We are the Take a Hike Ramblers. We open the way for everyone in our local community to enjoy the pleasures of walking.
David Catchpole
A VAR review of August’s summer pub crawl has determined that we did not in fact complete the ‘walk’ as we did not make it to Halifax; instead, we spent extra time enjoying ourselves in Sowerby Bridge. It was suggested that we do a separate visit to Halifax on another date – so, after avoiding conflicts with other commitments and events - here it is!
‘Summer’ might be stretching it a bit now though…
I intend to travel towards the outskirts of Halifax in time for a late lunch and then return to be within the street-lit centre by sunset. Once back in the centre the hostelries are very close to each other and within about 5 minutes’ walk of the railway station.
We will meet at the Three Pigeons, which is a 5-minute walk from Halifax Railway Station (turn left down Church Street as you come out of the station and walk past the Eureka! Centre).
Next stop is the Cross Keys Inn, off Siddal New Road, about a 12-minute walk from the ‘pigeons and rather off the beaten track, but well worth a visit. Then the longest leg of the day of 1.7 miles walking across Savile Park and past Wainhouse Tower to reach the rather impressive Wainhouse Tavern – avoiding the steep climb that was a feature of the original walk. A wide selection of home-cooked food is available here from 14.00 onwards; I have it on good authority that it is indeed home-cooked hence we will need to stay more than an hour or so to allow for cooking time.
We then walk half a mile back to The Big Six Inn at Savile Park and then a 1.1 mile / 20-minute stroll back to reach the centre of Halifax by sunset where the hostelries come thick and fast – Victorian Craft Beer Café, Vocation & Co (freshly-prepared pizza available here for tea, if still full a pizza can of course be shared) and the Meandering Bear (bar food available) all being a short walk from each other and in an almost direct route towards the railway station. We could even fit Kobenhavn and Dukes in at the end of the day in order to visit all of the Good Beer Guide entries for Halifax, though I suspect some may have run out of steam by then…
Either way, any of the later pubs are only about 5 minutes’ walk from the railway station; there are trains back to Leeds every 20 minutes or so (last train back departs 23.37 as of September).
The total walk length around Halifax is approximately 4.5 miles.
Should anyone wish to join us later in the day, then all venues from the Victorian Craft Beer Café onwards are all within a short walk of the railway station.
Itinerary:
11.27 Depart Leeds
12.03 Arrive Halifax Railway Station
12.10 Three Pigeons
13.00 Cross Keys Inn
14.15 Wainhouse Tavern (Food available from 14.00-20.00)
16.00 The Big Six Inn
17.00 Victorian Craft Beer Café
17.45 Vocation & Co (Pizza available)
19.00 Meandering Bear
(Potentially a visit to Kobenhavn and even Dukes as time and popular will dictates; these are within 3- or 4-minutes’ walk of the Meandering Bear).
Halifax Railway Station
All timings are of course approximate to allow everyone to finish their drinks or food! Stays at some of the later pubs may be extended as required, as all are close to each other and the railway station with a frequent train service back to Leeds.
Getting There: Use of a Train assumed, there is a frequent service to Leeds, Bradford and the like, currently a train is scheduled to depart Leeds at 11.27 and arrives Halifax at 12.03. This will be reviewed as timetables typically change in the autumn.
Contact: David Catchpole (m) 07795 807233
Please note: It would be really helpful if people could let me know if they wanted to eat at the Wainhouse Tavern before arriving so that I can book the requisite number of tables.
