Day 157 A visit to North London in very wet conditions to ride the No 240.

 The day started with catching the 1135 to London Bridge with our son to ensure he was able to get to Paddington on time for his train to Plymouth. From London Bridge I caught the Northern line to Golders Green where I emerged at 1238. It took a while to find the correct bus stand and having initially headed for the No 245 I discovered the No 240 was on its own in the middle of the complex. The wait was ten minutes for the next No 240 but with 7 minutes to go Metroline's TE985 arrived. 

The bus route is quite obviously a 15 minute service

TE985 turning into the bus stand after dropping
 off passengers from Edgware 

Condensation and rain streaming down front window

The departure was at 1251 and the timetable told me it should take 46 minutes. It had been a wet morning with areas of standing water on the roads, and the condensation inside and rain cascading on the outside made it nigh on impossible to take any decent photographs of the journey.

The bus took a right turn and headed down Golders Green High Street and continued in a straight line across the North Circular Road and on towards West Hendon. At the stop called the Quadrant in Brent Street the  bus continued in a straight line and was then the only route on the road called Parson Street.

The No 245 stop at Golders Green

Rain streaming down window at West Hendon

From here the bus crossed the A1 and travelled along Holders Hill Road to Holders Hill Circus past Hendon cemetery on the left. At the circus the route was joined by the 384 and shortly before we reached Mill Hill East station the No 221 joined, too. Bittacy Hill had been descended when I took the No 221 so this time I went the other way. Slowly but steadily TE985 climbed the hill and at Engel Park went straight on into the Ridgeway again as the only bus route. We continued thus past Mill Hill School and then turning left down Hammers Lane where there were good views over London. 

Brighter as the sun replaces the cloud in Hammers Lane but still rain drops preclude decent photos

The front window was still very difficult to take photographs, through. Daws Lane was taken on the right and at the end of this, and we had to go through a couple of narrow roads so as to be able to cross the A1 at the roundabout, these being Albert and Victoria Roads. Crossing the roundabout allowed access to Mill Hill Broadway at 1315 and we were back under the railway station and M1 at 1319. The No 221 route had rejoined us just before the station and we then followed that route in reverse to Edgware station where I arrived at 1338, 47 minutes since departure. 

Once again disembarking at Edgware Underground station

The London Sovereign bus garage at Edgware coded BT for Barnet. Next to it is the Metroline garage coded EW for Edgware

To get home I took the Northern line back to London Bridge and the 1455 Epsom train home arriving home around 1530