Winter has a bit of an image problem. Short days, bare trees and unpredictable weather can make it tempting to stay indoors and wait patiently for spring. But there are some places in Sussex that don’t simply survive winter … they are arguably better for it.
Without the crowds and foliage of summer, views open up, landscapes feel bigger and wilder, and familiar places take on a completely different character. Add low winter sunlight, frost, stormy seas and the promise of a warm pub or café at the end, and suddenly winter has quite a lot going for it.
So pull on your boots, add another layer and embrace the season. Here are five Sussex places we think are actually better in winter.
Seven Sisters
Anyone who knows Sussex knows that Seven Sisters in summer isn’t that much fun. Apart from the fact that it can be relentlessly hot trekking along the ups and downs of the coastal path, with no shade, it can also get ridiculously busy. Buses unload hundreds of day trippers at Birling Gap and at times it can feel like standing room only.
However, choose a bleak, wild and wet winter’s day, and it’s a completely different story. OK, so you have to be at peace with walking head down into the wind while the rain lashes your cheeks, but the chances are you’ll have this dramatic landscape pretty much to yourself. Just stay away from the edge in case you get blown away. I kid you not!
Rye
Let’s face it, Rye is evocative and charming at any time of the year, but come the summer months, the streets get a little crowded and Mermaid Street is awash with Instagrammers. It’s still delightful, but if you decide to climb the church tower, you probably won’t be alone.
But as the sunshine cools, and rain replaces tourists, Rye comes into its own. Enjoy dramatic views of scudding clouds over Rye Harbour, wet cobbles shining at dusk, and lights twinkling from inviting bars. But hold on to your hat at the top of the church tower.
Duncton Hill
At the other end of the county, just south of Petworth on the A285, the Duncton Hill viewpoint is a favourite stop point all through the year. It has stunning views across the county as far as Blackdown and Leith Hill with Sussex laid out beneath it.
In summer, it still offers views, but the unwieldy undergrowth shrinks it down to a smaller size. But try a frosty winter morning when the trees are bare, and the foliage has long since died back for its winter hibernation, and the views are not only much wider, but they take on an almost ethereal feel.
Weald & Downland Living Museum
As an open air museum, in summer, Weald and Downland Museum offers magically warm evenings spent watching open air theatre, flower filled gardens and lazy days spent watching re-enactments and life from yesterday.
Yet in winter, hurrying between the many period buildings take on a whole new feeling. Gather round the warmth of a cottage fire to watch a Tudor cooking demonstration, browse the Christmas market, take part in their Advent season or join in with tree dressing or wassailing surrounded by historic buildings.
Nymans
Nymans near Haywards Heath may have a fine and well-deserved reputation for its fine summer gardens and its elegant but ruined house, but it comes into its own in winter.
Its dramatic views across the Weald, network of woodland winter walks and garden that offers sculpture, drama and colour even in the bleakest months, are all reason enough to visit once the leaves have fallen and the frosts have started to bite. But the stark ruins of the beautiful house, juxtaposed with the beautiful remaining interior and stunning Christmas displays make it a must.
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