South Downs Way: Cocking Hill to Bignor Hill

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Walk directions

By Hill Barn Farm is one of the few public water taps for walkers along the entire length of the route. Fill up your water bottle as the track heads steeply uphill past Manor Farm Down and Heyshott Down. To the south is Goodwood Park, while far beyond on the coast is the former RAF Hurricane and Spitfire fighter station at Tangmere. Along the top of the Down, the views are shrouded by dense woodland.

You pass the village of Heyshott to the north, where 53 acres of downland are conserved and managed by the Murray Downland Trust. It was in a farmhouse called Dunford in Heyshott that Victorian free trader Richard Cobden was born. A little further along the SDW a number of connected grassland reserves and woodland corridors are managed by the Graffham Downland Trust as Sites of Special Scientific Interest.

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Location
Additional information
  Terrain  - Concrete, chalk and grass paths or tracks
  Landscape  - Open farmland, woods, hills, views of hamlet-speckled countryside
  Dog friendliness  - This is an off-road route but dogs should be on lead near livestock
  Parking  - On street in Cocking or just south of Cocking on South Downs Way
  Toilets en route  - None on route
About the walk
This is the second section along the South Downs Way National Trail. It is almost entirely off road, running on bridleways that pass across Heyshott Down and Graffham Down, which together form a ridge. It means that once you’ve gained height at the start of the walk, you stay high for many miles,...
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South Downs Way: Cocking Hill to Bignor Hill

Recommended by
Dog friendly
Location
Nearest postcode:
Additional information
  Terrain - Concrete, chalk and grass paths or tracks
  Landscape - Open farmland, woods, hills, views of hamlet-speckled countryside
  Dog friendliness - This is an off-road route but dogs should be on lead near livestock
  Parking - On street in Cocking or just south of Cocking on South Downs Way
  Toilets en route - None on route
About the walk
This is the second section along the South Downs Way National Trail. It is almost entirely off road, running on bridleways that pass across Heyshott Down and Graffham Down, which together form a ridge. It means that once you’ve gained height at the start of the walk, you stay high for many miles,...
Read more
Been on this walk placeholder

Been on this walk?

Send us photos or a comment about this route. Or recommend a route of your own.

Walking in Safety placeholder

Walking in Safety

Read our tips to look after yourself and the environment when following this walk.

Get an AA guide placeholder

Get an AA guide

Explore our range of ‘50 Walks in’ guides - they’re the ideal companion for a ramble.

About the area
Area image
not available. .