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| From the hermitage, a walk down a neighbouring cul de sac is the quickest route to the nearest proper pub.. |
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| ...not a long walk, in fact Ordnance Survey say it’s a mere 0.5km, taking all of 6 minutes |
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| At the end of the cul de sac, a path leads through woodland full of dappled sunlight... |
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| ...and out through the gates which were once part of an old long lost country mansion... |
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| ...just in time to wonder why the local peacock crossed the road. Could it be because it’s too posh for chickens round here...? |
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| Not far now...just the quaint little |
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| ...and there it is...The Travellers Rest... fitting after such a tough walk. The sanitiser bottle on the table by the side gate was empty but not to worry, I pushed open the door and went inside where there was another table with sanitiser, instructions for social distancing and a laptop for entering track and trace details. The landlord must have spotted my puzzled expression as I looked at the laptop screen and came over to help me enter my details... “Are you going to sit outside?“ “Yes” “You don’t need this then...” So I was in...(or out as the case may be) and I couldn’t help thinking of the line in the Monty Python Secret Service sketch... Can you keep a secret? Yes. Good...well you’re in then. |
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| I asked if there was any real ale so I didn’t have to go round the bar where I would have been at an anti-socially close distance to another bloke. “Hobgoblin” the landlord said, so I had a pint of that (not Jail Ale). |
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| Behind the pub, in the beer garden, the view across the fields and woodland is lovely... |
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| The quintessential English countryside is no Jamaica beach scene but still not a bad view at all for Stevie T while he is rustling up his BBQ fare. It looks like there’ll be good BBQ business with the forecast for decent weather this weekend... |
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| The well travelled pub bloggers will have no trouble in naming this island...unless it’s just a blob of paint on a sheet...or a stingray... |
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| There were a few people at the garden tables, and with the couple of blokes inside ...custom wasn’t bad for 4pm on a Thursday. |
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| The pint of Hobgoblin was good and initially the lacings seemed to be pushing for promotion to the 'Midlands Lacings Premiership’, but faded late in the game as the sun dried them up... As I left to walk back home for tea, I noticed that the blackboard near the pub entrance promised live music in the beer garden for Saturday and Sunday afternoon, which should bring more much needed customers. Though for a small single room pub like this it’s a perilous balance between much needed custom and lack of covid secure space. |
That's a decent local Hermit...and rather pukka on the way in. Is all of Hampshire that smart 😉
ReplyDeleteLike a bit of well kept Hobgoblin and keeping with the python theme am tempted to say..."nice one centurion"
I reckon those lacings are league 1 play offs in the Midlands but we do have sparklers
Hampshire is the usual mix like most other places BB. Off to have another look at Totton later - much more ‘workmanlike' and not a place that GBG pubs usually preside - though a craft bar which opened last year may well be GBG material.
DeleteGood point about the sparklers - perhaps they are more ‘turned down’ or absent in southern pubs - who seem to favour the technique of filling the pint to the brim so all the head disappears - giving the beer a not-too tempting; flat pint appearance. My heart sinks when they do that and the head vanishes...
If you stand on a sparkler pledge I think you'll get elected down there pal!
ReplyDeleteActually, I seem to recall you visiting Shirley, Pompey and Southampton all of which have some gritty areas
Definitely gritty with excellent ‘salt of the earth' pubs
Delete"a walk down a neighbouring cul de sac is the quickest route to the nearest proper pub.."
ReplyDeleteBlimey! What I wouldn't give for that!
(although my wife is hinting at building me some sort of 'pub' in our back yard!)
"just the quaint little time tunnel to pre-covid Britain path"
The photo above that looks like a time tunnel!
"So I was in...(or out as the case may be) and I couldn’t help thinking of the line in the Monty Python Secret Service sketch..."
(slow golf clap)
And I would've been tempted to put my name down as Ben Dover or some such in his bloody laptop!
“Hobgoblin”
To be honest, I had a 500ml can of that at my house a few weeks ago. ;)
"The well travelled pub bloggers will have no trouble in naming this island"
You tried to fool us with the whole 'Jamaica' thing; but that's definitely the island of Jimi Hendrix. :)
"but faded late in the game as the sun dried them up... "
That's why I drank my Hobgoblin inside. :)
"Though for a small single room pub like this it’s a perilous balance between much needed custom and lack of covid secure space."
Sigh, pretty much the same all over GH.
Cheers!