involved in the business of village life.
Ringmer has a football club, cricket club,
a couple of lovely pubs, a curry house
and a 13th Century church. What more
could you want? ‘A pond you can fish
in!’ I hear you shout... Ok, maybe that’s
taking things a little too far, but, ask
my son and daughter about Ringmer
pond and they’ll tell you tales of landing
the ‘most hugenormous’ carp on our
regular jaunts to the pond on the green
(‘hugenormous’ being my son Frazer’s
term for pretty big). For my last birthday
my children bought me a brilliant 12 foot
carp fishing rod which has recently been
christened. I managed to catch a very
pretty rud and a reasonable sized carp.
Ringmer pond is probably the one place
where I can guarantee to get the most
peace and quiet.
So, I am probably making it sound as
though I spend all my spare time in
Ringmer. Not quite. I still like to get
my fix of retail therapy in Brighton or
Eastbourne, both really easy to get to,
and then it’s only a five minute drive
into our County town of Lewes, with its
boutiques, antique shops and tea rooms
(lovely for a browse and a cuppa). The
beach at Seaford is always a big favourite
with my children, winter or summer.
There’s nothing they like better than
shell-hunting and having a paddle, even if
it is blowing a gale and raining. We often
go for a wander around Raystede Animal
Welfare Centre which is on the outskirts
of the village. They have all sorts of
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animals from rabbits and guinea pigs,
to ducks, geese, ponies, dogs, cats and
goats, and all sorts in between. Some
of the animals need re-homing and if
my daughter had her way, they would all
come to live with us! She is an 8 year old
budding vet so she loves these visits.
The views across
to Newhaven
from here are truly
breathtaking and
you often see
paragliders flying
from the top,
soaring with the
thermals
Our favourite local walk is from the end
of our road, across the fields (dodging
the cows) and up to the Glyndebourne
Turbine. Once we’ve had our hot
chocolate from a thermos at the Mill Post
at the top, we walk along the footpath
on the ridge of the hill overlooking the
village, with amazing views across the
county, past the gamekeeper’s cottages
and down the hill again to Potato Lane
and home.
Sometimes, in the summer we take a
picnic and walk over the hills toward the
next village of Glynde and on to Mount
Caburn where there is an Iron Age hill
fort. It is one of the most excavated
archaeological sites in the country,
archaeologists having uncovered 140
burial pits, which were found to contain
artefacts such as tools, pottery and coins.
The most recent findings suggest that
rather than being a defensive fort, it was
built for religious ritual purposes. The
views across to Newhaven from here
are truly breathtaking and you often see
paragliders flying from the top, soaring
with the thermals. We do these walks
in all seasons, and enjoy our beautiful
wildlife and surroundings. I feel privileged
to live in such an unspoilt place.
I could ramble on about Ringmer for
ages, just because it is my home, my
haven and my happy place. The place
I return to and don’t want to leave. The
place where my family are content and
we are safe. This is really sums up
Ringmer for me, in a rather large nutshell.
By Susie Parsons
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