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 otherwise I might suggest it for a PuG meet up.

Top pubs

The Fleece Wharfebank Brewery owned (bit of an unjustified campaign against it on here and in the toothy place)
Junction Inn suffers from the tired "olde ale house" format but still a very good bet
The Horse and Farrier a Market Town Tavern, need I say more?
The Old Cock CAMRA POTY but a super pub in spite of that
The Otley Tavern 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
Black Bull Inn
The Bowling Green (JD Wetherspoon)

[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.

[oldboots]

Decadent Wednesday then; unless anyone has taken a vow of humility, shall we say about noon in the The Old Cock ?

[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.