Otley - Queen of the North

[oldboots]

The North Group, who run North in Leeds, Further North, er further north in Leeds, the Cross Keys in Holbeck and a couple more high quality bars have just joined the new beer mecca that is Otley. We have a stunning collection of pubs in this unassuming Yorkshire market town, once a star of Emmerdale as Honton. Shame it's a bit of a trip for anyone outside Yorkshire :D otherwise I might suggest it for a PuG meet up.

Top pubs

The Fleece (http://www.pubsgalore.co.uk/pubs/41013/) Wharfebank Brewery owned (bit of an unjustified campaign against it on here and in the toothy place)
Junction Inn (http://www.pubsgalore.co.uk/pubs/41016/) suffers from the tired "olde ale house" format but still a very good bet
The Horse and Farrier (http://www.pubsgalore.co.uk/pubs/41023/) a Market Town Tavern, need I say more?
The Old Cock (http://www.pubsgalore.co.uk/pubs/71313/) CAMRA POTY but a super pub in spite of that
The Otley Tavern (http://www.pubsgalore.co.uk/pubs/56057/) an unknown quantity as yet recently done up
and the new North Bar Social unknown but with a brilliant pedigree.

and a couple or three near things one way or another:
Bay Horse Inn (http://www.pubsgalore.co.uk/pubs/41006/)
Black Bull Inn (http://www.pubsgalore.co.uk/pubs/41007/)
The Bowling Green (JD Wetherspoon) (http://www.pubsgalore.co.uk/pubs/41009/)

[aleandhearty]

I love Otley, but have never managed a crawl there, even with a good friend living close to the town centre. Previous visits have always been very family oriented, so I've only managed the odd sneaky pint. However, with yet another quality venue opening, I'm going to have to get my act together. A Northern Branch meeting is one possibility.

[sheffield hatter]

A Northern Branch meeting is one possibility.

That sounds like (the beginnings of) a plan!

[aleandhearty]

That sounds like (the beginnings of) a plan!

Indeed! Me, you, oldboots and ROBC seem the obvious choices. Maybe sometime next month?

[ROBCamra]

The lack of a railway station in Otley is a bit of a bind and buses from Bradford are a bit thin on the ground. :(

[Al 10000]

The lack of a railway station in Otley is a bit of a bind and buses from Bradford are a bit thin on the ground. :(

You could get a train to Menston on the Leeds to Ilkley line then either walk to Otley it should take no longer than 15 minutes or wait for a bus,i would walk it then i would know what time i would be arriving in Otley.

[aleandhearty]

The lack of a railway station in Otley is a bit of a bind and buses from Bradford are a bit thin on the ground. :(


You could get a train to Menston on the Leeds to Ilkley line then either walk to Otley it should take no longer than 15 minutes or wait for a bus,i would walk it then i would know what time i would be arriving in Otley.

Al is right to mention Menston station, although I think his calculation of a 15 minute walk is rather optimistic. Using The Old Cock as a point of reference, Google maps calculated the distance as 2.5 miles, taking 49 minutes. Walking to Otley would be downhill, but conversely uphill all the way back. The 967 bus runs every 30 mins and only takes 9 minutes to get to Otley.

Another possibility is the X84 bus from Leeds bus station, which takes about 40 mins to Otley. They run every 20 mins for most of the day. It's not the easiest place to get to, but it's possible.

[oldboots]

Agreed not an easy place to get to, I can get a direct bus from Harrogate (hourly service until early evening then nowt) only trouble is I don't live in Harrogate.

There are buses (X84 & X52) from Ilkley which does have a rail link. There are ways from cBradford involving two buses changing at the Airport or Pool in Wharfedale but that's getting silly.

[oldboots]

Indeed! Me, you, oldboots and ROBC seem the obvious choices. Maybe sometime next month?

I'm free from July 22 to the end of the month if anyone fancies a trip there, no direct bus on Sundays though.

[aleandhearty]

I'm free from July 22 to the end of the month if anyone fancies a trip there, no direct bus on Sundays though.

At the moment, could probably manage any day apart from the 22nd itself.

[sheffield hatter]

I'm free from July 22 to the end of the month if anyone fancies a trip there, no direct bus on Sundays though.

Tue/Wed/Thu works best for me, though I can also sometimes get a Saturday off if given a bit of notice. How about Tuesday 23rd, Wednesday 24th or Thursday 25th?

Bus from Menston station looks favourite. There's one at 11:52 that would be handy for my 11:47 arrival from Sheffield, and there's one from Otley at 20:07 that will get me on a train to Sheffield (via Leeds) that arrives at 21:52.

[oldboots]

How about Tuesday 23rd, Wednesday 24th or Thursday 25th?

Any of those days would be fine for me, my bus gets in at quarter past the hour, and leaves at 3 minutes past up to 18:03.

[aleandhearty]

e. How about Tuesday 23rd, Wednesday 24th or Thursday 25th?


Any of those days would be fine for me...

How about Thursday 25th? For no other reason than it's the closest to the weekend. An all dayer on a Tuesday, or Wednesday, feels just a little too decadent.

[sheffield hatter]

How about Thursday 25th? For no other reason than it's the closest to the weekend. An all dayer on a Tuesday, or Wednesday, feels just a little too decadent.

I don't have a problem with decadence...

Also, I've since mentioned this to a friend (not on Pubs Galore) who would like to join us and tells me he can make Wednesday but not Tuesday or Thursday that week. So I'd prefer the middle option, please. Or is decadence a deal breaker?

[oldboots]

Decadent Wednesday then; unless anyone has taken a vow of humility, shall we say about noon in the The Old Cock (http://www.pubsgalore.co.uk/pubs/71313/) ?

[ROBCamra]

Decadent Wednesday then; unless anyone has taken a vow of humility, shall we say about noon in the The Old Cock (http://www.pubsgalore.co.uk/pubs/71313/) ?

I shall be showing Simon & Heidi from The Baum the delights of Chester that day I'm afraid.:nishelypished:

[aleandhearty]

Or is decadence a deal breaker?

:D Er, not really.


Decadent Wednesday then; unless anyone has taken a vow of humility, shall we say about noon in the The Old Cock (http://www.pubsgalore.co.uk/pubs/71313/) ?

Noon in the Old Cock sounds good.

[sheffield hatter]

Decadent Wednesday then; unless anyone has taken a vow of humility, shall we say about noon in the The Old Cock (http://www.pubsgalore.co.uk/pubs/71313/) ?


Noon in the Old Cock sounds good.

OK, that's Wednesday, 24th July, around noon in the Old Cock.

[oldboots]

So that's all good then, much easier than arranging Reading :evilgrin:

I suppose we ought to have a route of sorts,

Old Cock
(Bowling Green)
Otley Tavern
(Whittakers or Red Lion if it's open again or Black Horse)
Fleece
Horse & Farrier (possibly the Bridge as well)
(Bay Horse / Black Bull)
Junction
North Bar Social

[sheffield hatter]

Old Cock
(Bowling Green)
Otley Tavern
(Whittakers or Red Lion if it's open again or Black Horse)
Fleece
Horse & Farrier (possibly the Bridge as well)
(Bay Horse / Black Bull)
Junction
North Bar Social

...erm, is that 13 pubs? Between midday and 6pm? I take it we'll be drinking halves, then.:sick::pray:

[oldboots]

We don't need to do the ones in brackets which leaves a more manageable 6 unless you would like to do all of them :eek:.

I did leave the three other pubs off the list altogether :D

[aleandhearty]

...erm, is that 13 pubs? Between midday and 6pm? I take it we'll be drinking halves, then.:sick::pray:


We don't need to do the ones in brackets which leaves a more manageable 6 unless you would like to do all of them :eek:.

Fear not, SH. If past meet-ups with 'ob' are anything to go by, it'll be a leisurely stroll. We don't do the half-pint sprint routine. I reckon around 8-9. Of course it all depends on what beers we find en route.....

[ROBCamra]

Fear not, SH. If past meet-ups with 'ob' are anything to go by, it'll be a leisurely stroll. [/I]....

And then a nice sleep on the bus home. :evilgrin:

[trainman]

I reckon around 8-9. Of course it all depends on what beers we find en route.....
...and how many jokers you manage to squeeze in. Roger!

[sheffield hatter]

So that's all good then, much easier than arranging Reading :evilgrin:

I suppose we ought to have a route of sorts,

Old Cock
(Bowling Green)
Otley Tavern
(Whittakers or Red Lion if it's open again or Black Horse)
Fleece
Horse & Farrier (possibly the Bridge as well)
(Bay Horse / Black Bull)
Junction
North Bar Social

The Red Lion is said to be open on this useful little website (http://www.otleypubclub.co.uk/otley-pub-updates). Don't know how accurate or up-to-date the info is likely to be. I guess we'll find out on Wednesday.

The Black Horse is reported to be recently reopened (see http://www.blackhorsehotel.co.uk) but is not even listed on Pubs Galore, that normally so reliable website. I have now requested it be added and will hope to get a photo and review on Wednesday.

[Bucking Fastard]

Over a few quiet beers in Otley, maybe you chaps can begin the debate about which Leeds pubs the PuG crawl should visit.Good luck with that and your tour on Wednesday.:cheers:

[oldboots]

The Black Horse is reported to be recently reopened (see http://www.blackhorsehotel.co.uk) but is not even listed on Pubs Galore, that normally so reliable website. I have now requested it be added and will hope to get a photo and review on Wednesday.

The Black Horse was removed for the usual sort of reasons I believe, so Dave may be reluctant to reinstate it.

[oldboots]

Over a few quiet beers in Otley, maybe you chaps can begin the debate about which Leeds pubs the PuG crawl should visit.Good luck with that and your tour on Wednesday.:cheers:

I have a list of sorts bubbling away, but I'm sure the subject will come up.

[sheffield hatter]

The Black Horse was removed for the usual sort of reasons I believe, so Dave may be reluctant to reinstate it.

I wasn't aware of that, though it does explain a seemingly glaring omission! Perhaps the change of ownership will be a convincing reason to reinstate.

[aleandhearty]

Over a few quiet beers in Otley, maybe you chaps can begin the debate about which Leeds pubs the PuG crawl should visit.Good luck with that and your tour on Wednesday.:cheers:

Thanks for the kind words 'BF'. We shall toast your health with the beer of the day.

[oldboots]

Well what a day that was, not quite the quiet stroll envisaged by A&H in post22. Sheffield Hatter turned up with friends Jeff and Lindsay and Trainman caught us up before we left the Old Cock. I managed 10 pubs (plus one more on the way home to sample my first Royal baby beer - Royal Foal from Hambleton). A day of mixed beer quality, high emotion and more than the usual amount of blood, sweat and tears - ah well you're a long time dead.

Sheffield Hatter has the results vn fof our long and careful deliberations about the Leeds trip, we worked tirelessly sustained only by a meagre few pints of beer to work out an itinerary :D

[sheffield hatter]

Well what a day that was...

Thanks OB for suggesting the Otley trip. For such a small town, an astonishing number of really good pubs. We were all impressed by the quality of the venues and (with a couple of minor exceptions) the beers, and had a really good day out. In sequence:

The Old Cock (http://www.pubsgalore.co.uk/pubs/71313/)
The Otley Tavern (http://www.pubsgalore.co.uk/pubs/56057/)
Whitakers (http://www.pubsgalore.co.uk/pubs/41025/)
The Black Horse Hotel (http://www.pubsgalore.co.uk/pubs/80554/) (sorry, Dave, afraid I got a bit carried away with the photography on this one)
The Fleece (http://www.pubsgalore.co.uk/pubs/41013/)
The Horse and Farrier (http://www.pubsgalore.co.uk/pubs/41023/)
Bay Horse Inn (http://www.pubsgalore.co.uk/pubs/41006/)
Black Bull Inn (http://www.pubsgalore.co.uk/pubs/41007/)
Manor House Hotel (http://www.pubsgalore.co.uk/pubs/41017/)
Junction Inn (http://www.pubsgalore.co.uk/pubs/41016/)
North Bar Social (http://www.pubsgalore.co.uk/pubs/80348/)

At this point OB had to catch the last bus of the day (at 18:03) back to Ripon, and the rest of us caught the next bus back to the station at Menston. On arrival in Leeds Trainman decided there was just enough time for a swift half in The Brewery Tap (http://www.pubsgalore.co.uk/pubs/65827/), so we went with him (he wasn't sure of the way). A&H went for his train home in good time, and we saw Trainman off too, but left ourselves with a bit of a sprint for our own train back to Sheffield. Unfortunately some of us have left our sprinting days behind us, so we had to settle for the next train an hour later, which gave us enough time for a leisurely stroll for an equally leisurely half in the 14th and final pub of the day, The Crowd of Favours (http://www.pubsgalore.co.uk/pubs/80347/). (Did I mention a pre-crawl half in the 'Spoons on Leeds station (http://www.pubsgalore.co.uk/pubs/54021/)? No, thought not.)

[trainman]

Unfortunately some of us have left our sprinting days behind us, so we had to settle for the next train an hour later
Classic!

I have to add Bowling Green, for a pint of Roosters Stars & Stripes with my spoons brekky.
Cheers guys, great adventure and top day.

I did wonder why my alarm was going off earlier though, on a Sunday...

[aleandhearty]

Fair to say, an excellent day all round. Although I vaguely knew beforehand, I was still surprised how compact the route was. Out of the door, take a dozen paces and into the next pub! Good to get to know 'sheffield hatter' a little better and meet a couple of his beer buddies. Also, very impressed with 'trainman's' special guest PA. A couple of surreal PMs the night before gave us some warning, but I did wonder whether he'd ingested vast amounts of ale and/or psychotropic drugs and was just winding us up. Apparently not. Overall, loved the pubs, but perhaps slightly disappointed on the beer front. However, a minor niggle in another PuG cracker. Special thanks to 'oldboots' for gently prodding us in the right direction all day. :cheers:

[oldboots]

925

Trainman spotted this sign in Otley and immediately thought of Ray :D

[Mobyduck]

925

Trainman spotted this sign in Otley and immediately thought of Ray :D
Yum Yum !!!

[Strongers]

Yum Yum !!!

Never gonna live it down... :D

[oldboots]

http://www.morningadvertiser.co.uk/Property-News/Otley-locals-apply-for-blanket-pub-ACV-listings?utm_source=copyright&utm_medium=OnSite&utm_campaign=copyright

I suppose it helps that Greg Mulholland MP lives in Otley.

[oldboots]

One of Otley’s most historic pubs together with Otley Pub Club are to appear in the next BBC TV Hairy Bikers series entitled 'The Pubs That Built Britain'. The series will visit villages, towns and cities across Britain to reveal the fascinating and surprising stories linked to our pubs.

The Black Bull in Otley’s Market square, which is one of the oldest in Otley dating back to the 1600s, was the location of filming last month for an episode which focuses on the English Civil War period. The pub was reputedly drunk dry by Oliver Cromwell’s troops on the eve of the battle of Marston Moor near York in July 1644.

In the series presenters of The Hairy Bikers, Si King and Dave Myers, meet local experts and the passionate landlords and loyal customers keeping our pubs alive. A BBC spokesperson said: “Since the earliest times pubs, inns and taverns have been at the heart of our communities. They've witnessed some historically explosive moments and played an extraordinary role in the lives of our national heroes and anti-heroes.

“Today pubs need all the support they can get or we are in danger of losing these important epicentres of local history. With this series we are hoping to relight people's passion and interest in pubs and garner more support for them across the country.”

The TV programme contacted Otley Pub Club and the club’s vice-chairman Barry Tomlinson and president Greg Mulholland were both interviewed about the club’s success in promoting the town’s pubs and protecting several from potential closure. As well as the historic appeal of Otley pubs such as the Black Bull, Si and Dave were interested in Otley Pub Club’s campaign to get more protection for pubs by getting all Otley’s pub registered as Assets of Community Value.

Barry Tomlinson commented: “We are delighted that the BBC is highlighting not only the historic value of local pubs but also their importance in the life of the community and that they wanted to feature Otley as a good example of both.
"It was great to meet Si and Dave and have a pint when them and chat about Otley Pub Club and our Historic Otley Ale Trail showing all the towns former and lost pubs and explaining some of the history. They have said they would love to come back and do some of the Trail, so hopefully we will have them back in Otley before long!".

Greg Mulholland, President, Otley Pub Club added: "It is fantastic that the Hairy Bikers have chosen the Black Bull in Otley as one of the pubs to start their exciting new series, The Pubs that Built Britain, with the well known tale of Cromwell's troops drinking it dry.”

The new Hairy Bikers series will be broadcast in the autumn at a date to be confirmed.

[trainman]

They should be careful what they wish for - step foward trans-pennine ale trail... (post-Clarke & May)

[aleandhearty]

They should be careful what they wish for - step foward trans-pennine ale trail... (post-Clarke & May)

Its relative isolation, from a transport point of view, may be its saving grace. People may end up raising a glass to Dr Beeching, for the lack of a train station in the town.