One step beyond

Last week I did something I have never done before, I cycled into another County –Worcestershire to be precise . As I have mentioned before, during the lockdown I became very unfit (I was unfit anyway). So recently, I have been gradually increasing the length of my cycling journeys. There are obvious benefits to cycling instead of using buses all the time, the main benefit is it is very good exercise. In recent times bus travel, has become a bit of a chore because of the wearing of face masks, as I have said before, it is not healthy to wear them for long periods of time.

I wanted to photograph the Teddington Hands, which is close to a very busy roundabout. As I have cycled here before, it wasn't too difficult, so I photographed it, but decided to see how far I could cycle afterwards. I cycled to The Beckford Inn, dismounted and took some photos, I have never been in this pub before, I have seen interior photos and it looks really nice but I decided to carry on with my journey. I cycled towards Ashton-Under-Hill, where there is a pub called The Star Inn, which we visited back in 2014. It felt so amazing cycling into another county, I let out a cheer when I saw the road sign for Worcestershire! At this point though, it was becoming quite nerve racking, cycling along such a busy road, there were huge lorries driving passed me. When I reached The Ashton-Under-Hill turn-off, I decided to go back the way I came, it was getting late and I didn't want to cycle in the dark. I decided to start much earlier in the day, for my next journey.

The Teddington Hands

The Beckford Inn

A few days later, I decided to cycle to Conderton and Kemerton, which are on the border of Gloucestershire and Worcestershire. As I have mentioned in my previous post, village pubs need our support during these difficult times. I cycled into Conderton, and dismounted to photograph The Yew Tree. I first came across this pub, when I was travelling on the 540 bus service to Evesham. It used to be a Wadworth pub, but it has recently changed hands. The pub looked quite picturesque with the sun on it's facade, I photographed it and decided to call in after I had cycled to Kemerton. I continued with my journey, and arrived in Kemerton to photograph The Crown Inn. It was closed, and at this point the sun was playing hide and seek, so it was difficult to take a reasonable photo. After that, I cycled back to The Yew Tree.

The Yew Tree, Conderton

I was quite impressed with the safety precautions the pub had implemented, A hand wash dispenser was easily accessible as you walk in the front entrance. I was pleased that there had been a sympathetic refurbishment of the interior of the pub, it is much as I remembered it. The ales on offer, were Doom Bar and HPA. I ordered a drink, and went to sit in the rather pleasant beer garden, I stayed there for quite a while.

Afterwards, I cycled back towards the Beckford Inn junction, but instead of going home, I noticed a road sign for Great Washbourne. I had previously looked on a map, and noticed that Little Washbourne was not far away, there is a pub there called Ye Olde Hobnails Inn. It closed for a while back in 2019, but it has thankfully reopened again. I cycled towards Great Washborne, along a country road It seemed to be taking quite a while to cycle to the Hobnails, I wasn't quite sure where it was. I ended up in Alderton, where there is a pub called The Gardeners Arms, we have been here before. I didn't stop to photograph it though.

I remembered how to get to the Hobnails and cycled there, the sky was looking a little ominous by now. I only managed to take one or two photos of the pub, because the road was so busy, they seem to have built a new wall next to the pub since my last visit. I would have liked to stopped for a drink, but at some point, I would like to go there with my partner, it seems like a nice place to have a meal. Maybe we will go there in the not too distant future.

Ye Olde Hobnails Inn, Little Washbourne