Welcome to the long overdue next installment of Pub Friday
where, with Mrs PBT’s blessing I head off into the countryside of Kent, East
Sussex and occasionally posh Surrey as well, in search of a few pubs gems to satisfy
my need for “proper” pubs or, better still find somewhere new that I haven’t
visited before. Pub Friday also includes re-visiting the odd few pubs I
remember from my mis-spent youth, that I haven’t visited in decades, and are
still trading, as sadly many of them have fallen by the wayside.
Friday was actually a return visit to the pleasant, and quite large, Sussex village of
Robertsbridge, that also included a detour along a quiet rural lane, to a
classic rural pub that I visited, for the first and only time, back in 2017.
Does this fall into the definition of what Americans would call a “side-trip?”
Rather than making use of my usual free, old-git’s bus pass, this time I took
the train. Reasons, a relatively fast, direct and frequent rail service from
Tonbridge, and I still obtained discounted travel using my “Senior Railcard.”
As I mentioned a short while ago, this was a return visit,
and whilst there had been a small number of changes, both village and hamlet
were as they were eight years ago. My departure from Tonbridge was an hour
later than intended, thanks to me not setting the alarm clock, although if I’d
surfaced just 20 minutes earlier, I would have caught the 10:31 train, rather
than the 11:31. The earlier service would have brought me to Robertsbridge just
after 11am, which would have allowed ample time for a mooch around the village,
before making the 30 minute or so walk out to Salehurst. Never mind, I overslept,
and I don’t do rushing at my age. The annoying thing is there is a semi-fast
train that runs on the hour, but unfortunately, Robertsbridge isn’t one of the stops on that service.
The rail journey, through the Weald, is always a pleasant
one, and at this time of year, doubly so. As we passed through the various
stations on the route, I reflected on some of the pubs we have lost, over the
past decades. The Rock Robin, just outside Wadhurst station, now replaced by a
soulless block of apartments, and the Etchingham
Arms, just a short hop from Etchingham station. The former pub is still visible
from the train, but it must be 20 years or so, since it last welcomed
customers.
Robertsbridge too, hasn’t been without its share of closure,
and I’m sad to report that the status of the Seven Stars remains the same. This
fine old 14th Century inn was closed, when I first visited the
village back in 2016. The pub is owned by Harvey’s, who were reported at
the time as having difficulty in finding suitable tenants for the pub. Some
have argued that this may be due to the high rent which the brewery were reportedly
asking. The Seven Stars is not the first pub Harvey’s have had
difficulties with in recent years as the Two Brewers at Hadlow, saw
a succession of tenants come and go, and is now listed as long-term closed. This
state of affairs isn’t really befitting of a fine old independent family
brewery like Harvey’s.
Back to the positives, and the good news is that work on the
new Robertsbridge terminus, for the Kent & East Sussex heritage railway, is
progressing at speed with the building that will serve the recently installed
new platforms, now looking like a station. Robertsbridge to Bodiam
Reconnection Project. If and when this stretch of line is re-laid, and the
restoration project completed, it will be possible to travel by a heritage
train from Robertsbridge via Bodiam to the eastern end of the
line at Tenterden. Much work remains before this “missing link” can be fully
restored, but sidings and new track has been laid, adjacent to the main-line
station, to allow locomotives and rolling stock to transfer onto the heritage
railway from the London – Hastings line.
So, with my train arriving at 12:05, I decided to grab a
pint first, and push back the walk until later on. I also decided that the
Ostrich, which is just across from the station, should wait until last. This
meant that a beer at the George would be in order. Until the coming of the
railway, the George was the village’s main coaching inn, and today this
imposing red tiled fronted building is probably Robertsbridge’s premier pub. It
dates from the 18th century and, as might be expected, has plenty of
low beams. There are views from the bar, back down the High Street with
the distinctive War Memorial clock tower, erected in 1926, featuring
prominently just across the green.
The bar area occupies the far right of the building, and this
is where most of the drinkers were gathered, in front of the large, inglenook
fireplace. They seemed disappointed that the fire was unlit and were not impressed
by the landlady’s excuse that the pub had run out of logs. She reminded the
crowd that temperatures had hit the high teens the week before, but they remained
unimpressed. I wasn’t impressed either by the way the locals were blocking
access to the bar, and although I was probably the only stranger in the pub, I
thought it bad manners on their part.
To be fair, the landlady acknowledged my presence more or
less straight away and pulled me through an exemplary pint of Harvey’s Best,
but the atmosphere at the George was decidedly cliquey. With the Cheltenham
Festival in full swing, racing seemed the main topic of conversation, but as
someone with absolutely no interest in the “sport of kings” it wasn’t long before I beat a
hasty retreat. I imagine that things are different in the evenings, as the main
part of the pub is given over to diners. That said, there was only one couple
eating, and they too, seemed to be locals. As an aside, the photo of the
fireplace dates back to an earlier visit.
It was time to go, so I headed off through the village in a northerly
direction, following the road as it curved downhill. Looking at the numerous attractive
old buildings lining this narrow street, it’s hard to imagine now the traffic
chaos that must have ensued before the construction of the bypass, when the busy
A21 trunk road ran straight through the heart of Robertsbridge. As my route led
out of the village, I noticed to the right, the recently laid track that currently
terminates at Northbridge Street, but in the other direction runs back
to the K&ESR’s new Robertsbridge Junction station, mentioned earlier.
After safely crossing the busy A21 at a set of traffic lights, I
headed off in an easterly direction, along a quiet rural lane, towards the tiny
village of Salehurst. The imposing church tower of St Mary the Virgin
acted as my guide. It was a pleasant
walk, and with the sun starting to break through the clouds, I could feel the
warmth of the sun chasing away the mid-March chill. There is gentle ascent into
the village, and there, on the right is the quaintly named Salehurst Halt. This
unassuming brick-built, part tile-hung Victorian building, takes it name from when
there really was a nearby “halt”, back in the days when the
original Kent and East Sussex Railway ran along the valley of the river
Rother, from Robertsbridge, towards the border with Kent.
I’m going to draw a stop to the post here, and continue next
time, as there’s still plenty to report on what was really an excellent day out
in rural Sussex.
