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The towering cliff of Beachy Head, seen from the shoreline diversion

Beyond the Cow Gap fork the path continues along cropped grass on the lower cliffs before curving sharply to the right (west) and rising very steeply. At the head of the slope join the route of the South Downs Way which crosses a tarmac path making a loop to a vantage point, then curves along the clifftop to Beachy Head.

From here to Birling Gap the walk follows the route of the South Downs Way along the clifftops. Do not stray too close to the edge as the cliffs are prone to crumbling. This is a walk of great scenic beauty: sea to one side, rolling downland spreading away on the other, while ahead the white-edged cliffs lead the eye towards Seaford Head. With its cropped thatch of grass and dramatic white cliffs, this forms part of a treasured Heritage Coast.

In 1999 a massive rockfall destroyed a section of Beachy Head’s cliff-face, a potent reminder of its vulnerability. Heeding the warning, the owners of the disused Belle Tout lighthouse (built in 1831 but made redundant in 1901) physically moved it a short distance down the slope, away from the cliff edge. The cottages at Birling Gap are also succumbing, one by one, to cliff-edge erosion.