Sussex

Cissbury Ring butterfly walk

A dark green fritillary butterfly warms its wings on a thistle | © National Trust Images / Matthew Oates

Explore one of the best butterfly sites in Sussex with this circular walk along the Cissbury Ring to see numerous Adonis and chalkhill blues, dark-green fritillaries and marbled whites.

Near to

Cissbury Ring

Start point

Storrington Rise car park in Findon Valley, grid ref: TQ129076

Trail information

View route

Print trail

Difficulty*

Accessibility**

Full trail

DistanceMiles: 3.0 (km: 4.8)

Duration3 hours

Dog friendly***

*Some short, gentle slopes, usually with steps, avoiding the steep slopes. For more information visit the section marked Terrain.
**Steps not accessible to wheelchairs or pushchairs.
***Dogs are welcome under close control. For more information visit the section marked Facilities.

Explore the most historic hill on the South Downs

The walk is also very rich in flora, including bee orchids, field fleawort and round-headed rampion, and has impressive areas of chalk lichen lawns.

Address
Storrington Rise, Findon Valley, Worthing. BN14 0HT ·
Directions via Google Maps
By train
Worthing station is 3 miles (5km) from Cissbury Ring, then take bus number 1 (see 'by bus'). 30-minute walk to Cissbury Ring from nearest bus stop.
On foot
2 miles (3km) from South Downs Way, which has paths leading to Cissbury Ring.
Cycling
National Cycle Network route 2 to Shoreham-by-Sea, then cycle up 8 miles (12.8km) towards Findon. South Downs Way route 89 is 1.5 miles (2.5km) north and route 222 (Shoreham-by-Sea to Guildford) is an off-road route.
By road
Worthing is the nearest town, 3 miles (5km) away. Take A24 north, following signs for 'Cissbury Ring parking' turning, signed off A24.
Total stages: 8
Total stages: 8
Start point
Storrington Rise car park in Findon Valley, grid ref: TQ129076
Stage 1
Take the path out of the Storrington Rise car park, heading across a neglected field towards the corner of a copse. Go through the kissing gate, and follow the path along the copse edge, under old sycamore trees. Cross the stile and follow the path across a grass field, through a kissing gate onto Cissbury Ring, by the National Trust omega sign and a bench.
Stage 2
Turn left onto the outer ramparts. The fence on your left gradually drops away. Go down the steps to the small car park in the northern corner (before the car park is an old sunken dew pond).
Wildlife
An excellent stretch for chalk downland butterflies, including numerous chalkhill blues in July and August, dark-green fritillaries in July, and dingy and grizzled skippers in May. Also, look out for chalk downland flowers, including various orchids and you may see and hear skylarks. The rare and legally protected fairy shrimp appears in the dew pond during periods of heavy rain – the rest of the time it remains as eggs in the ground.
Stage 3
Turn right in the minor car park, before the gate into the field, and follow the vehicle track that leads through scrub and open flowery glades, with a steep slope on your left. It becomes more open, with a big grassy area appearing on your left. Go straight over the minor crossroads, staying on the upper of the two paths. Go through a bridlegate (not National Trust, but open access land) into a large area of open grassland with developing scrub. Explore this area for a while, then retrace your steps back to the bridlegate.
Stage 4
Follow the inner rampart ditch, past where you entered, round to the south-west entrance. Near the old beech plantation, turn right out of the hillfort entrance, go through the kissing gate and meander around the flint mines, before heading towards the bridlegate by the wood corner.
Stage 5
After the bridlegate, turn left at the crossroads. Go through another bridlegate, and aim for the main (eastern) entrance to the hillfort. (Before the entrance, you can do a detour to explore the steep south-facing slope at the head of Rifle Range Valley.)
Stage 6
After the kissing gate leading into the hillfort, turn right to follow the path along the outer ramparts initially, before bearing left at the top of the steps to follow the inner rampart ditch. This leads past an area of flint mines.
Stage 7
Follow the inner rampart ditch, past where you entered, round to the south-west entrance. Near the old beech plantation, turn right out of the hillfort entrance, go through the kissing gate and meander around the flint mines, before heading towards the bridlegate by the wood corner.
Stage 8
From the wood edge bridlegate, follow the straight diagonal path back towards the old sycamore trees, and return to the Storrington Rise car park.
End point
Storrington Rise car park in Findon Valley, grid ref: TQ129076
Trail map
Route map for the Cissbury Ring butterfly walk | © Crown copyright and database rights 2013 Ordnance Survey
You made it
Share your experience