Year 6 Geography trip to the River Cuckmere and Seven Sisters Country Park.

Whilst the heavy rain did make the trip via Alfriston village a little tricky it also served to highlight the spectacular meanders and creeks of the River Cuckmere’s floodplain in the Spring sunshine and allow the ‘New Cut’ to be in full spate and speed along to the sea at low tide. As it did so the fast-flowing water actively undercut and eroded the shingle beach causing mini land or ‘shingle’ slides before our very eyes.

As the twenty-three strong party of Year 6’s walked the high line along the chalk hills overlooking the meanders, stops were made, field sketches drawn and explanations given. The shingle beach, wave cut platform and the spectacular white, vertical, chalk cliff – the first of the Seven Sisters - provided another geographical landscape to discuss. Further field sketches were made under the expert eye of Head of Art Mrs Moore and questions were asked by the enthusiastic boys and girls. We finished the day walking up the steep chalk slope in order to catch spectacular views westwards of the mouth of the River Cuckmere and eastwards along the Seven Sisters themselves towards Birling Gap and Eastbourne. Our ‘scramble’ did little to reduce the footpath erosion which is very much in evidence but by following the footpaths we did not exacerbate it.

A fabulous ‘geography in a day’ was had by pupils and staff alike.