When my sister came to visit me in London just after I got back from Australia, we took the opportunity of a very sunny but equally windy day in March to go down to Brighton. This time, we weren’t out to explore the cheerful seaside town also nicknamed London-by-the-Sea, but to embark on a hike along the Undercliff Walk. This path is just over 5 km long and it runs from Brighton to Saltdean.
Just as the name implies, the Undercliff Walk runs underneath the chalk cliffs, which characterise much of England’s south coast. Only when we got to Brighton, we realised how windy it actually was. The sea around the famous Brighton pier was rougher than I had ever seen before. As we walked along the Brighton Marina, from which we accessed the Undercliff Walk, we wondered if the entire path would be accessible. It is protected by a wall but the waves were very strong, and there isn’t anywhere to get off the path until near the end.
On the first section, the pathway follows in between the chalk cliffs and the houses of the Brighton Marina, so we were protected from the wind. As soon as we left the buildings behind though, the storm hit again with full force. Despite the waves crushing against and over the wall frequently, we decided to continue. The day was just too beautiful to turn around. The crushing waves meant that we had to wait at times for the worst to pass before we could continue our mini-hike and stay relatively dry at the same time. It added a bit of adventure-feel to our day for sure.
To our utmost surprise, we found a little café roundabout two thirds along the way, where we treated ourselves to a coffee and Victoria sponge before proceeding on to our final destination. When the Undercliff Walk ends in Saltdean, the path continues on top of the cliffs all the way to Eastbourne. On this stretch, hikers will walk on top of the famous Seven Sisters – a series of seven chalk cliffs. From Saltdean and all along the coast, busses are running frequently and so hikers can get back to Brighton from various locations along the trail.
