Barcombe

Barcombe sits in the Ouse Valley about four miles north of Lewes, spread across three distinct pockets rather than one tight centre. There is the old parish around the medieval church of St Mary, largely abandoned after the Black Death; the modern hub of Barcombe Cross, with its shops, pub and village green; and Barcombe Mills, a mile or so away by the river, where a working corn mill stood from at least the 11th century until fire destroyed it in the 1930s. Today that riverside spot is a quiet local nature reserve rather than a hamlet of any size, but the name has stuck and it is the part most visitors come to see.

What draws people here is the landscape rather than any single sight: water meadows, willow-lined paths, a disused railway line turned into a walking and cycling route, and the South Downs rising to the south. The River Ouse loops past Barcombe Reservoir, built in the 1950s to supply Brighton, and the combination of river, reservoir and old mill leats makes this one of the gentler, more overlooked corners of the Sussex countryside. It is not a place with a long list of paid attractions; it rewards people who like walking, cycling, wild swimming in permitted stretches, or simply sitting outside a riverside pub.

Top things to do in Barcombe

Barcombe rewards slow exploring on foot or by bike more than a checklist of sights, but there is a solid handful of real places worth building a day around.

• Barcombe Mills and Nature Reserve — the site of the old corn mill on the west bank of the River Ouse, now a peaceful reserve of wet woodland and meadow with paths along the old mill leat and weirs.
• Barcombe Reservoir — a former Brighton water-supply reservoir with a circular path along its banks, popular with anglers and birdwatchers watching for herons, kingfishers and wildfowl.
• St Mary the Virgin Church — a Norman-founded church in the original, largely deserted old village, with 17th-century armorial glass and later Victorian windows by Charles Eamer Kempe.
• The Anchor Inn at Barcombe Mills — an 1790 riverside pub where rowing boats can be hired to explore the Ouse, and a natural turning point for a circular walk from Barcombe Cross.
• The Egrets Way and Sustrans Route 21 — the trackbed of the old Lewes to Uckfield railway, now a flat, largely traffic-free path for cycling or walking towards Lewes.
• Bentley Wildfowl and Motor Museum — a few miles north-east near Ringmer, combining ornamental wildfowl collections, a motor museum and a miniature railway, good for a family day out.
• Lewes — the county town four or five miles south, with its Norman castle, Southover Grange gardens, independent shops and the historic Pells Pool, England's oldest documented freshwater outdoor pool.

Getting to Barcombe

Barcombe lies just off the A26 between Lewes and Uckfield, roughly four miles north of Lewes and a similar distance south of Uckfield, so it is an easy detour for anyone driving the Brighton to Tunbridge Wells corridor. The village itself has no railway station of its own today; the old Barcombe Mills and Barcombe stations on the Lewes to Uckfield line closed along with the line in the 1960s and 1970s. The nearest working stations are Lewes and Cooksbridge, both on regular services from Brighton, Gatwick Airport and London Victoria or Bridge, from where a taxi, bus or a pleasant cycle along the old railway path covers the last few miles. Local bus routes connect Barcombe Cross to Lewes and Uckfield, though services are relatively infrequent, and a car remains the most flexible way to reach the more scattered spots such as Barcombe Mills and the reservoir.

Best time to visit Barcombe

Late spring through to early autumn is the most rewarding time, when the water meadows are green, the mill reserve is full of birdlife and the Anchor Inn's riverside garden and rowing boats are at their best. May and June bring bluebells and blossom to the surrounding woodland and relatively quiet paths before the summer holidays. High summer suits river walks, cycling the old railway line and picnics by the reservoir, though prepare for boggier ground after wet weather at any time of year given the low-lying river valley setting. Autumn brings good colour along the Ouse and fewer crowds, while winter turns the reserve wetter and quieter still, better suited to a bracing walk and a fireside pint than lingering outdoors.

Where to stay in Barcombe

Accommodation in Barcombe itself is limited and mostly self-catering, from cottages and farmhouse rooms around Barcombe Cross to riverside camping and glamping near Barcombe Mills. Anyone wanting a wider choice of hotels, guesthouses or bed and breakfasts is better served by Lewes a few miles south, which has everything from boutique townhouse hotels to traditional coaching inns within easy striking distance of Barcombe by car or bike.

Food and drink in Barcombe

The village's best-known food and drink stop is the Anchor Inn at Barcombe Mills, an eighteenth-century riverside pub with real ale, a straightforward pub menu and boats for hire on the Ouse right outside. Barcombe Cross has its own village pub along with a well-regarded village shop and post office for essentials, and the wider area around Ringmer and Lewes offers a broader spread of cafes, farm shops and restaurants for anyone happy to travel a short distance for dinner.