Sussex

Cissbury Ring history and nature trail

Walk along an ancient road and see where flint mining provided tools for our Neolithic ancestors. On the route look out for varied wildlife in this important chalk downland site and enjoy panoramic views from the second largest Iron Age hillfort in the south of England.

Near to

Cissbury Ring

Start point

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

Trail information

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Difficulty*

Accessibility**

Full trail

DistanceMiles: 2.2 (km: 3.52)

Duration1 hour to 1 hour 30 mins

Dog friendly***

*Grassland, embankments and flint paths with some moderately steep sections. Some areas may be slippery when wet. For further details, please see section marked Terrain.
**Uneven terrain, steep slopes, steps and kissing gates on route. For further details, please see section marked Access.
***Dogs must be kept on a lead.

Address
Storrington Rise car park, Findon Valley, BN14 0HT
Directions via Google Maps
By train
Worthing is the nearest town, 3 miles from Cissbury Ring. After leaving the station walk in an easterly direction to Broadwater Road, cross the bridge over the railway, and take a bus (see 'by bus' section).
On foot
Two miles from the South Downs Way which has paths leading to the Ring.
By bus
Stagecoach Service no.1 runs from the centre of Worthing to Midhurst. Live bus times can be found here. Metrobus service no.23 runs from the centre of Worthing to Horsham and Crawley. Both services use the A24 through Findon Valley. Get off at the May Tree Avenue bus stop, walk along May Tree Avenue and turn into Storrington Rise. The car park is where the road bends to the right.
Cycling
National Cycle Network Route 2 to Shoreham-by-Sea, then 8 miles towards Findon. South Downs Way route 89 is 1.5 miles north and route 222 (Shoreham-by-Sea to Guildford) is an off-road route. No cycling is permitted on the hillfort.
By road
Take the A24 north out of Worthing and turn right at the parking sign for 'Cissbury Ring' off on the right 1.3 miles from the roundabout with the A27.
Dogs
Dogs must be kept on a lead.
Car park
Storrington Rise car park (not National Trust).
Toilet
The nearest public toilets are at the south end of the Findon Valley shopping parade, next to the public library.
Café
There are cafés (not National Trust) in the Findon Valley shopping parade just over half a mile to the south. There is also a café at the Wyevale garden centre half a mile to the north on the other side of the A24, and Findon Village.
Total stages: 11
Total stages: 11
Start point
Storrington Rise car park, Findon Valley, grid ref: TQ129076
Stage 1
Leave the car park at the south-east corner and take the left-hand path where the track splits. Walk straight up the hill and look for a gap in the trees.
Stage 2
Go through the gap in the trees turning right past a bench. When you come out of the woods turn left and walk uphill by the edge of the field until you come to a kissing gate in the corner.
Stage 3
Go through the kissing gate. Continue climbing on another grassy path just to the right of the trees up ahead, until you reach the fence at the foot of Cissbury Ring.
Stage 4
Go through the kissing gate near the bench and turn right onto the lower of the two embankments.
Stage 5
Walk round the fort towards the south taking in the views as you go.
Stage 6
When you reach a gravel footpath crossing your track in front of a wooded area turn left and go through the gap in the inner embankment. This is the southern entrance to Cissbury.
Round-headed rampion, Sussex | © National Trust/Fiona Scully
Stage 7
Take the grassy uphill path, which goes diagonally to the right across the hillfort. Continue walking uphill until you reach the triangulation point.
Stage 8
Turn right at the triangulation point and walk down towards the eastern entrance to Cissbury Ring, which is the obvious gap in the earthworks.
Stage 9
Climb the steps on your left and continue along the upper embankment until you get to a lone tree and a bench where you can sit and admire the views.
Stage 10
Continue following the path around the north-east side of Cissbury Ring until you arrive at the steps at the south-west corner. These are just above the kissing gate you came through earlier to access the hillfort.
Neolithic flint mines
The south-western part of Cissbury hill is covered with the remains of Neolithic flint mines dating back to between 4300BC and 2300BC. Over 270 pits have been found here. The shafts were as deep as 12 metres with many galleries radiating from them. Flint is hard and makes very sharp tools but flint which has been exposed to the elements becomes very brittle. Mining enabled the hardest flint to be obtained from seams within the chalk.
Artist's impression of flint mining at Cissbury Ring, Sussex | © National Trust/J. P. S. Brinded
Stage 11
Go down the steps, back through the kissing gate, and follow the route back down to the car park.
End point
Storrington Rise car park, Findon Valley, grid ref: TQ129076
Trail map
Cissbury Ring history and nature trail map | © Crown copyright and database rights 2013 Ordnance Survey
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