Cycling The Billy Line

Today I finally got round to popping the folding bike in the car and heading down to Hayling Island in order to cycle the 4.5 mile "Billy Line" path from Langstone Bridge to the West Beach and ferry point. My objective was to have lunch on the beach!

The path lies along the route of the Havant - Hayling Island Railway branch line which operated until the 1960s when the bridge became uneconomical to repair. The main image shows the remains of the old bridge with its permanently open swing bridge at the centre.

I achieved my objective, and one of the rewards was the sight of one of the concrete sections of the Mulberry harbour (extra),  the massive floating harbour that was towed to France as an integral part of the D-Day landings. These were constructed in Langstone Harbour and this remains as a chilling reminder of the part Hayling Island played in WWII.