Sunday 28 January 2018

Falmouth Holiday Day Three Monday 14th August 2017

The weather forecast for Monday was not that good with heavy rain from dinnertime.
So we decided to go to Truro, our first trip away from Falmouth,we both went dressed for the rain,my wife had a blouse on and i had a T shirt.
The train was packed and we ended up having to buy our return ticket from Truro.
My wife took an instant dislike to Truro when there were no pubs near the station and a long walk down hill to the centre,once down the hill we clocked a couple of pubs that had not yet opened and there were plenty of shops,but the pubs did seem a bit thin on the ground.
We had a good wander round the town looking at the cathedral and as soon as it was 11am we found a pub that was open.

Truro

1: White Hart
Photo taken by Alan Winfield
 
A nice looking pub with hanging baskets outside,which i like to see.
Once inside the bar faced in an L shaped room,there was comfy bench seating and normal tables and chairs,there were four real ales on,we had a pint and a half of St Austell Tribute, which went down well.
We both thought this was a decent pub to have a drink in.

It was a short walk to our next pub, which was just round the corner from the White Hart.

2: Old Ale House
Photo taken by Alan Winfield
 
We both thought the red paint on the outside made the pub look a bit gawdy
 Once inside there is a single room which runs to the rear,the bar is on the left side,the room was dimly lit and had a mix of seating types.
I think it is Skinners brewery tap, there was a good choice of Skinners real ales on the bar, we had a pint and a half of Skinners Cornish Knocker, which was a decent drink.
The pub was almost empty on our Monday dinner visit apart from a few beer buffs.
Not really our sort of pub.

Another short walk and we found our next pub.

3: Britannia Inn
Photo taken by Alan Winfield
 
A nice looking pub which faces a busy road.
Once inside the pub has two separate rooms,but the room to the left was closed, so we went in the room to the right which was oblong shaped and carpeted,the seating was mainly normal tables and chairs.
There were two unclipped pumps on the bar, which left my only option being John Smiths Smooth Crap,i had a half of this which was a very poor drink,my wife had a slim line tonic, which no doubt tasted better.

We walked back towards the middle of Truro and the rain started,it was fairly light at first but then got heavier, we had to run to Primark to get out of the rain and get something to help keep us dry,i got a hoody and my wife got a cardy.
Luckily there was a Wetherspoons just along from Primark.

4: Try Dowr
Photo taken by Alan Winfield

The pub was rammed, the bar is on the front left side, we walked all the way to the rear and finally found two spare chairs and a table full of plates and empty glasses.
We had a pint and a half of Skinners Cornish Knocker, which was a decent drink, i could not be bothered to note any other real ales as the pub was far too busy.
We both thought this was a very poor Wetherspoons, one of the worst i have been in.

We dashed across the square to look in some shops before finding our next pub.

5: Market Inn
Photo taken by Alan Winfield
 
This pub looks quite nice from the outside.
Once inside there is a smallish oblong shaped room with the bar on the left side, the seating is normal tables and chairs.
There was one real ale on the bar which was London Pride, we had two halfs of, this was nothing special.
Nothing to shout about this pub.

We got really lost walking round Truro's shopping streets and we were getting wetter, we asked where pubs were but still had no luck in finding them, after what seemed an age we finally found a pub that we had passed while walking into Truro. 

6: William 1V
Photo taken by Alan Winfield
 
A large and smart looking pub and a St Austell tied house, so i was well pleased.
Once inside the bar faces in a fairly large room which is part carpeted and bare boarded,there was a mix of seating types, we sat on comfy bench seating.
There were three St Austell beers on the bar, we had a pint and a half of St Austell Tribute, which was a decent drink.
Food was being served and looked decent, but it did not take over the pub.
We both quite liked this pub.

It was still raining hard but luckily our next pub to do was nearby, so we did not get too wet again.

7: Bunters Bar
Photo taken by Alan Winfield
 
This is a massive pub with entrances on different streets.
Once inside there is a large main room with other rooms off it, one room has four pool tables in it, the bar area is quite nice with normal tables and chairs.
There were four real ales on the bar, we had a pint and a half of St Austell Cornish Best, which was a nice drink.
Not really our type of pub.

It was another short walk to our next pub in the rain.

8: Wig & Pen
Photo taken by Alan Winfield
 
A smart looking pub that is a St Austell tied house, which pleased me.
Once inside there is an L shaped room with the bar on the mid left side,it is part carpeted and bare boarded,the seating is normal tables and chairs.
There were three St Austell real ales on the bar, we had a pint and a half of St Austell Proper Job which went down very well.
We both quite liked this pub.

We decided to walk back to the train station and go back to Falmouth for a evening session and something to eat.

Falmouth

When we got off the train at Falmouth it was chucking it down, we walked quickly down the ramp to shelter under some trees, which did'nt work, my wife rang up for a taxi which turned up pretty quickly.
We got out outside The Steam Packet Wetherspoons and was straight in for a few drinks and a meal.
We took our time as it was still raining, when it had almost stopped we decided to get one more new pub done and then go in some we had already done before.

9: Mono
Photo taken by Alan Winfield
 
I looked crap from the outside, but it was even worse inside,the bar faced in an oblong shaped room which had uncomfortable high wood bench seating in bays and one table in the middle of the room, there is a DJ rig to the right.
There were no real ales on the bar, we had two halfs of keg Doom Bar.
The room was empty when we first came in but another couple came in doubling the numbers and we all probably wondered why we were in here.
The background music was decent enough.

No more new pubs to do but we did go in the Prince of Wales for a pint and a half of St Austell Proper Job, The Grapes for a pint and a half of Skinners Lushingtons and the Seaview Inn for the last hour and a few drinks of Butcombe Bitter.
We enjoyed our evening drink in Falmouth much more than the dinner and afternoon drink in Truro.
My wife had took a massive dislike to Truro.

Saturday 27 January 2018

Rochdale Crawl 20th March 1999

This was one of a few pub crawls i did round Rochdale,while trying and failing to do all pubs in the town.
I found it harder to do my pub crawls in Rochdale than i did in towns like Oldham and Middleton.
No buses were used while on my pub crawl just a train from Manchester after a Trans peak bus up from Nottingham.
The pub crawl i planned was to the South of the town centre heading down Oldham Road.
I did have an A4 list of pubs in the town from the A2C2 series,which helped a bit.

1: White Lion
Photo taken by Alan Winfield

My first pub on this crawl and situated on the corner of Oldham Road and Kingsway.
A stone built pub and a Tetley tied house,the pub was decent enough inside,but there were no real ales on the bar,the keg Tetley Bitter was a poor drink which was £1.25 a pint,i just had a half though.

2: Bay Horse
Photo taken by Alan Winfield
 
A typical looking town pub situated on Oldham Road to the South of Rochdale town centre.
I was well pleased because it was a Samuel Smiths tied house,note the Samuel Smiths signage outside the pub.
The pub was comfortable inside,there were no real ales but this did not bother me because i like Samuel Smiths keg beers,i had a drink of keg Old Brewery Bitter which was £1.14 a pint,my half went down well.

3: The Plough
Photo taken by Alan Winfield
 
A stone built pub that is very close to the Bay Horse.
The pub was a Websters tied house when i did it,the pub was decent enough inside.
There were no real ales on the bar,i had a drink of keg Websters Yorkshire Bitter,which was a pretty poor drink.

4: Lord Howard
Photo taken by Alan Winfield
 
I thought this was a decent looking pub that is situated on an estate off Oldham Road.
Once inside there was a large bar and lounge,the pub was a Bass tied house,but there were no real ales on the bar,i had a half of Bass Special,that was a pretty poor drink.
The pub seemed a bit sad inside as it was empty on my Saturday dinner visit.

5: Dog & Partridge
Photo taken by Alan Winfield
 
A smart looking pub that was situated on Oldham Road well to the South of Rochdale town centre.
The pub was a Vaux tied house and quite smart and comfortable inside.
There were real ales on the bar,i had a half of Bramwell Bitter,which was a decent enough drink.

6: Royal Hotel
Photo taken by Alan Winfield
 
A basic looking pub set in a terrace on Oldham Road,it was situated well to the South of Rochdale town centre.
The pub was a Thwaites tied house,so i was well pleased.
The pub was quite basic inside with a couple of rooms.
I had a half of Thwaites Bitter,which went down well,it was £1.40 a pint.

I walked further South and under the M62.

7: Yew Tree Inn
Photo taken by Alan Winfield
 
A smart looking roadside pub which is set back from Oldham Road.
Once inside the pub was quite smart and comfortable.
A Samuel Smiths tied house,which pleased me,there were no real ales on the bar,i had a half of keg Samuel Smiths Old Brewery Bitter,which went down very well and was £1.22 a pint.

I had walked as far South as i wanted to so decided to walk back North towards Rochdale picking up pubs along the way.

8: Craven Heifer
Photo taken by Alan Winfield
 
A smart looking pub situated off Oldham Road on Broad Lane.
Once inside the pub was decent enough and fairly busy on my Saturday dinner visit.
There were two real ales on the bar,i had a drink of Theakston Best which was £1.44 a pint.

I did a bit of a walk from the Craven Heifer going South and under the M62 again to get to my next pub,but there was another pub to do on the way back to Oldham Road.

9: The Fairview
Photo taken by Alan Winfield
 
A smart pub set in Countryside on the border between Rochdale and Oldham.
Once inside the pub was smart and comfortable and also busy on my Saturday afternoon visit.
The pub was a Greenhalls tied house when i did it,i had a half of Boddingtons Bitter,which was decent enough.

I walked back North and under the M62 again.

10: Spring Inn
Photo taken by Alan Winfield
 
A stone built pub that was quite nice inside,my first Lees tied house of the day,there were a few different Lees real ales on the bar,i had a half of Lees Bitter,which was a decent enough drink,a pint cost £1.32.


11: Dicken Green
Photo taken by Alan Winfield
 
An estate type pub but not on an estate,situated on Queensway.
This was my second Lees tied house of the day which had a smart lounge and a busy bar.
Lees Bitter and Mild on the bar,i had a half of Lees Bitter.

I walked back up Queensway to the junction with Oldham Road.

12: Bridge Inn
Photo taken by Alan Winfield
 
A sturdy looking stone built pub situated on a back street between Oldham Road and Queensway.
A Samuel Smiths tied house,so i was well pleased,there were a few different rooms inside.
There were no real ales on the bar,i had a half of keg Samuel Smiths Old Brewery Bitter,which went down well.

A short walk from the Bridge Inn and up Well I The Lane and i was outside my next pub.

13: Horse & Jockey
Photo taken by Alan Winfield
 
Another Samuel Smiths tied house,which i was well pleased to do.
There were a couple of rooms inside and no real ales on the bar.
I had a half of keg Samuel Smiths Old Brewery Bitter,which went down well.

I carried on walking up Oldham Road getting closer to Rochdale town centre.

14: The Wellfield
Photo taken by Alan Winfield
 
Situated on Wellfield Street off Oldham Road
I thought this pub would be closed by the look of it as i walked towards it,but it was open.
A Lees tied house,so i was pleased,once inside there were a few small basic rooms.
There were two real ales on the bar,i had a half of Lees Bitter,which was a decent enough drink.
I was well pleased in doing this pub as it looked in such a state from the outside.

15: Prince Albert
Photo taken by Alan Winfield
 
A town pub situated on Oldham Road.
The Prince Albert was a Robinsons tied house,which pleased me.
Once inside there were a couple of rooms which were basic but comfy enough.
There was two real ales on the bar,i had a half of Robinsons Bitter,which went down well,a pint cost £1.32.

16: Crawford Arms
Photo taken by Alan Winfield
 
Situated on Crawford Street off Oldham Road.
Another Lees tied house which pleased me,once inside the pub was smart and comfortable,there were two Lees real ales on the bar,i had a half of Lees Bitter which was a decent drink,a pint cost £1.26

17: Bonnie Dundee
Photo taken by Alan Winfield
 
Situated in a light industrial area off Oldham Road,i think on Fishwick Street,correct me if i am wrong.
The pub looked smart and well kept from the outside and it was a Vaux tied house.
Once inside there were a couple of rooms that were comfy,there were no real ales on the bar,i had half of keg Vaux Samson Bitter,which was not that good,a pint cost £1.50.

It was a short walk back to Rochdale train station for my train back to Manchester and then to Chorlton Street for the Trans Peak bus to Nottingham.
A good day out in Rochdale where i had already done quite a few pubs on different pub crawls in the past.