Quick facts
- Wind direction
- WNW – N
- Take-off height
- 700 ft amsl (215 m)
- Height top-to-bottom
- 500 ft (152 m)
- Pilot rating
- CP+
- Unsupervised
- Top and slope landing tasks signed off
- Airspace
- 4,500 ft QNH to the north; 5,500 ft QNH overhead & south
- OS grid ref
- TQ 258 111
- Nearest town
- 5 miles NW of Brighton
- Car park postcode
- BN1 8YL
- Nearest A&E
- Royal Sussex County Hospital, Eastern Road, Brighton BN2 5BE (~5 miles)
About this site
Devil's Dyke is the club's busiest and most famous site — a civilised pub, sweeping views to the Weald, and reliable ridge soaring 5 miles NW of Brighton. The site is a half-mile NW ridge leading to a north-facing bowl with a NE spur, followed by a 2-mile north ridge (a series of bowls) running to Truleigh Hill. On busy days, consider Firle or Ditchling as alternatives to avoid congestion.
Site rules
Modeller's bowl: the steep, wooded bowl north of the pub (immediately to the right of the main take-off area) is for model fliers only — not to be over-flown below 250 ft agl (950 ft amsl).
The paddock — from the earthworks to the fence immediately west of the Pub — is essentially for the use of hang gliders, and is to be kept clear of paraglider traffic as far as is reasonably possible.
There is a risk of collision if a paraglider inflates in front of a hang glider performing a launch run, or flying out from an overshot top-landing. PGs must not be inflated in or below the paddock unless their pilots can determine with total certainty that no hang gliders are present. It is not possible to see launching hang gliders from low down the paddock or on the slope without first walking up to a position above the brow of the hill, or asking another pilot to check for them. If the red windsock is flying, paragliders must not inflate here under any circumstances.
Red Windsock: if hang gliders are present, HG pilots will fix a large red windsock at the paddock fence. This helps to facilitate safe hang glider take-off and allow for over-shoot.
Should you land your paraglider in the paddock when the red windsock is flying you must bring it down promptly, quickly mushroom, and walk out of the paddock. Do not inflate your paraglider.
Do not fly more than one paraglider at a time below 150 ft agl in front of the paddock if the red windsock is flying.
Do not inflate a paraglider on or below the paddock footpath if the red windsock is flying.
Cows may be in the bowl — never leave gliders or canopies unattended.
Slope landings are not permitted for Red Ribbon pilots — top-land or bottom-land only.
All pilots MUST complete a full all-round 'traffic' check immediately before inflating.
Getting there
Directions
Devil's Dyke is on the South Downs, 5 miles NW of Brighton. Take the A2038 off the Brighton Bypass (A27) and at the roundabout take the exit signposted 'Devil's Dyke'. After half a mile, take the left fork (also signposted).
Parking
National Trust pay-and-display car park (busy at weekends; no gate, no code). Do not park in the alleyway by the side of the pub (by the toilets). Use the lay-bys for bottom-landing retrieves — do not drive into the fields or onto the hill. You risk a ticket if you park on the roadside leading up to the Dyke.
Services
Pub and restaurant behind the main take-off area. The public toilets by the car park are permanently closed — use the pub. Other pubs in Poynings and Fulking at the bottom of the hill. Mobile signal is generally good on the ridge.
Marshalling system
In the event of an accident or incident, seven blasts on an air horn (or car horns) mean ALL pilots land immediately — apply big ears and head for the landing area to signal the emergency to others in the air.
Half-hour allocations: HGs or red ribbons can request dedicated periods, announced by word of mouth, during which launching is restricted to control the type and number of gliders airborne. Club Coaches may be requested to fly during Red Ribbon sessions. HG pilots may request experienced PG 'wind-dummies' in marginal conditions.
The system relies on good airmanship from all members. Working together, we can make the Dyke a safer place to fly.
Conditions & airspace — Devil's Dyke
Live wind for this site. Guidance only — always make your own assessment on the hill.
Wind — Devil's Dyke
Consensus (mean) · daytime hours · updated hourly
Average of the main models — cuts single-model noise
Weather data by Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0) · Consensus (mean). Forecasts are guidance only — wind on the hill can differ from the model. Always make your own assessment on site and fly within your and your site’s limits.
Thermals — Devil's Dyke
Star rating from RASP (Stratus) — the UK soaring standard
Star rating & thermal forecast from RASP UK (Stratus); supporting figures modelled from Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0). Guidance only — always make your own assessment.
Flying detail
Access & launch
Hang gliders: take-off areas are the paddock, the southerly part of the main area near the fence adjoining the paddock, and the area to the north of the paraglider take-off. On busy PG days, launch from the area north of the paragliders and land/re-launch from the paddock.
Paragliders: take-off is in the main area in front of the car park, or in the bowl in northerly winds.
Rigging: leave at least a 50 ft strip in front of the car park for public access and viewing. Paragliders should not be left opened in the main take-off area. If you are not clipped in, mushroom and move to the rear of the area. The main HG rigging area is the paddock — when HGs are present this is exclusive to them; park a maximum of two deep, adjacent to the fence and clear of the footpath. The bowl SW of the fort is unrestricted for HG and PG, but beware leaving canopies or gliders unattended (cows).
Landing
Top landing: hang gliders may top-land behind the bowl and in the paddock, or in front of the pub if it can be done without risk. Paragliders may top-land anywhere except the HG paddock when HGs are present; exercise caution in N–NNE winds as rotor off the upwind ridges and the modeller's bowl can affect the whole top-landing area, especially to the rear of the hill.
Bottom landing: land in the designated packing area in the large field below take-off, beside the road, or as close to it as skills allow and walk the last bit. Landing elsewhere in the large field is acceptable only if it is not in crop; HG pilots should seek an alternative when the field is in crop (the area beside the gate tends to be least overgrown).
Hazards & obstacles
High-voltage power lines approximately halfway to Truleigh. Fence immediately below and out of sight of the take-off area. Fence between the paddock and the main launch. Various sunken pathways and earthworks. Power lines on the northern boundary of the fields immediately to the north of the road.
Airflow
The site is often affected by sea-breeze encroaching from behind the hill, which can cause abrupt and severe turbulence — sometimes preceded by a burst of good lift. Often it will produce dangerous and turbulent air. Great caution is advised at these times. The sea breeze can also arrive from around the Truleigh end (a more westerly direction). When the wind is off to the west, airflow becomes very turbulent off the bowls and ridge to the west — do not get pushed into the aero-modellers' bowl. In northerlies, expect rotor at the rear of the paddock and in the strip between the pub and the fence to the west; the take-off can sit in wind-shadow with a steep gradient. NNE puts the whole take-off in serious wind-shadow with severe rotor. Penetration problems are often experienced when top landing at the back of the paddock if the wind is moderate in strength and off to the west. The Dyke valley (the deep coombe behind take-off) is full of rotor and sink — avoid being blown back over the pub or trees into it, and turn south behind the bowl in good time — and beware getting caught in 'hoover valley' just before the power lines on the ridge run to Truleigh.