to stop for a cheeky pint! 

It was incredibly windy on the top, but I managed to stay upright but only just! In no time, Eastbourne came into view. 

I made my way down to the end of the trail and had the obligatory selfie next to the sign. 

So that’s it, The Southdowns Way completed. I must say that this 2nd leg has been most enjoyable, despite the inclement weather. It was tough going at times, but much better views than the 1st leg. 

Thanks for reading this. Until the next trail…….