Rye to Hastings - Challenging Linear Walk

This walk starts off with some very easy terrain, building up to some demanding hill climbs in the last coastal section of the route. As we approach the coast, the perimeter of the High Weald AONB, our efforts will be rewarded with some dramatic views of the sea. You should be used to regularly walking 15 miles or more to undertake this route, and it is definitely not suitable for beginners.

Departing from Rye we will join the 1066 Country Walk (with its politically incorrect road name), with some great views of Rye across the marshes, before climbing uphill to the small, but perfectly formed, town of Winchelsea with its numerous clapboard and clay tiled houses arranged on a grid layout. A brief coffee and snack stop in the Winchelsea Farm Kitchen is highly recommended. Following the lanes out of Winchelsea we will continue on the 1066 Country Walk, with views over the marshes towards the sea, the Royal Military Canal, and then onwards to the windmill at Hog Hill.

After passing by some orchards we will make our way southwards towards the village of Pett where we will stop for lunch beside the cricket green and The Royal Oak pub for those requiring some additional liquid refreshment. From here we continue over farmland and through woodland towards the sea, joining the Saxon Shore Way, and where the steep ascents begin.

Shortly after passing through the village of Fairlight we will be walking along the cliff path all the way to Hastings, with superb sea views over Fire Hills and Covehurst Bay as we wind our way up and down vertiginous steps through wooded valleys and across gorse studded heathland.

The coastal path is sometimes re-routed by East Sussex County Council just outside Hastings at Ecclesbourne Glen due to erosion. We will follow the diversions in place at the time, and this may require some ad hoc re-routing in the final mile. This will lead us into Hastings Old Town, and the Net Shops, the tall black sheds used to store fishing nets, on the sea front.

Hastings railway station is approximately 20 minutes walk from here.