Really interesting walk, and so enjoyable being by the sea. Which is the main reason I did this walk.

I stayed overnight in Eastbourne, at £30 why not. And commenced at 9.00. Unsurprisingly,no one else was on the walk for all of the 17 miles, at this time, and I ended in the Old Town in the lovely Jenny Lind pub on the High Street. The company, beer, food and excellent live band was so good I was there for almost three hours.

13 walkers off the train, commencing in slightly overcast weather. We needed about an hour and a half to the start of the shingly stretch, by which time the sun broke througha little. Just a wee bit later, the sun - and blue skies - took over completely and that's how it stayed for the rest of the walk. We did encounter mainly sandy walkable stretches along this part of the walk, but there were also plenty of short and not so short shingly parts. [Loads of dog walkers about as well, in fact the most I have ever seen on an SWC walk.] Here we bumped into 2 more walkers who had driven down to Pevensey Bay.

All but 1 picnicker went to The Star Inn at Norman's Bay, which was just amazing in its very own ways: mega-fast service and therefore table turnover, enabling ultra-low prices while maintaining good food and drink quality and motivated and efficient staff.

Back onto the coast after that, there then came a longish stretch between cottages and houses, some top-of-the seawall walking (recently redone, so relatively easy to walk on). Cooden Beach had more flashy houses to ogle at than the previous bits, and suddenly we were in Bexhill. The De La Warr Pavilion Cafe was already closed, as 'Bexhill After Dark' was about to commence (some Goths had been spotted en route, loads of stalls and activities involving open fires and candles seemed about to happen later), so we frequented one of the independent cafes just by the De La Warr. That was again impressive in its efficient service and good quality cakes and drinks.

The group had earlier split up into 3 sub-groups and 1 of the front group and the 2 backmarkers retired to Bexhill Station at this point.

On then along the promenade (beware of the mobility scooters going at pace), under the cliffs and into St. Leonards. Our group of 6 (partly) had a quick drink and boarded the next available train (17.24), while the other group of 4 later stocked up wine at The Farmyard and took a train an hour later. Add 3 Bexhill retirees to that, 2 car drivers and 1 other who had stayed overnight in Eastbourne and walked an hour ahead of the group (he had his lunch roll nicked by a gull, says the secret intel), making for 16 walkers in mostly sunny weather.

Seen: a 5-strong family of seals on a tidal mudbank in Sovereign Harbour, loads of Sandlings and Gulls, some Starlings and plenty of other birds which I myself did not recognise, but someone else on the walk might have...

Message to future walk posters: best to start the walk about 2 hours before low tide, as that should minimise the exposure to shingle

The first part of this walk, eastwards along the prom from Eastbourne is great. You then wend your way through the modern development of Sovereign Harbour and after that you are on the shingle beach: this is fairly hard going and the only alternative is a suburban road inland (I have done this often, walking to Norman's Bay for a swim....It is not that bad, just a bit unromantic for a mile or two). At VERY low tide, when the tide gets below the shingle bar, the beach is an alternative, but you are talking about the bottom hour or two of the tide here. Even then there is some gloopy mud. Today high tide is at 9.42 and low tide at 16.24.

Once you get to Norman's Bay there are roads behind the beach so it is easier to walk along the coast after that. Then you get to Cooden Beach, which is the start of Bexhill and its promenades.

Having said all the above, this is an interesting bit of coast. I pay it an annual visit for sea swimming each year and always enjoy its remoteness.

Yes an intriguing walk. It looks it could be bracing with the wind coming from the east bringing lower temperatures.

Will anyone still do this walk if it's snowy? Thanks

Why not? What's wrong with snow? I've been waiting for years for a snowy walk.

was thinking more along the lines of London Snow Transport Upthespout..

If the snow forecast is right you would be extremely foolish to attempt this journey. The points will be frozen and we have the wrong kind of snow remember. Even the tube lines are already problematic due to the freezing weather and its only Monday with just a few snow flurries. A London suburbs walk would be a much more sensible post for Wednesday.

feel free to post a second walk

I was intending to do a Thames Path walk alone today, to stretch my legs, but mid-week walkers less than keen on travelling to Eastbourne are welcome to join me. So I have posted a make-shift second Wednesday walk for thee and me.

As Walker says in his comment: an interesting bit of the coast. Grand houses in Eastbourne, Bexhill-on-Sea and St Leonards, pretty beach side cottages and beach huts in the smaller places, a wide sandy beach, proper cliffs, an undercliff path and long stretches of remote and quiet pebble beach.

The 10.17 was delayed and was then taken out of service at Croydon for an unexplained technical fault, so we were effectively on the (also delayed) 10.47, eventually starting the walk 45 minutes behind schedule. The going was good, despite the fierce wind from the front and we reached Pevensey Bay just after 2 and found The Castle Inn a very welcoming place with 2 fireplaces and decent food. In light of the train delay and the remaining daylight, we took the bus to Collington and picked up the walk again there, conveniently cutting out most of the shingle.

A train to Cooden Beach would have been another option but we had just missed it. There then came the pretty stretch past Bexhill, the cliffs and along the wide beach (it was low tide) and finally St Leonards. After a brief stop at The Wine Shed for a drink and a bite the 18.58 train. Should be posted more often. 2 sunny cold with a fierce easterly

Oh, the snow... Just flecks of it, none in the wind exposed places.

This sounds like a good walk for a warm summer forecast maybe with some swimming opportunities?

Indeed, like every other walk I know this would be a good walk in summer, as much as it is a good walk in winter (as most coastal walks are). As for the swimming, I suggest you lobby those walk posters known to cater for that particular minority interest.

Well done for doing the walk in tough conditions. Enjoy the energy-sapping naysayers.

Should you wish a pre lunch thirst quencher. you could try the The Plough at Crowhurst

Fab choice and will definitely be there. Hope the weather will be nice enough for a paddle.

Monsieur Dent: 9.45? Really? Am I missing something? A Hastings rtn is £31.80 for that train. With a 10.15 train (and a Network Railcard) it's only £18.00. Are you trying to turn this into an OAP-only walk? If so, can we then pls have a 2nd posting for the (slightly) younger mob?

...or take the 10.15 and play catch-up? Fine with me...

Donner und Blitzen!, yes over £30 is too much.

The longer section of the walk is in the morning, so hence my choice of an earlier train.

Anyhow, may I suggest that for those fleet of foot and without an Older Person's Railcard go for the 10:15 train as suggested by Thomas?

AD

Intend going. 10.15 train

another vote for the 10.15 !

appreciate you posting the walk Mr Dent but it's always been a post 10am train for the midweeks

OR alternatively a 2nd posting for the younger lot as Thomas suggests ?

Will join Thomas on the later train at Waterloo East since it takes me 30 mins plus on my local train to get into London and you cannot get through the barriers at Waterloo until 9.30 even if you re a senior traveller. I have mentioned this before Mr Dent please note. No-one older or younger needs to spend this kind of money on an unnecessary train expense when the lunch stop is just the very simple cafe at the De La Warr pavilion-no time pressure surely?

Looking forward to do this walk.

might it not be better to bow to pressure of opinions, make it easier on yourself and just put the 10.15 train on the posting Mr Dent ? otherwise sadly walk is fragmented before we even get there !

For anyone willing to pace on to Hastings Old Town: the Jerwood Gallery (open until 17.00) is currently showing LS Lowry and Quentin Blake: http://www.jerwoodgallery.org/whatson/current#

first section is map-led...do any of the people intending to catch the later train have the correct map please ?!

there's a link to the map further up in the posting

10 overcast with hints of precipitation turning to sunny with blue sky

6 off the 9.45 dep., 4 off the 10.15. 19.8 km/12.3 mi as per gpx.

Very pleasant walk down to the coast to Bexhill along the 1066 Bexhill-Link. Quiet, varied, lots of woods, a few hillocks, some vast fields and only a few stiles. Lunch in Crowhurst for the late starters (very friendly service, but run-of-the-mill food). Tea and exhibitions at the De La Warr-Pavilion (Bridget Riley and John Stezaker). By then we were with Monsieur Arthur himself. Then on towards Warrior Square Station along the coast. Pleasant stretch of the South Coast this. Finish (for some) at a rewarding new Wine Bar/Bistro 100m from the station.

Nice day out.

Yes, can certainly recommend Wine Bar / Bistro mentioned by Thomas, it's

The Wineshed, 52 Kings Road, St Leonards

TN37 6DY tel 01424 420020

http://www.thewineshed.info/

Great food and not expensive.

The first half of this walk was lovely - then I lost Mr Dent when he stopped to tie his shoelace in an empty field and simply disappeared! Following a waymarked route, I somehow overshot Bexhill completely and ended up in Bulverhythe. Had a great walk through the sea shallows from Hastings Pier to the lifeboat, then met up with one other slightly puzzled walker on the train home Glad to hear that Arthur didn't drop through a Portkey into an alternative universe.

Ah, that's what happened to people! Realising at Crowhurst that we would not get to the suggested lunch place until quite late I set off on a bit of a march reaching the De La Warr pavilion at 2pm where I had lunch from their pretentious and not very appetizing lunch-time menu (probably best just for tea and cakes) before setting off with B at 3pm to Hastings. (We waited for others at the junction of the main coast road and the road at the end of the 1066 route. We reached Hastings main line station at just after 6pm where B caught THE 6.19 and I lingered with a coffee and read some news apps. I then met up with Carol on the 6.50.

Incidentally the distance for this walk is longer than the 11m advertised.

As follows:

1. Battle Station to Bexhill sea front = 12.33km

2. There and back to Pavilion say = 0.4km

3. Bexhill to Hastings main line station = 7.88km

This makes the walk 20.61km (12.89m) - a bit less if you catch the train at Warrior Square.

Good day out though and respect to Carol for her creative route to the sea front.