Showing posts with label Pubs. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Pubs. Show all posts

Saturday, February 24, 2024

Crazy Golf at The Friars Head at Akebar

The Friars Head pub at Akebar in Wensleydale, North Yorkshire has a free-to-play Crazy Golf course.


The Friars Head pub at Akebar in Wensleydale, North Yorkshire has a free-to-play Crazy Golf course

The Friars Head pub at Akebar is reopening on the 1st March and there's a free-to-play Crazy Golf course at the venue.

It'll be a new course for us to visit on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

Check out The Friars Head website for more information.

Saturday, April 01, 2023

Pubs of Stockport during the coronavirus pandemic

A look at Stopfordian Pubs.

Three years ago today we photographed The Kings Tap on Station Road in Cheadle Hulme. It became the first of 265 pubs, bars and clubs we visited in the borough between April and the 4th of July when the first lockdown ended.

Pub number 1 - The Kings Tap on Station Road in Cheadle Hulme. A lovely Art Deco building. We'd never seen it shuttered before the lockdown
Pub number 1 - The Kings Tap on Station Road in Cheadle Hulme. A lovely Art Deco building. We'd never seen it shuttered before the lockdown

We visited each of the pubs while on our daily outdoor exercise between Wednesday 1st April and before pubs were allowed to reopen with social distancing measures on Saturday 4th July.

It gave us something to do during the lockdowns and it was interesting to see the variety of architecture, different signage, parts of the town we haven't been to for a long time and other parts of the area we've never been to. I documented the pubs on Instagram using the #StopfordianPubs tag.

At the 265th pub on our lockdown 'pub crawl'. Not a drop was drunk on our daily walks in April, May, June and July
At the 265th pub on our lockdown 'pub crawl'. Not a drop was drunk on our daily walks in April, May, June and July

Friday, May 06, 2022

Crazy Golf at The Lion by Olivers in Brinsley, Nottinghamshire

There's a new pub Crazy Golf course at The Lion by Olivers in Brinsley, Nottinghamshire.


There's a new pub Crazy Golf course at The Lion by Olivers in Brinsley, Nottinghamhire

Check out The Lion by Olivers website and social media for further details on the 9-hole Crazy Golf course.


It's another new course for us to visit on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

While the course is outdoors, the pub adds UV lighting so players can putt in the dark. It sounds ace.

Thursday, December 23, 2021

15 years ago today

A look back at the 10th course played on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.


We visited the 10th course on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour on this day in 2006. On a bitterly cold 23rd December 2006 Emily, Christopher and I headed along to the Horse and Harrow Pub in West Hagbourne, Oxfordshire to have a game on their beer garden Crazy Golf course.

And what a course it was - we'd not seen anything like it before. And we haven't seen anything quite like it since!

Crazy Golf at the Horse and Harrow Pub in West Hagbourne, Oxfordshire - December 2006
Crazy Golf at the Horse and Harrow Pub in West Hagbourne, Oxfordshire - December 2006

We revisited the course in April 2011 and while it was a bit drier, it was still a very mossy layout.

Crazy Golf at the Horse and Harrow Pub in West Hagbourne, Oxfordshire - April 2011
Crazy Golf at the Horse and Harrow Pub in West Hagbourne, Oxfordshire - April 2011

Little did we know back then that our interest in crazy golf would become an obsession and that we'd visit 982 courses in the last 15 years.

Friday, April 16, 2021

Crazy Golf at the Horse & Groom pub in Ningwood on the Isle of Wight

A look at the Crazy Golf course at the Horse & Groom pub in Ningwood on the Isle of Wight.


Horse and Groom pub Crazy Golf in Ningwood on the Isle of Wight. Photo by Matt Dodd, July 2020

My friend and minigolf rival Matt Dodd found this Crazy Golf course at the Horse & Groom Pub in Ningwood on the Isle of Wight last summer.

Horse and Groom pub Crazy Golf in Ningwood on the Isle of Wight. Photo by Matt Dodd, July 2020

Visit the Horse & Groom pub's website for more information.


I'm looking forward to my next visit to the Isle of Wight and a game on the unique pub crazy golf course.

Tuesday, November 10, 2020

The Arden Arms in Bredbury, Stockport

Erratum - we missed a pub on our lockdown pub crawl of Stockport Borough.

We visited 265 pubs, bars and clubs during the national lockdown between April and July of this year. Some of those places were long established, others were new venues, a few were getting ready to open for the first time in 2020, while a number of others were lost pubs.

One of the pubs we missed during the first lockdown was the Arden Arms at Bredbury!

The Arden Arms in Bredbury, Stockport
The Arden Arms in Bredbury

We knew there was an Arden Arms in the town centre (pub #51), but as the Bredbury location is right on the border with Denton in Tameside it completely slipped off our radar.

The Arden Arms in Bredbury, Stockport
The sign of pub #266 on our travels 

We rectified the matter on Saturday though as we took our day's outdoor exercise at Hulmes Wood and walked back across the border into Stockport to snap the Arden Arms.

The Arden Arms in Bredbury, Stockport
Approaching Stockport from Tameside

The Arden Arms in Bredbury, Stockport
Right on the border

The Arden Arms in Bredbury, Stockport
Looking back towards Tameside

Related blog posts:

Tuesday, October 06, 2020

Pubs of Stockport

Check out the interview in The Viaduct magazine about our mission to visit every pub, club and bar in Stockport during lockdown this year.

The Kings Tap in Cheadle Hulme
The first pub we visited - The Kings Tap in Cheadle Hulme

The Crown Inn in Stockport town centre
Pub number 73 - The Crown Inn in Stockport town centre with the viaduct behind it

The Nursery Inn in Heaton Norris
Pub number 265 - The Nursery Inn in Heaton Norris

Tuesday, September 08, 2020

Crazy Golf at The Beaver Inn, Appledore, Devon

There's a Crazy Golf course at The Beaver Inn, Appledore, Devon.


Many thanks to my friend and minigolf rival Alan 'Storming' Norman for sending over these photos of the Crazy Golf course at The Beaver Inn in Appledore, Devon.

Crazy Golf at The Beaver Inn, Appledore, Devon. Photo by Alan Norman, September 2020

It looks like a very nice layout and one we've added to our To Play list when we're next down that way on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.


It's always fun finding minigolf courses in pub beer gardens.

Visit The Beaver Inn website for more information.


------------------

Join our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour enewsletter mailing list

Wednesday, July 29, 2020

Crazy Golf at The Gaggle of Geese pub in Buckland Newton, Dorset

There's a new Crazy Golf course at The Gaggle of Geese pub in Buckland Newton, Dorchester, Dorset.


There's a new Crazy Golf course at The Gaggle of Geese pub in Buckland Newton, Dorchester, Dorset

The team at The Gaggle of Geese pub in Buckland Newton, Dorset have spent some of the lockdown period building a Crazy Golf course.

We're looking forward to giving it a play on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour in the future.

We've played a few pub minigolf courses - but there aren't nearly enough of them in our opinion.

------------

Check out the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour Newsletter archive and sign-up to receive future editions

Friday, July 17, 2020

Crazy Golf at the Crown & Sceptre in Abergavenny

There's a Crazy Golf course at the Crown & Sceptre pub in Abergavenny, Wales.


Many thanks to my friend and minigolf rival Simon Brown for letting me know there's a Crazy Golf course at the Crown & Sceptre pub in Abergavenny.

He spotted the course listed on a sign at the pub on a recent trip to the town.

Crazy Golf at the Crown & Sceptre pub in Abergavenny by Simon Brown. July 2020

Unfortunately the pub is still closed due to the coronavirus pandemic so he wasn't able to see the course.

Crazy Golf at the Crown & Sceptre pub in Abergavenny by Simon Brown. July 2020

It's another interesting one for us to visit on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour when we're next down in Y Fenni.

----

Check out the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour Newsletter archive and sign-up to receive future editions

Monday, July 06, 2020

Pubs of Stockport

A look at the pubs of Stockport during the coronavirus pandemic lockdown.


The Kings Tap on Station Road in Cheadle Hulme
Pub number 1 - The Kings Tap on Station Road in Cheadle Hulme. A lovely Art Deco building. We'd never seen it shuttered before the lockdown

We've spent some of our new-found outdoor exercise time during the coronavirus pandemic lockdown visiting the pubs of Stockport.

The Crown Inn on Heaton Lane in Stockport town centre
Pub number 73 - The Crown Inn on Heaton Lane in Stockport town centre

It's been interesting to see the variety of architecture, different signage, parts of the town we haven't been to for a long time and other parts of the area we've never been to. I've been documenting them on Instagram using the #StopfordianPubs tag.

The Bull's Head Hotel in High Lane, Stockport
Pub number 222 - The Bull's Head Hotel in High Lane, Stockport. Our daily walks around the town took us to the borough's canals on a number of occasions

This is us outside pub number 265 - The Nursery Inn in Heaton Norris on Friday 3rd July 2020.

At the 265th pub on our lockdown 'pub crawl'. Not a drop was drunk on our daily walks in April, May, June and July

It was the last of all the pubs in the Metropolitan Borough of Stockport we visited on our daily outdoor exercise between Wednesday 1st April and before pubs were allowed to reopen with social distancing measures on Saturday 4th July.

The Crown in Hawk Green, Marple
Pub number 185 - The Crown in Hawk Green, Marple, a part of the borough we never knew existed before our walks began

We saw a real mixture of pubs, bars, club and social clubs, along with a few lost and closed pubs. There were also some new pubs getting ready to re-open post-lockdown.

Related blog posts:
- Pub
- Pubs
- Stockport
- Lockdown

Monday, June 01, 2020

Pubs of Stockport during the coronavirus pandemic lockdown

A look at Stockport's pubs during the lockdown.


I've been photographing the pubs of Stockport while out on my daily exercise.

This is No. 131 - The Jolly Sailor in Davenport.

The Jolly Sailor in Davenport

The Jolly Sailor is the first of the pubs we've seen open during lockdown, albeit in a very limited manner. They are serving takeaway coffee and cakes.

Here are the social distancing signs and measures they have put in place.

Social distancing signs at The Jolly Sailor in Davenport

You can see more of my Stopfordian Pub photos on Instagram.

We're looking forward to when pubs reopen and it's safe to visit them again.

We've missed going to the pub for pub quizzes, but have been doing quite a few during lockdown.

Friday, May 01, 2020

Pub quizzes during lockdown

Have you played a virtual pub quiz during lockdown?




Our local The Micker Brook in Cheadle Hulme has been running a weekly online quiz with the excellent Mike Prince since lockdown began.

The Micker Brook pub in Cheadle Hulme
The Micker Brook in Cheadle Hulme

It's brilliant fun.



I've been taking snaps of the pubs of Stockport I pass while out on my daily exercise. You can see more on my Instagram.

Monday, December 23, 2019

Crazy Golf at the Horse & Harrow Pub in West Hagbourne, Oxfordshire

Thirteen years ago today we visited the 10th course on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.


On a bitterly cold 23rd December 2006 Emily, Christopher and I headed along to the Horse & Harrow Pub in West Hagbourne, Oxfordshire to have a game on the beer garden Crazy Golf course there.


In all the years and hundreds upon hundreds of courses we've seen since, none have been anything quite like the 9-hole course.


Crazy

Back in 2006 we never realised how BIG our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour would become. To date we've visited 942 courses!

We popped back to the pub for a look at the course in April 2011.

How the course looked five years later

Looking online it doesn't look like the course is in the pub's beer garden anymore.

Wednesday, October 09, 2019

Crazy Golf at The Whitehouse Inn, Truro

There's a Crazy Golf course at The Whitehouse Inn, Truro, Cornwall.


I believe the minigolf course at The Whitehouse Inn is a fairly new addition to the pub. It's great to see a pub beer garden including the activity.


The course is a fibreglass layout made by the team at DK Fibreglass. I wonder if it's got a Humpty on it?


Crazy Golf course at Verulamium Park in St Albans
The course at The Whitehouse Inn is similar to this fibreglass layout we've seen a number of times on our travels

We've always been surprised at how few pubs have a miniature golf course set-up for customers. We'd certainly be inclined to visit more pubs and spend longer in them if they had fun activities too.

Crazy Golf at The Railway Hotel in Garswood, St Helens
The last pub beer garden Crazy Golf course we visited was at The Railway Hotel in Garswood, St Helens

We're looking forward to having a game on The Whitehouse Inn's Krazy Golf course when we're next down that way.

Back in 2015 we spent two weeks exploring the south west coast and visited 62 minigolf courses. Only one of those was at a pub.

Beer garden Crazy Golf at The Alexandra Inn Penzance, Cornwall
Beer garden Crazy Golf at The Alexandra Inn in Penzance, Cornwall

Minigolf is certainly booming at the moment and we have seen an increase in venues opening up as alternatives to the pub by offering a crazy, mini or adventure golf course combined with a bar, food and cocktails.

My Minigolf and Crazy Golf courses in Pub Beer Gardens blog post is due an update too as there have been a few more pub courses open up around the country.

Visit The Whitehouse Inn website for more information on the course.

Related blog posts:
- Pub
- Pubs
- Cornwall
- Crazy Golf

Sunday, September 29, 2019

Putting Greens at Altrincham Golf Course

A look at the two Putting Greens at Altrincham Golf Course.


While in Altrincham back in March 2018 we swung by Altrincham Golf Course as we'd spotted the pub there while driving along the Stockport Road.


Putting Green at Altrincham Golf Course

Altrincham Golf Course has two Putting Greens, a 6-hole and a 9-hole.


Putting Green at Altrincham Golf Course

Putting Green at Altrincham Golf Course

The 19th hole is very good too.

The Old Hall pub and restaurant at Altrincham Golf Course

Friday, September 27, 2019

Britain's Smallest Pub - The Lakeside Inn at Southport

Revisiting Britain's Smallest Pub, The Lakeside Inn at Southport.


Britain's Smallest Pub - The Lakeside Inn at Southport

We finished off our trip to Southport and Miniature Golf Day 2019 in the best way possible by visiting Britain's Smallest Pub, The Lakeside Inn.


Britain's Smallest Pub - The Lakeside Inn at Southport

The Lakeside Inn measures 22ft by 16ft and lays claim to being Britain's Smallest Pub.


Britain's Smallest Pub - The Lakeside Inn at Southport

We first visited it in October 2016.

We've also visited the Smallest Pub on the Planet. That's at the Cleethorpes Light Railway in Lincolnshire.

Friday, September 06, 2019

New indoor Crazy Golf venue opening in Cambridge

Two new indoor Crazy Golf courses will open in an old pub in Cambridge.


A new indoor Crazy Golf venue will be opening in Cambridge

Plans have been approved to allow the City Pub Group to turn an old fire-damaged pub into a Crazy Golf venue.


The site on Chesterton Road in Cambridge will be home to two 9-hole Crazy Golf layouts.

Saturday, June 29, 2019

Crazy Golf at The Railway Hotel in Garswood, St Helens

A visit to the Crazy Golf course at The Railway Hotel in Garswood, St Helens.


Crazy Golf at The Railway Hotel in Garswood, St Helens

Last Saturday we visited Garswood in St Helens, Merseyside as Emily had recently spotted what looked like a Crazy Golf course in a pub beer garden. The sighting was correct and The Railway Hotel in the St Helens village did indeed have a course!


Crazy Golf at The Railway Hotel in Garswood, St Helens

Sadly the 9-hole Crazy Golf course was no longer in use. While we didn't get to have a game, we did however enjoy sitting in the sun in the beer garden before moving on to our next location.


At The Railway Hotel in Garswood, St Helens
A nice spot to spend a while on a sunny Saturday afternoon

We'd love to know more about the history of the pub beer garden Crazy Golf course. It looked like it had been there for quite some time. It's the sort of course a minigolf time machine would be perfect for so we could see what it was like when it was first built.

The course was the 906th visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

Crazy Golf at The Railway Hotel in Garswood, St Helens
Hole 1

Crazy Golf at The Railway Hotel in Garswood, St Helens
Hole 2

Crazy Golf at The Railway Hotel in Garswood, St Helens
Hole 3 - 'Middle Hill', an obstacle found on Eternit Miniature Golf courses

Crazy Golf at The Railway Hotel in Garswood, St Helens
Hole 3

Crazy Golf at The Railway Hotel in Garswood, St Helens
Hole 4 also has a hint of an Eternit course about it

Crazy Golf at The Railway Hotel in Garswood, St Helens
Hole 5

Crazy Golf at The Railway Hotel in Garswood, St Helens
Hole 6

Crazy Golf at The Railway Hotel in Garswood, St Helens
Hole 7

Crazy Golf at The Railway Hotel in Garswood, St Helens
Hole 7

Crazy Golf at The Railway Hotel in Garswood, St Helens
Hole 8

Crazy Golf at The Railway Hotel in Garswood, St Helens
Hole 9

Crazy Golf at The Railway Hotel in Garswood, St Helens
Hole 9 - we reckon this was a very tricky last hole to play

We've visited a few pubs with minigolf courses. The Railway's course reminded us most of the old concrete course at The Dolphin pub in Melbourn, Cambridgeshire.

Related blog posts:

What a weekend of minigolf!
Crazy World of Minigolf Tour