In this issue: (click on
a title to jump straight to the article)
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The Pub Walker
The official newsletter
of MyFavouritePubWalks.com
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Issue No.3
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2008
- What's New?
First,
A Quick Look Back at 2007
2007 has been an exciting year for us. In March we launched
MyFavouritePubWalks.com
as the first national website where those who enjoy pub
walks could share their favourites, download other people's
favourites and add their own reviews and comments. We kicked
off with the first-ever quest for the Nation's
Favourite Pub Walk with prizes sponsored by the publishers
of the Good Pub Guide, the Ramblers Association
and Blacks.
We did BBC Radio interviews, had a double-page feature
in The Publican and finished off with some of the
short-listed competition entries being featured in the Ramblers'
"Walk" magazine.
We have passed our first 100 pub walks milestone
and already have our next 100 identified which we are adding
to MyFavouritePubWalks.com
as fast as we can. And with this just the third edition
of The Pub Walker, subscribers are rising
daily and recently passed the 1400 mark.
The Nation's
Favourite Pub Walk 2008
Searching for the Nation's
Favourite Pub Walk in 2007 was great fun for all concerned
and so of course this has to become our big annual event!
We were just cutting our teeth last year so expect to see
the 2008 quest advertised across the country with many more
pubs also offering their own prizes to customers finding
the best walks that lead people to their door. Dates and
prizes will be announced soon - watch this space!
Need
Extra Help Finding a Pub Walk?
As we add hundreds more pub walks to our national database,
we want to give first priority to getting good coverage
in those areas of the country where people are looking for
pub walks to download. So, if you cannot find a pub walk,
please let us know and we'll see if we can find one for
you. For more details, see the QuickSearch
article below.
Newsletter
Archive
We are also adding a Newsletter
Archive to the site so that you can view previous
issues of The Pub Walker that you may have
missed before you subscribed or that you have since misplaced.
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Award-Winning Pubs - and where to find them
This section is a regular feature of The Pub Walker where
we include a range of pubs who have demonstrated excellence
in an area that is of interest to pub walkers whether this
be how they cater for families, the quality of their food
or real ale, or simply their good old customer service.
We hope that by highlighting them here, more of us can
try them for ourselves and support the best in our pub tradition
and help them to thrive. Even better, why not use this list
as a source for ideas on where to create your next pub walk?
Either way, please email us with your experiences at leigh@myfavouritepubwalks.com.
The Publican - Pub Food Awards
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PUB
NAME
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LOCATION
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CATEGORY
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Royal
Standard of England
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Beaconsfield,
Buckinghamshire
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Pub
Food Award Winner - see their 2
pub walks on our website
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Catered4thekids (Accreditation for quality of
children's menus)
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PUB
NAME
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LOCATION
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CATEGORY
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New
Inn
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St
Owen's Cross, Herefordshire
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First
pub to be accredited for their children's menu
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The Times - Britain's Cosiest Pub
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PUB
NAME
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LOCATION
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CATEGORY
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The
Old Gate Inn
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Brassington,
Derbyshire
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Britain's
Cosiest Pub
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CAMRA - National Pub of the Year (visit National
Pub of the Year to see the Regional Winners and images)
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PUB
NAME
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LOCATION
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CATEGORY
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Old Spot
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Dursley, Gloucestershire
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National
Pub of the Year (WINNER)
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Land of Liberty
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Heronsgate, Hertfordshire
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National Pub of the Year (FINALIST)
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Turks Head
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St Helens, Merseyside
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National Pub of the Year (FINALIST)
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Blue Peter Hotel
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Kirkcolm, Dumfries
& Galloway
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National Pub of the Year (FINALIST)
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Morning Advertiser (Pub Trade Magazine)
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PUB
NAME
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LOCATION
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CATEGORY
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Anchor
and Hope
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Waterloo,
London
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Gastropub
of the Year
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Remember if you try any of these award-winning pubs
and would like to give feedback, please send any comments
to leigh@myfavouritepubwalks.com.
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New Pub Walks to Enjoy - and another competition winner
New Counties
with Pub Walks
We cannot list out all the pub walks added since our last
newsletter as there are just too many. However we can say
that now over half the counties of England are represented
and the following counties have appeared for the first time:
- Kent
- Yorkshire
- Lancashire
- Isle of Wight
- Worcestersire
- Oxfordshire
- West Sussex
- Surrey
QuickSearch
for a Pub Walk
You can do an instant search for a pub walk simply by entering
your search term into the box below. If you cannot find
one in your area, you can now get some help by posting a
comment on The Pub Walker blog
- if we have one nearly ready for publishing then we'll
see if we can bring it forward in the queue; if we don't
have one yet then we'll do our best to track one down for
you!
We are always looking for more pub walks so if you already
know some in the area then it would be great if you could
share those with us all too.
It's easy to add
a pub walk to the database! Although more than half of
England's counties are now represented as we say, we always
want to hear about your other favourite pub walks especially
for the missing English counties, as well as for Wales and
Scotland.
Some
More Quick Updates
One
of the advantages of an on-line database is the ability
to keep information updated whereas a book can quickly become
out of date as pubs change hands, footpaths become blocked
(or even roads collapse!). A few important updates on some
of our pub walks are below. If you have any other updates
you can give us an any of the walks on MyFavouritePubWalks.com
then please do email us at leigh@myfavouritepubwalks.com.
- New Inn, Cropthorne, Worcs - The landslide that
made access by car difficult has now been repaired (the
infamous "Cropthorne Canyon").
- Cross Keys, Cambridge, Cambs - Currently up for
let so for now try a short detour around the corner to
The Prince Regent.
- Tite Inn, Chipping Norton, Oxon - Currently closed
for refurbishment, following a change of hands.
Competition
Winner
Our competition winner chosen at random from those submitting
pub walks in November and December was H Green who kindly
sent us the Cross
Keys pub walk near Wrexham in Clwyd, Wales. She will
soon be receiving her copy of The Walkers Companion, an
entertaining book published by The Ramblers Association
and kindly donated by them.
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Gift
Idea - Not Too Late for Mothers' Day!
I hear that Mothers' Day is catching a few people out this
year. I mean, can anyone remember it being as early as 2nd
March before? Well if you've suddenly realised that the day
is upon you and you have forgotten to get anything, well how
about a gift that will not only last a whole year but will
help to keep your Mum fit and healthy too?
I'm talking of course about One Year's Membership
of MyFavouritePubWalks.com,
giving unlimited downloads of all the pub walks in our growing
database. Our Mothers' Day Offer lasts an extra week until
9th March and gives you 40%
off the usual membership price (now only £10,
was £17!).
Of course the icing on the cake would be to do a pub walk
with her and then treat her to lunch - but of course you were
going to do that anyway, weren't you?
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Dates
for your Diary - special events, festivals and deadlines
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DATE
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EVENT
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Mar 1 - Mar 7
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British Pie Week celebrates Britain's most popular
pastry dish and pub classic. With pubs looking to do something
special this week, it simply must be a great time to visit
one and check out the Specials Board. For more details
visit www.britishpieweek.co.uk |
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Mar 14 - Mar 16
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The Outdoors Show at the NEC, Birmingham, is a
must for most of us who enjoy walking. For more details
see The
Outdoors Show. |
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Mar
16
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Sainsbury's
Sport Relief Mile has over 200 organised events
covering distances of 1, 3 or 6 miles. This one is not
just for runners but walkers too so why not combine your
fundraising with a pub walk? If you discover a new favourite
please let us know by emailing leigh@myfavouritepubwalks.com.
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Apr 25 - APR 27
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The Big Spring Walk is another national fundraising
event from Help the Aged. There are already sponsored
walks arranged around the country (including the odd pub
walk) but why not organise your own with friends from
a favourite pub yourself? Full details of how to join
in can befound at The
Big Spring Walk. |
If there are any events you think we should include here in
our next edition then please do let us know by emailing leigh@myfavouritepubwalks.com.
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Have
you seen The Pub Walker blog?
Our blog is updated two or three times a week with topical
news about pubs, walking and the countryside together with
"This Week's Pub Walk". If you have a pub walk you
think we should feature then please let us know by emailing
leigh@myfavouritepubwalks.com.
Recent posts have featured news on such diverse topics as
Community Pubs Week, National Pub of the Year, children's
menus, Festival of Winter Walks, "The People's £50m"
awarded for new walking and cycling routes ... indeed anything
that we feel pub walkers will want to read.
Why not subscribe to our blog now to find out about new pub
walks and hear the news on pubs and walking first? Take a
look at http://thepubwalker.blogspot.com
and remember to subscribe.
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Tell
us what you think!
We mean it when we say your views are important to us
so please send us your feedback to leigh@myfavouritepubwalks.com.
What do you think makes a great pub walk? Is
the pub or the walk the most important element or do you consider
them as equal? Please write and tell us what you look for
in a pub walk by emailing to leigh@myfavouritepubwalks.com.
Is once every 2 months the right frequency for The Pub Walker,
should the articles be longer or shorter, more or fewer? Or
maybe you would like to see features on particular pub walks,
pubs, or special events? Maybe you have an article you would
like to submit? We'd love to hear whatever you have to say!
If you prefer post to email, please address your comments
to:
Leigh Salkeld
The Pub Walker
MyFavouritePubWalks.com
Norwood
Southdown Road
Shawford
Winchester
England
SO21 2BX
Leigh Salkeld
Website Founder
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| The
Pub Walker
The official newsletter
of MyFavouritePubWalks.com |
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