Ditchling Beacon is the highest point in East Sussex. At 248 meters it is not particularly high, it’s not even the highest point on the South Downs – Butser Hill is top at 270 meters followed by Crown Tegleaze at 253m. Those two are in West Sussex. There were plenty of clouds in the sky when I was there and the passing showers had made the visibility very good. I could see for miles.

Then I wondered how far I could see. If the formula I’ve used is correct, I could potentially see 36.4 miles in the radius from the peak. This however assumes there is perfect visibility and the land around is dead flat. 

That is potentially far enough to see Rye in the east, Chichester in the west, and even as far as Croydon to the north. The rolling land and trees prevent these from being seen in reality, particularly with the naked eye. The one standout landmark is the AMEX Stadium that can be seen beyond the field of cows in the photos above. It is about 3 miles away, and it’s silver roof was shining in the sun. Needless to say that the views are excellent. On this day the strong wind was blowing big cloud formations across the sky. These cast their shadows onto the land, changing the light all the time. And it was nice to know that for the short time I was there, no one in East Sussex was higher than me. These photos of Ditchling Beacon can be viewed full size on my Flickr page by clicking on them.