27/12/22 - Monmouth - Struggling for post walk refreshment

Distance - 6.5 Miles

Walk Inspiration - Country Walking Magazine, October 2018, Walk 21

Geocaches - 4 and an Adventure Lab Cache

You would think it would be easy. Finish a walk in a historically important market town. Have a pint.

My suspicions were aroused by the lack of current recommendation in the Good Beer Guide, but with plenty of pubs on Google Maps, I remained naively optimistic. 

Walking the Wye Valley has been an annual Christmas Tradition for 15+years and there are still discoveries to be made. Today, I am heading north along the river, aiming for St Peters Church at Dixton. This is the sort of landscape where the church was already described as old in the C8th Century.

Heading North along the River Wye

Whitewashed walls of St Peters Church

Right on the river bank, the church often floods. Inside, are markers showing the height of the flood water. Global Warming conspiracy theorists would point out that the worst floods were in 1947. Global Warming activists would point out the frequency of the floods in the last 20 years.

1947 marker higher than 6ft

Manson's Lane takes me up and over a hill to Monmouth's other river - the Monnow - and back into town.

River Monnow, before it joins the Wye

An Adventure Lab Cache to show me the historical sights.. which includes the only fortified medieval bridge in Great Britain.

Through the arch in search of a pint

Stage 3 of the cache is the Robin Hood Pub - a C15th Century building with a very C21st sign detailing problems with logistics.

I would have gone in

But that's it for the 27th Dec

At this point, I am not concerned, but keen to get the best experience for the Mappiman dollar.  There is a mighty fine looking JDW and indeed, I walked in but seeing only the core triptych of Ruddles, Abbot and Doom Bar, thought I could do better.

Should have stuck at the Kings Head

I couldn't get the bar tender off her phone to serve me in the Punch House opposite and walking to the former GBG Tick of the Old Nag's Head proved fruitless.  A 4pm opener. The equally historic Queens Head looked permanently closed, with no sign of life at all - but all seems good on their web site. The shortest day recently celebrated.  Ironically, my quest for a pint is turning into the longest day.

And then I think I find pay dirt. A bass sign, on the outside of the Griffin.

Looks like my sort of place

The bass sign may well be former advertising but the little black sign proclaims "Craft Beer", so I should be OK.

In through the door and I am not sure what I have entered. It appeared to be an antique shop.  Further research indicates its a vintage bicycle repair shop.  Flustered, I answer by own question by saying "Oh, this is not a pub".

I wasn't corrected or indeed offered the chance to purchase craft beer. But drinking in such an environment would have been too weird, even for me.  See if you can work out what they are aiming at on their website.

A disappointingly dry walk. And a promise for 2023. 

I will not be going into a KFC again.