14/11/15 - Harborne Pub Crawl

Distance - 5 Miles
Pubs - 4 - The New Inn, The Junction, The Harborne Stores and the Plough
Geocaches - 7

With Mrs Mappiman working in Birmingham, an opportunity presents itself to add another pub crawl to my adventures in the urban suburbs.  Having previously knocked off the Jewellery Quarter and Digbeth, its time for Harborne to be explored.

Internet research is completed and the map perused and its looks wholly possible to put a walk together from the City Centre that avoids too much pavement pounding.

A secret escape route from Snow Hill Station, marked "St Pauls", takes me into the heart of North West Birmingham.  It's eerily quiet and I feel like Cillian Murphy in 28 days later as I walk the deserted streets.  There's got to be an opportunity for an entrepreneur here - there is no end of derelict Victorian industrial units waiting for a hoxton style hipster revival.

And its so close to the City.

Where is everyone?

Having this part of the City to myself makes for successful caching.  There are a number around and I take a circuitous route to knock them all off without getting arrested for looking suspicious.

Leave the backstreets behind and a short stretch of walking along the busy Spring Hill road brings me to Summerfield Park and the Harborne Walkway.

Parklife

Custom built for my needs, the Harborne walkway is a disused railway line that is going to take me all the way to my destination.  Opened in 1981, it reminded me very much of London's Parkland walk.  Except it doesn't seem as well known.  There are only a handful of dog walkers and joggers making use of this secret path.

Take me to the Pub

1.75 miles of quiet, flat walking and I am delivered to Harborne High Street.

And the pubs - my reason for being here

PUB 1 - The New Inn
It's 11:45am and I am not totally sure that it is open, despite the sign outside inviting me in to Chill and a sign on the door saying we are open.  I try the door, which re-assuring opens and tentatively enter into an old school pub that has had a recent and very tasteful re-vamp.

It really is rather nice.  And I have it all to myself.  Five real ales on, and I go for a perfect pint of Ubu Purity, which makes me question my previously held belief that the first poured pint of the day is usually terrible.

Old School Exterior, Lovely Interior

Purity Ubu and its starting to feel a little like Xmas.

A more than satisfactory start and I cannot help but think I have peaked to early.  Even if Robbie William's Swing Album on full blast eventually drove me out.

Onto the next.

Pub 2 - The Junction, Timothy Taylor Landlord
A striking pub, positioned at the top of the high street, directly opposite the madness that is the Waitrose Car Park.  Harborne must be posh, if people are prepared to queue to get in.

Another lovely looking pub - huge restaurant area around the back and a series of leather bound snugs near the bar area.

A smorgasbord of real ales and the fact that its started raining, mean that I could have wasted the afternoon here.  However, with other places to go, I pick the best - A very lively Timothy Taylor Landlord and watch the wet shoppers.

Up the Junction

TT Landlord.  Eventually went clear

Pub 3 - The Harborne Stores, Guinness
After two hipster haunts, things get a bit more earthy here.  This pub doesn't look too much from the street but was packed to the rafters at 11:30am, before I went into the New Inn.

It has to be explored simply because of it's wonderful name.

There's a reason why it is so packed.  The prices are on the pumps - and the cheapest is £1.75 for a pint of IPA.

I feel like I have gone back in time to the mid nineties.

This sub Wetherspoons Prices.  Even I think this is too cheap to be any good, so I splash on a very acceptable Guinness - the first in England this Winter.

The pub is packed with old boys, postmen (they always know where to drink) and betting office pens.  One old boy disappears for a fag and on his return, bemoans that his beer mat has been taken.  His mate comes to the rescue, pulling a wad of them out of his inside pocket.

This is advanced drinking in action.

Harborne Stores

Guinness and Horse Racing

Pub 4 - The Plough, Butty Bach
Move my way to the top of the high street, to the edge of Edgbaston.  This is where my bus stop is and also the chance to try either the Green Man or the Plough.

I try the Plough. Its packed solid - the people of Harborne must really love their Halloumi.

There goes the Neighbourhood

I just about manage to squeeze up to the bar and decide that a Wye Valley Butty Bach will be my choice from the four real ales on.

Two things have me reaching for my Untapped App to protest to the world.  The bar man has long gone, explaining to punters what they can have in their Calzones.

A) It's £4.30.  Maybe the Harborne Stores has changed my expectation of what is acceptable for a pint of beer here - but I have walked through Ladywood, not Hampstead.  Its a good pint, but its also good in my local where it is £3.10.

B) For £4.30, you don't even get a full pint.

The world needs to know about this.

£4.30 and not a full pint. Call weights and measures! - Drinking a Butty Bach at @ploughharborne - https://t.co/jn4MGQZ9FS #photo

— mappiman (@Mappiman1) November 14, 2015

The Untapped App links to Twitter and often embeds the venue in the Tweet.

And to be fair, by the time I have worked out how to use the bus system to get back to Snow Hill, I have received the offer of a free pint next time I am in Harborne.

Can't say fairer than that really.  For a 33% increase in price, you do get great customer service.