South Downs Way - Amberley to Steyning

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The weather forecast predicted rain coming in from the west by early afternoon and so I decided to get going early and try and finish this 12 mile stretch before the rain set in. So much for forward planning as soon after I started at 9.00 it started to rain and I quickly unpacked the wet gear and put it on before the weather deteriorated. It was a ''mizzle'' rather than a downpour and as such the walk did not become an endurance test although the views were limited which was a pity.
At an early stage of the walk I spotted a couple of very vociferous lapwings and it made me wonder why they had become so rare. When I was young they could be seen in large flocks on many a ploughed field. But now they have almost disappeared. They are also known as peewits which is the sound they make and the couple I saw were very loudly peewitting. Does anybody know the reason they have disappeared?
Along the way I passed Chanctonbury Ring which as an exposed hilltop is one of the great viewpoints of the South Downs (but not today), It was once an an Iron Age hill-fort dating back to 600BC but its claim to fame came about as a result of Charles Goring planting a copse of beech trees in 1760 which grew to become one of the most famous landmarks in Sussex. Sadly the copse was badly damaged by the storm of October 1987 and it has not been tther same since.
The journey today ended in Steyning being a village that holds fond memories for our visits to old friends Bryce and Glo who lived there before moving to the West Country

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Photos

Chanctonbury Ring
A view through the drizzle

Chanctonbury Ring (2)
Not what it used to be!!!

I even took in Washington
That is Washington West Sussex and not DC

Farmer's Memorial on the Way
Situated at the top of Steyning Bowl

Yet more colour
Fields full of colour on a damp day along the top of the Steyning Bowl

Comments

[Sally and John]

still more history!!
When I see something that dates back to 600BC then I know there is a huge amount of history there. What was in the fields which gave that lovely colour?

[Jane]

Brilliant!
Hi John - a lovely part of the world - I'm envious - though not so sure about tramping up and down those hills in iffy weather. I have good friends in Worthing and Brighton so often visit down there and know it well. I tend to go for the shopping ... Lynne would adore (inc. Winchester) ... nuff said. Love Jane x

[Lynne]

I expect Emma will know about the lapwings. Shakespeare mentions them in "Much Ado About Nothing" with the entrance of Beatrice. I suppose they were a much more common sight then. "For look where Beatrice, like a lapwing runs Close by the ground, to hear our conference." V. nice to see a farmer's unsophisticated memorial on top of a hill. Makes a change from all the Lord Somebody-or-other's phallic obelisks that litter the countryside.

[Emma]

Lapwings
Hi John, lucky you to see lapwings! I think they're declining because of changes of farming practices. They are on the endangered animal list in the UK. You can find out a bit more about why they're declining here http://www.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/birdguide/name/l/lapwing/decline_and_conservation.aspx Sounds like you're having a lovely time! Am very envious (especially as the weather has been glorious here today, and I wish I were out in it an not stuck in this office! See you soon and best of luck Emma xx

[Lynne]

Told you Emma would know all about the lapwings. I see that Sally in NZ wants to know about the yellow fields which I guess are planted with rapeseed. Looks so spectacular but not so fragrant up close. How old were the OAPs? 60? 61? 62-ish or something like that! Don't forget the hat and sun cream with all this sunshine. (A wifely comment, that.) Lots of love xxxxxx