Читать книгу Walks in the South Downs National Park онлайн

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Kipling was right when he said that the Weald is good, the Downs are best, and millions of visitors a year would probably echo that sentiment, for hills are more seductive than plains and valleys, and the South Downs have a subtle beauty that defies comparison with bigger hills and mountains. Size plays no part in their attraction; after all, the highest Down is only 886ft. Puny, you might think; just a wart, a pimple. But it forms part of a larger whole; a cherished landscape, in perspective as impressive as many a mountain range, and every bit as beautiful.

Anyone who loves open space, an unchecked breeze and a long view will find the Downs rewarding. ‘Hills roll on after hills, till the last and largest hides those that succeed behind it,’ wrote Richard Jefferies in Nature Near London. In countless places no buildings are visible, only hills and valleys – a land without limits under an immense sky. Walking alone up there one can enjoy solitude, although some may find it a little intimidating. Dr Johnson did. He thought the sense of isolation enough to make a man want to hang himself, if he could only find a tree. But many more will welcome the peace and lack of people as invigorating.