Unusually for a Bank Holiday Monday, the weather was warm and sunny when fifteen members and one guest gathered at Leigh-on-Sea station for a walk through Hadleigh Castle Country Park. After a short stretch of pavement walking, we headed away from the road to a rutted path, fortunately dry but with obvious signs of previous mud. Our way soon started climbing with the ruins of the castle appearing above the trees. We entered its atmospheric domain, wandered around what remained of its fortifications and enjoyed splendid views of the Thames Estuary and Canvey Island.