Day 4 – Seven Sisters/Birling Gap April 29, 2018

We took a train from Victoria Station to Brighton, and there rented a car for our next two weeks of adventures.

Our first stop was Birling Gap, East Sussex, on the English Channel. We took a short walk along the South Downs headlands toward Belle Tout Lighthouse, and had good views to the west of the Seven Sisters chalk cliffs.

Belle Tout Lighthouse

Walking back to Birling Gap

Seven Sisters chalk cliffs to the south

Half of the near building has fallen into the sea due to cliff erosion.

We went down the cliffside staircase to the beach along the white cliffs.

Bluebells!

To the north – cliff edge with half missing building above

South view from staircase

The cliffs are composed of Cretaceous chalk with flint bands and nodules. They weather to a gold color, but calve so often that they appear a beautiful stark white from a distance.  Up close, the texture is flint nodules in a chalky substrate, and the beach itself is composed of wave washed nodules.  I would notice these nodules later on our trip in the local building stone.

Chalk/flint cliffs

Nodules on the beach

We managed to stay just ahead of an impending storm. From Birling Gap, we drove back west to a B&B in Chawton, Hampshire. Tomorrow would be Jane Austen history day!