You might have noticed the photo at the top of the page, my masthead. You might have noticed that it features a boat’s mast. If you did, and if you made the connection, congratulations! Your brain is as weird as mine.
The photo was taken in Leigh-on-Sea, a small town near the mouth of the River Thames, not far from Southend. Leigh is interesting in that it is in two parts: the newer part uphill in the north, and Old Leigh, down in the south, by the sea. I say “sea,” as does the town’s name, but I used to joke that it should be Leigh-on-Thames as it’s upriver from the mouth of the Thames. But it’s salt water and it’s tidal, so the joke was short-lived.
Old Leigh is well worth a visit with a camera, especially when the Old Leigh Regatta takes places, once a year, featuring a small fair and all kinds of water-based events. And especially when the Regatta isn’t taking place, as you can wander along the coast in one direction downriver towards Chalkwell, or upriver to Two Tree Island and beyond. There are plenty of fishing boats moored by the jetties or grounded in the mud flats – the tide goes out a long way and you have to wait quite a while to get under weigh. Two Tree Island has interesting wildlife – and more than two trees! Old Leigh features interesting old houses, a museum, a jetty that is bustling during the summer months, and one of the smallest beaches you’ve ever seen. (If the beach is full, you might find some space on the sandy slipway a couple of dozen yards to the east.)
You’ll also find a nice little cafe called Strand Tea Rooms where a good, inexpensive breakfast can be had. There’s also the more up-market Sara’s Tea Rooms, but it’s popular and you might wait quite a while to be served, and a fair bit longer for the food to arrive. Old Leigh also features two fish and chip shops, side by side. As you’d expect, the fish is excellent and about as fresh as it comes. Several pubs cater for the thirsty diner and all have good menus.
One place I always used to recommend that photographers (and everyone else) needs to visit is Lynn Tait’s Gallery, but unfortunately it closed down some time ago. Lynn is a very good photographer and the Gallery not only featured her work, it was a small emporium with a cornucopia of interesting stuff, including postcards, books, posters, toys, and even an old bus! The Gallery will be missed.
To get a better idea of the kind of photos you might get to take in Old Leigh, have a look at the photos in my Flickr stream, and my video on YouTube. You can get to Leigh-on-Sea station on a train to Southend or Shoeburyness from Fenchurch Street in London, and you’ll find it on Google maps here. As is so often the case with England, the best time of year to visit Leigh is from June to September.
“There’s nothing––absolutely nothing––half so much worth doing as messing about in boats.”
― Kenneth Grahame, The Wind In The Willows
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