A lockdown Sunday in Tonbridge

I mentioned in my last post that following an improvement in the weekend weather, I’d taken a walk down into Tonbridge last Sunday. Overall, the walk was just under four miles in length, and I clocked up slightly over 11,000 steps –  although that total included some I’d accumulated earlier in the day, helping with the housework, .

The main thing is the walk lifted my mood, which is why I recommend taking some steps outside in the fresh air, to anyone who is felling down, or just wanting  to clear their head. Apart from having to call in at Waitrose for a couple of items – the place was thankfully quiet, I avoided anywhere likely to be crowded. That included Tonbridge Sportsground and the towpath along the River Medway.

I mentioned previously that a new brewery has opened in Tonbridge, even though I’m unsure why anyone would want to undertake such a venture with a full-blown pandemic ranging and the hospitality trade in total shutdown. But after a friend had posted a few photos, plus details of the brewery’s beer on our Beer Socials WhatsApp group, I thought I’d at least take a look.

Constellation Brewery have set up home in one of the many small units, that make up Tonbridge’s sprawling industrial estate. This area only became available for industrial use back in the early 1970’s, following completion of the Leigh Flood Barrier scheme, built to protect the town from the regular floods that afflicted the River Medway, and which sometimes inundated the local area.

Prior to this, the map of Tonbridge showed a “dumbbell- shaped” development of houses and commercial premises confined to higher ground to both the north and south of the Medway. The disastrous flooding that occurred in 1968, acted as a spur for the construction of the defences, opening up a substantial area of flat land, just off the town centre.

Originally this land was assigned for industrial use only, but gradually a number of large retail developments began to creep in, followed a decade or so ago by housing.  Now an increasing number of town houses and apartments line both banks of the river, although the developers have had the foresight to construct the actual dwellings at first floor level and above, leaving the ground floor for car-parking.

Despite these precautions, there have still been instances where the Leigh Barrier has been unable to cope with the volume of water, and whilst shops and houses have remained largely unaffected, a lot of expensive vehicles have been written of due to water damage.

I’m digressing, so returning to the new brewery for a moment, the premises are on a small development, reached by a lane squeezed in behind the town’s sewage works. There is a very helpful and reasonably-priced tyre fitters, that I have made use of, on this small estate, so I knew where I was heading, but Constellation don’t appear to have got their sign affixed yet, so there wasn’t really that much to see.

You can read more about this new concern here, including the brewery’s plans for a Taproom, once this wretched pandemic is finally over. Reports from friends, who have sampled their beers, in 5 litre mini-kegs, are favourable but there are the inevitable fears that will there be sufficient market share, or will Constellation end up taking sales from established small breweries, who are undoubtedly finding things difficult in the current situation?

We shall have to see how things pan out, but after quick peek at the outside of their smart looking premises, I made my way back towards the town centre, cutting through the rear of the industrial premises on the other side of the road. This took me past some of the towering new residential developments – starting prices far too high for our boy to afford, but this detour at least meant avoiding the river, with its narrow towpath and people out on bikes or with pushchairs.

Waitrose was thankfully quiet, as mentioned above, but there were still two mothers allowing their kids to run around, as if the store was a playground! There weren’t that many people around either, as I made my way along the High Street. I was keen to get home as there was some outdoor work I wanted to finish off.

Once indoors, Mrs PBT’s was keen to open the pack of jam tarts I’d bought from the supermarket, but  with that many steps under my belt, and a substantial number of  calories burnt, I helped her devour a couple. They went slipped down well with a cup of tea, and then it was back outside.

My garden work consisted of some rather drastic pruning of some shrubs that had got out of control. The job’s not properly finished, but after I’d

completely filled our garden waste wheelie-bin, it was time to head indoors, particularly as the light was now starting to fade.

There was a nice roast pork dinner to look forward to, once son Matthew arrived home from work, and I cracked open a bottle of Fuller’s 1845 to go with the meal. That was the sum of another exciting lockdown Sunday, but a day I managed to make the most of, and enjoy some fresh air.

Monday would be different – even if it was just going to work!!