Hunting for the Girt Clog
Hawkshead, the prettiest village in the Lake District, is all cobbled streets, narrow alley ways and little squares. Easy to get lost in somewhere so small. With Wordsworth and Beatrix Potter associations, its a tourist hotspot, with plenty of signs saying who did what where.
December is the time to come. If you can afford the car parking (when it's north of a London pint, you are in trouble). The tourist hoardes are away in shopping centres leaving space in the many cafes and pubs.
An Adventure Lab Cache shows us the historical places in town, but we concentrate on the "Doors Open" St Michael and All Angels Church. Norse origins, stunning internal arches, fenced off tombs, wall mounted paintings of biblical quotations and some fine windows.
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| Ruby and Mrs M on the hunt for ALC Clues |
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| Church on the Hill |
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| Arches built with no formal plans |
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| A slightly inaccessible tomb |
Our walk today is infinitely better than the pictures would suggest. Mainly, and this is surprising when you consider the rain, it is completely mud free. Even the grazing fields mainly have paths with a hardcore layer. We cannot believe our luck.
North to Outgate, past Blelham Tarn to Wray Castle, down to Windermere and a circuit of Latterbarrow - without finding the minor path to the summit.
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| Blelham Tarn |
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| Look at the quality of that path! |
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| Wray Castle Entry - with a cafe that would have added 2m to the walk |
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| A brief view of Lake Windermere |
Back to the village, where Mrs M wants to look for last minute Christmas presents. Leaving me the dilemma of which of the many pubs to test. The Red Lion looked a solid Robinsons. The Kings Arms had the best reviews on line. There is a newish little craft beer micro pub that could have offered something different. However, in the back of my mind, I remembered that the Guide Book I am following had recommended The Queens Head.
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| I made my choice and I will stick with it. |
Lets compare what they had to say in 1992 against what I found today;
"... Looks at first sight to be a sham. The black and white render exterior just that bit too symmetrical to be true, the render and stonework just that bit too regular to belong to centuries past"
It is indeed the oldest pub in the village, serving drovers and packhorse men from the C17th and possibly earlier - a fact confirmed once inside and you see how low the ceilings are.
"The oldest artifact, however, is the enormous old shoe, known as the Girt Clog, mounted in a trophy case about the fireplace"
Apparently, this is a massive shoe that looked like a taxidermists attempt at a mis-shaped tench. It was made in the 1820s for a local mole catcher, who suffered from elephantiasis.
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| Moved from the Brown Cow to the Queens Head |
Despite providing the name for the local mountaineering club, I don't think the aforementioned footwear is on display anymore. Internally, its had a make over befitting of the type of punter they expect to lure in nowadays. I am not sure a memento of deformity would be in keeping.
You don't get this sort of content from other bloggers, but even I have shied away from sending the pub a message to confirm its whereabouts.
However, if I returned, I am sure to ask.
"... offers quality food good enough to accompany the Hartley's XB"
Hartley's brewery was absorbed into Robinsons in 1962 and the brewery at Ulverston closed down. This is now a Robinson's tied house. I went for the Cumbria Way but with a twist.
Old Tom available as takeaway in bottles.
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| The clog should have been out of shot, to the right |
I should have brought a dozen. We are predicted 8" of rain over the next 48 hours.
Walk Details
Distance - 7 Miles
Geocaches - 5
Walk Inspiration - Best Pub Walks in the Lake District - Walk 17
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