After a day full of feasting and
drinking, I sought to give myself some much-needed isometrics with my annual
Boxing Day walk. After much deliberation on where to go, I settled on the Dollis
Valley Green Walk which is a green chain walk in North London that goes along
most of the confluence of the Dollis Brook, it is a 10 mile walk that stretches
from the northern extremities of Mill Hill to the fringes of Hampstead Garden
Suburb. Now I was in no mood to do the entire 10 mile stretch so I began my walk in
Mill Hill East with the aim of going to some pubs along the way towards Chipping Barnet. This stretch
of the trail up to Totteridge is mostly flat with very few gradients, along the
way I went through parkland, allotments, playing fields and outdoor playgrounds.
By the time I reached Whetstone, I was feeling a bit out of shape so I strove up to
my first pub The Griffin. An imposing looking building situated on the High
Road, the pub was formerly a Coaching Inn dating back to the 16th
century, in 1837 it was taken over by Meux Brewery and turned into a pub. The
exterior is a combination of Tudorbethan timber work and mid-Victorian
engineering with a touch of the gothic, the multi-turreted chimney stacks are a
particularly notable feature. The interior has wooden flooring and the walls are
partly wood-panelled with teal blue bare panels adorning the rest, most of the
interior was renovated in the 1930’s although some remnants of the original building
remain including the brick lined double fireplaces, the matchboard panelled
celing and the doors to the former stables yard. The pub has three front doors which used to
lead into the public, off-sales and saloon bar areas respectively, but have since
been knocked through with the central bar now taking pride of place; although the place
is listed as a Heritage Pub by CAMRA, it is not a listed building. On the day of
my visit there were hardly any cask ales available, so I had to settle for Landlord
(4.3%) by Timothy Taylor’s, it was well kept and rather refreshing with pleasant
hoppy overtones and malty notes that denoted a hint of syrupiness with a
lingering bitterness. I've had this beer quite a number of times on cask, and I have often found it to be a reliable drink, especially when the cask selection was limited.
By the time I finished my drink,
it was getting close to 3pm and since it was on one of the shortest days of the
year, time was of the essence, so I quickly hotfooted back onto the trail. My
plan was to walk up towards Barnet Lane in order to reach Chipping Barnet
before nightfall, the last stretch of the trail was hardly eventful apart from
the multiple bends of the Dollis Brook and a double footpath to contend with.
Before long I had reached Barnet Lane and was soon on my way up the hill towards
Chipping Barnet, a historic market town situated along the Great North Road.
Understandably the high street has a large number of pubs, with a good
proportion dating back a few centuries or more. On this occasion I sought much
needed libation at the Ye Olde Mitre, the oldest and most architecturally
intriguing pub in the town, it dates from c.1533 and is a former Coaching Inn.
The interior has exposed beams and brickwork, it is rather narrow with multiple
levels leading towards the seating areas at the back of the building and the adjacent courtyard. A
number of knick-knacks and brewerania adorn the walls, it also has a good
selection of board games and vintage books, including a 1976 edition of the
CAMRA Beer Guide. The bar area is wood
panelled with an fascinating stain-glass motif above the area that features the name of the pub, it also has an extensive cask ale selection (perhaps one of the most extensive
in the local high street) boasting around eight hand-pulls and even some real cider.
Understandably the building is Grade II listed and has been awarded Pub of the
year by the Enfield and Barnet CAMRA branch on several occasions. Although the
pub has plenty of seating, it can get rather busy quite often at peak times; so
it is easy to see why its cosy interior is attractive to visitors as
one feels like stepping back in time to a quaint bygone age before bland corporate modernity took over. With it being Christmas season, there was
a large array of festive themed ales on offer and after much deliberation I settled
on Good King (4.9%) by Vale Brewery. A cracking winter warmer, it was
dark ruby in colour and replete with flavours of plums, figs, raisins and
spices that sum up the spirit of the season; it was rather fruity yet a notable
roasted bitterness present in the background.
Dusk was encroaching as I departed
from the pub and walked through the maze of Victorian era suburbs towards my
final destination on my walk before heading home. Nestled on a quiet
back-street is The Seabright Arms; although currently a McMullens house, the pub
itself dates from 1891 around the time when much of the local residential area was built, and is
one of two surviving examples of neighbourhood pubs in the locality (with The
Lord Nelson being the other). Rather uniquely for a pub in this day and age, it
still has separate public and saloon bars, which are only accessible via a
small hallway by the entrance. Despite some modern renovations, much of the
original late Victorian features remain including the wood panelled bar, although
for a pub dating from this era it is still relatively spartan in its appearance
through its lack of ornate architecture and bare painted walls, it effectively
has the look of a quiet country pub despite being nestled within the middle of
a bustling neighbourhood. Moreover there is a good amount of seating in both
areas, a large beer garden at the back and a pool table to while away the hours. The pub has gained a popular following with locals and in 2016,
Trevor and Martina Kinsella took over the then ailing pub and turned it into a communal hub for the
local area, with quiz nights, live music gigs and family fun days becoming a
regular fixture. The support for local causes and charities is of prime
importance, and was quite evidently present in its cask ale selection. Due to
the diminutive size of the pub, it only supports enough space for three
hand-pulls, although only two were available that day including AK Mild (3.7%)
and a guest beer, Sebright Ale (4.3%), a limited-edition brew produced by
a local charity, it was a rather sessionable number with a fairly bitter aftertaste and
a trickle of hoppy notes coming through in the background. The beer had a rather
malty and pleasant character, although rather quaffable it was nothing to shout
home about. Feeling a bit peckish I sought nourishment from a pack of Ox flavoured
crisps and a complementary mince pie, which suited the beer rather well.
Overall, my walk was festooned with
a variety of pubs that boasted long-standing heritage status, each of the
places that I visited had intriguing, distinct and unique architectural features
that are seldom seen in most pubs. As a keen walker, I have always been on the
look out for quality pubs for much rewarded refreshment, often in search of the
finest ales the local area has to offer. Wherever or whenever you arrange your
walk over the Christmas and New Year period, I would implore you to visit and include
a few pubs of heritage value into your itinerary, you’d be pleasantly surprised
and intrigued by their historical background and links to the local area.
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