Monday, March 8, 2021

HADLEIGH & LEIGH

 One other place to visit in South Benfleet and that's the depot of S&M Coaches (AKA Castlepoint Bus Co.). Here are a couple of their buses, mainly used on contract work. The year is 1986.


We gain height and venture inland now, to Hadleigh, where Eastern National based their Bristol FLF 'deckers back in 1980.


How about a pint of Luker's Ales? The Waggon & Horses later became a Watney's house (boo!) and has now been converted into flats (double boo!!).


Overlooking the Thames Estuary, the remains of Hadleigh Castle.


We now take the main road towards the upper parts of Leigh-on-Sea, where we pass Southend Transport No. 20 (Richard Huggins).



The Ship Hotel in Leigh-on-Sea is our next stop. Here it is, many moons ago, when it sold Mann's beers and, below, in the 1990s. It's future is uncertain at the time of writing.



Up in that part of Leigh-on-Sea is the Broker, which, I believe is still in business. https://www.facebook.com/TheBrokerFreehouse/

Down to the shores now. Don't ask, "What shores?", because the answer to that is a pint. I mean the shores of the Thames Estuary and old Leigh-on-Sea. As the light fades, there's a storm brewing over Kent.

We'll see much more of Leigh-on-Sea in the next posting, but in the meantime, let's have some beers in the Peterboat.

Good night!



No comments:

Post a Comment

OF GLASS AND POWER

Suddenly, everything turns industrial as we enter Knottingley. Here we find, alongside the Aire & Calder Canal, the Steampacket Inn . It...