THE LONG WAY ROUND TO BLACKPOOL

To the south of Fleetwood is an industrial area called Burn Naze and a pub of the same name. Sadly, this cracking boozer has since been knocked down.

 Nearby was Thornton station on the Fleetwood branch.

Thornton once had a well known wndmill.

Back to the trams now, at Cleveleys, where a Blackpool & Fleetwood car is seen.

Blackpool single-deck tram 693 passes the permanent way siding at Cleveleys.

We follow the tramway towards Blackpool and soon get to Little Bispham.

There's a turning circle at Little Bispham and tram 706 has a little problem here.

An engineering car was often kept at Little Bispham for emergencies.

Further south, car 167 passes the Norbreck Hall Hydro.

Beyond that is Bispham Tram Station, seen here on two old postcards.

More modern trams at Bispham in the 1990s.

Bispham Sands - a postcard view.

Inland a bit is the Bispham, a Sam Smith's house.

Further inland - this is our next stop.

L&YR motor trains from Fleetwood to Blackpool North would avoid the main station at Poulton and call instead here.

The Fleetwood branch joined the main line by Poulton No. 3 signal box.

Let's go into Poulton-le-Fylde town centre (Creative Commons License).

There are several pubs around here. One is the Old Town Hall.

Nearby was the Grapevine. It used to sell real ale, but has now changed its name and purveys only the dreaded KEG!

Thankfully, the Thatched House is a brilliant pub with plenty of cask beer.

As we head into Blackpool, we find the suburb of Layton and some modern vehicles of Blackpool Transport.

There's a railway station at Layton. 

From here, we'll take a train to Blackpool North, but you'll have to await the next post. Meanwhile, follow the route here.