On Sunday 28th December, our last walk of 2025 took place. Eleven of us had recovered sufficiently from the festivities to assemble at the North Street car park for a walk to Hamsey and then around the Offham chalk pit.
We walked down to the Pells and then along the river. This path is much more accessible now it has been built up with a hard surface and can easily be enjoyed by cyclists and wheelchair users as well as walkers. Eventually, however, the made-up path came to an end and we turned towards Hamsey on the somewhat muddy track along the top of the embankment. At one point we had to deviate to get around a rather dilapidated 'pillbox' – part of the region's wartime defenses. It is remarkable that such a complex system of defenses could have been designed and created while war was raging.
On reaching Hamsey we turned left onto the road and followed it past another pillbox – this one in rather better condition - towards Offham over the level crossing and past the Offham church. We then had to summon our courage to cross the busy A275 where speeding cars could not easily be seen because of the double bends. It was a relief to leave the busy road and ascend the track uphill alongside the chalk pit. On reaching the level ground at the oddly named Treacle Mines we stopped for a coffee break and admired the view of the Ouse valley laid out before us. A further climb brought us to the path along the top of the pit and an informative board describing the industrial history of the pit and surrounding landscape. We returned to Lewes via the racecourse and Landport Bottom, ending up at the prison crossroads. The walk was led by Anne.