Distance - 14 Miles
Geocaches - 4 and a Lab Cache
Pubs - 3
Midway through the trail and I discover that I am on the trail of Alan Winfield. A legend in pub crawl circles, who seemingly thought little of fitting in 18 pubs in a go. No one knows whether he was drinking pints or halves. But we can guess.
From the review site, pubsgalore.co.uk, where he diligently updated visits from before the Internet was invented, it would appear that on the 07/05/2011 he had a chauffeur. In true Alan style, he visited them all in a single day.
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| One of Alan's Easier Pub Crawls - just the 15 |
Why didn't I think of that, you may ask? Well, I would have missed out of some terrific walking and today may be the best. Following the River Windrush through tourist hot-spots and some picture perfect Cotswold villages, with plenty of refreshment stops.
Having had the paths to myself, its a bit of a shock to the system to arrive at Bourton-in-the-Water at lunchtime. Its always busy but maybe a combination of staycations and school holidays mean its busier than ever. The unprepared rambler may be seduced to one of the touristy pubs but tranquility can be found if you consult the Good Beer Guide. To the North of the town is an area called Lansdown and the best pub in the area can be found at the Mousetrap Inn.
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| Little Bridges in Bourton |
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| Best bit in Bourton |
On my visit, they were stocking three beers from the Clavell and Hind Brewery. I'd never heard of them, but they are based nearby in Birdlip. The Coachman and Liberty providing a welcome change from the Cotswold Gold.
It tough to drag myself away but I know there are future refreshment stops and the walking along the Windrush and Warden's Way(s) is the best encountered so far.
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| A rare bit of blue sky |
Naunton is the first village of the afternoon and the Black Horse takes the title of the best Donnington pub encountered. This may have been because it was the first to stock Donnington SBA - the pick of their three beers. It also had a great landlady who knew all about the Donnington Way. She joked about about the locals referring to the pub in Kineton as the Halfway Inn. Or the Disappointed Lady.
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| Best Donnington Pub. Jaunty Sign |
She also informed me that the pub in the next village, Guiting Power, is temporarily closed due to new landlords being requried. An unexpected retirement leaving them landlordless. I will return and complete a walk from the Donnington App.
I entertain myself by trying to buy a newspaper - impossible after 3pm, when the PO sends them back - and completing an Adventure Lab Cache - finding information around the church and village.
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| Guiting Power |
Only a mile to the final pub of the day and my accommodation for the night. Contrary to the Black Horses Landlady, it actually called the Halfway House.
Full range of Donnington beers are on and as the pub was the only facility in the village, it was packed all night, with a broad range of customers. Elderly diners, Internet Stealing Teens and solo ramblers who need that bandwidth to watch the Baggies mid week game.
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| Half Way To Heaven (when your team wins 4-0) |
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