Five Trails Ultra 50k

The Five Trails Ultra starts and finishes at Westerlands in Graffham, near Petworth in West Sussex, and is a loop of around 50km on the South Downs. The route links five long-distance trails: the Serpent Trail, New Lipchis Way, West Sussex Literary Trail, Monarch's Way and the South Downs Way. Runners leave Graffham on gentle ground before climbing onto the Downs near Heyshott and then following a rolling course across the escarpment, with checkpoints at Heyshott, East Dean Wood, Upwaltham and the Bignor Hill car park. The terrain is almost entirely off-road, on tracks and woodland trails, with very little tarmac. The course is hilly, with repeated climbs and descents over the Downs between roughly the 10km and 44km marks, before a steep descent and a flat run back to the finish at Graffham. Views across the Downs are a highlight.