Seven Sisters Cliffs – East Sussex, England - Atlas Obscura

Seven Sisters Cliffs

These stark white cliffs were spat up by the sea and are slowly being retaken by it. 

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The undulating cliffs known as the Seven Sisters rival even the White Cliffs of Dover for ivory clarity but the constant crashing of the ocean waves at their base is causing them to fall piece-by-piece back into the ocean.

Startlingly picturesque, the cliffs are known as the “Seven Sisters” due to the seven distinct hilltops that comprise the silhouette of the cliffs. The bright white color of the stone is thanks to the abundance of chalk that makes up most of the cliff face. The features were created in prehistoric times when the land was submerged and seawater pushed the softer chalk to the surface and as the waters lowered, exposed the cliffs. Now as the sea pounds the base of the cliffs each day, erosion is slowly taking the chalk back as large chunks of the cliffs wall back into the water. 

Luckily for the Seven Sisters Cliffs, it this very process of erosion that has allowed them to retain their white pallor since similar cliff faces around the world have received increased protection which halts the erosion, they have begun to accumulate vegetation that is slowly mottling their color. This has led to the Seven Sisters being used in a number of films such as Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves and Atonement.  

Know Before You Go

Start on Eastbourne and walk along the coast on west direction or start at Seaford and walk along the coast in east direction.

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