Pevensey Levels, Northeye and Normans Bay

Normans' Bay is close to where William the Conqueror and his army are supposed to have arrived in England. Back then, the coastline was very different. What is now reclaimed land, criss-crossed with numerous channels with names such as ditch, dyke, sluice, sewer, haven, fleet, gut and stream, was once an big lagoon dotted with various islands such as the one where Pevensey Castle was built on what is now the Western side of the Levels.

Our walk today takes us away from the coast and we shall start on fairly level ground before alternating between the higher points of Barnhorn, Hooe and Wartling which were once peninsulas of land sticking out into the sea and the valleys which were under water in the past.

We shall pass Hooe church, now an isolated building but once the centre of a community and cross over to the picturesque hamlet of Wartling, with its pub, the Lamb. After that we shall follow the same route as a walk I did last year for a short distance, but crossing the busy A259 rather than flanking it.

Heading south, we will cross the site of the abandoned village of Northeye, once a settlement on an island but now barely a trace remains as it more or less disappeared in the 14th century. If we are really luck we may catch a view of the extremely rare Fen Raft spider which inhabits this area.

Beyond this and nearer to the sea is the former smuggling pub called the Star, close to Normans' Bay, after which we cross the railway and go on to the beach itself.

For further information about the areas we shall be seeing, I recommend this interesting review:

http://theislandreview.com/content/in-search-of-the-lost-islands-of-sussex

After the walk, while we wait for the train, there are the options of a visit to Cooden Beach Hotel, further wandering on the beach or for those who wish and have brought whatever they need, a cooling dip in the sea might be welcome. Alternatively maybe all of these will appeal. It's Summertime and (the) leaving isn't easy!