Downs, North, and South Downs, parallel ranges of chalk hills, SE England. They rise to 965 ft (294 m) at Leith Hill, Surrey. The North Downs range, extending c.100 mi (160 km) from near Farnham, Surrey, to White Cliffs of Dover, Kent, is cut by the Wey, Mole, Darent, Medway, and Stour rivers. The South Downs (c.65 mi/100 km long) extend from near Winchester, Hampshire, to Beachy Head, East Sussex, and are cut by the Arun, Adur, and Ouse rivers. South Downs National Park, designated 2010, encompasses 627 sq mi (1,624 sq km) in Hampshire and West and East Sussex. The Weald lies between the two ranges in West Sussex and East Sussex (S) and Surrey and Kent (N). The Downs provide excellent pasturage for sheep; Southdown sheep are well known.
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