Breeze explorer: Devil's Dyke

‘Breeze explorer Devil’s Dyke’ is probably the most difficult Breeze ride from Brighton – Devil’s Dyke is the only ‘proper’ hill climb we offer with Breeze. It starts gently with one of the most popular routes for rides out of Brighton. After exploring a few country lanes, we will come back over the Dyke. It’s a 15-20 minute climb with a couple of very steep sections and a tricky right turn, but very much doable if we take it slowly. This route is the gateway to all the best routes heading north to Twineham and Wineham, east to Ditchling and Lewes, and the classic loops west to Steyning through Edburton or Partridge Green.

This ‘Breeze explorer’ series focuses on the main cycling routes in and out of Brighton. These are the starting point for creating your own cycling routes, so you can get out and explore the countryside on longer rides.

Perhaps you regularly cycle or commute around Brighton but would like to start going out on rides for leisure or sport? Or you usually ride alone and are looking to learn some group riding skills. Or you have recently moved to the area and want to find some cycling buddies and get familiar with local cycling routes.

Skill/experience level:
- Very good road awareness (e.g. signalling/pulling out to turn right, manoeuvring roundabouts, giving parked cars plenty of space)
- Confident cycling on busy roads
- Very good level of fitness (i.e. can generally make it up Elm Grove without getting off)
- Road bike, gravel bike, touring bike, or hybrid with road tyres

We leave Hove Park on the Old Shoreham Road cycle lane, heading out of town up Dyke Road. It’s a long, gradual climb to the golf course and the great views start once we get over the bypass. From the top, it’s a fast descent to Poynings. After this, we’ll do a short loop of the country lanes. Then we’ll climb back up over the Dyke again.

This ride involves two tricky right turns and a couple of busy roundabouts. We will of course instruct and guide you across these, but you should basically feel confident cycling on main roads. As with any Breeze ride, we will ride at the pace of the slowest to make sure no-one gets left behind.

We’ll make a café stop either at Rushfields garden centre or Hill Top Café.

You should be able to fit everything you need into a saddle bag:
- a spare inner tube for your bike, pump, tyre levers.
- water/sports drink
- money and face mask for the café
- emergency snack (e.g. banana or bar) in case we don’t make a café stop for any reason.

Please check your bike before heading out - are the tyres fully inflated? Do both brakes work?
Is the chain oiled?