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Joint Campaigns Day Out
by Laurence Fryer
Gospel Oak to Barking
Saturday May 1st saw the inauguration of an initiative that I had long felt was worth a try.
There are many fine words written about, and spoken on the merits of Real Ale, Railways, Trains and old buildings. Why not bring some of these like-minded souls together for a bit of fun, travel and a glass or two of the good stuff! So the morning of the 1st saw members of the Campaign for Real Ale join forces with members of Railfuture and English Heritage.
We kicked off at the Old Oak opposite Gospel Oak station for some London Pride and before long were attempting to enjoy the merits of the Old Dairy at Crouch End. "We don't open 'till 12" was the answer we got, despite a pre visit. So the White Lion of Mortimer a nearby Wetherspoon's came to the rescue.
Our next stop was Harringey Green Lanes to visit first Railway Fields. This nature reserve has been nurtured since the early 80's by local botanist David Bevan. Amongst the disused track leading off the line to the former coal depot, David and friends have created a wonderful oasis of calm in the midst of a bustling high street.
Our next port of call was the Salisbury on Green Lanes (left and below). This pub is a must for any lover of fine pub architecture. We then set off to the Oakdale Arms. This is as back street as back street gets, a Milton Brewery of Cambridge pub with, on the day, Tom the governor putting no less than eight draught beers on.
After much quenching we looked at the clock and decided to go for a later train! Alas the 15:05 was cancelled. Resorting to buses got us to South Tottenham and the Markfield Beam Engine. Volunteer Ken Brereton kindly showed us the 1886 100 bhp engine and gave a brief talk on the history of this fascinating piece of engineering and the trials and tribulations of restoring it (see picture below).
We then took a stroll down the Lea Navigation to the Anchor and Hope for a glass of Fullers Pride and a fine view across the Lea to Walthamstow Marshes, the ancient Lammas lands. We decide to enjoy an early drop of Young's and detour to take in the Princess of Wales on the nearby Lea Bridge Road and well worth a visit too for this popular waterside hostelry.
We now have to resort to a bus to get back on track. We next find ourselves in the Drum at Bakers Arms enjoying a selection of Wetherspoon guest beers soon we're off to the nearby Victorian splendour of the William IV soon it's time to move on and we troop down to Leyton Midland Road and catch the next service to our destination Barking.
A ten-minute stroll finds us at the Britannia. There's a party getting underway as we find a corner to relax in. The landlady stops by to thank us for calling in and we sample some excellent Young's Ordinary and Special.
Our last port of call is the lively Barking Dog, with a busy but enjoyable day under our collective belts we grab a bite to eat and choose a guest brew.
Words and pictures by Laurence Fryer
Links
www.railfuture.org.uk
www.barking-gospeloak.org.uk
www.mbeam.org
www.ferrylane.org.uk
Reproduced from the Full Pint, Issue 26.
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