I checked off the iconic walk of the Seven Sisters down by Brighton on a brilliantly blue early summer day.

Headed down to Seaford by train, an easy 2 hour ride from London. From the train station, I walked across the small town to the Seaford Head Golf Course, where the sight of the imposing white chalk cliffs falling into the ocean took my breath away.

For a short way along the trek, I walked alongside a local, an old man who is a regular plyer of the walk, often with a sandwich bag in hand. We chatted about the unusual but welcome spell of sunny and cool days in Britain (jet streams that veered off the island carrying rain instead to Bordeaux); the wildflowers that sprouted up on the path through the different seasons; the geographic significance of the coast during WWII etc.

The official Seaford to Birling Gap walk has the walker turning back inland along the Cuckmere River when they reach Cuckmere Haven, the stretch of beach that connects to the actual Seven Sisters walk. But I was lazy to wander back inland and to the town of Exceat just to cross the river stream. It was mid tide, and the channel at the mouth, although fast moving, looked shallow enough. So I bid farewell to my lovely companion, took off my socks and shoes and rolled up my pants, and waded across the pebbly stream.

Such a gorgeous stretch of coast. 😍 Though the hills looked tiringly steep from a distance, I felt like I got up and over each “sister” in no time at all, distracted as I was by the lush green fields and blue ocean beyond.