f hanging from the roof, walls and doors. It's even got a crocodile hanging above the pool table mate!. It's just one of those pub's you've got to see, and of cause a nice pint of Guinness to start things moving. Also outside the Bowling green is about ten tables and chairs 'The beer garden' without the garden'. Now I'm very fond of this watering hole because I could sit in the beer garden and just write some letters to send back home. Or I could read a paper or just give my eyelids a bit of a rest while sitting back soaking in the heat from the occasional sun! while inhale-in' the fine odors of a half drank Guinness by my side. Poetry in friggin' motion mate. But as for the pub well the pub use to be a courthouse way back and it's very well known for the memorabilia (or junk as the landlord 'Trevor Wallis' told me) that hang all over the Pub. A good drop was the Black sheep bitter lager, and also he had Guinness and McEwan's on tap. During the day you could always see some one having a drink in the beer garden and at night on the weekends it became very lively. This is a very good pub just to relax and have a couple of beers and a good time.
This pub is about normal size for English pubs and the usual old pub feel, stone floors and a small patio out the back. On the weekends it always seemed to be packed with people out the front door (in the market square) having a beer and a chat. Blokes trying to pick up a sheilah for a shag, and sheilahs trying to get a free drink from the blokes. The Black Bull inn is the oldest inn in Otley, reputedly drank dry by Cromwell's troops who camped outside the town on the eve of the battle of Marston moor (cool) true story that!.
Then it was off to our next pub on t
he list THE BAYHORSE INN (No10), again a small Pub but spot on mate. This is a beaut pub just to pop in during the day and have a yak to ya mates. I drank another pint of Guinness and we were in time for a Question and answer night. We didn't do to well we actually came second last, at least we didn't come LAST. Well to be true the bloke who came last was sitting next to us, and I do think Tania pinched a couple of his answers. But that's not the point we still beat him. And just because he fell asleep during the second half means nothing. These nights are a real good time and we had a few during our time in Otley. But the next pub was calling so of we went to THE WHITE SWAN, Two blocks away (about three minutes).
Well the Swan was up to Otley's high standards, again small but at least it had a pool table. I had a black sheep bitter and we had a round on the pool table. Out the back of the pub they had a little area just big enough to get a bench in and call it the beer garden. There was a few oldies about having a drink but not many young sheilahs about. I read somewhere once that the White Swan's average patrons age was 50-80!!, fair dinkum there not joking mate and I can see why.
Next we went back a block to the MANOR HOUSE (No12), now this is more like an old man's pub. Tania's dad took me to this pub about 32 times. So I got to know the pub pretty well and I loved it. During the night blokes would seat on little chairs in the corner and play domino's and there would be about four or five people watching them.... fair dinkum I wouldn't of thought domino's would be a bloody spectator sport but there you go. I also spent the night upstairs before our wedding and it was just a bloody beaut time. I would recommend a stay in this pub to anyone, a real beaut experience. Then we wer
e of to our next Guinness at THE RED LION. The red lion is right next to the Whitakers Inn but somehow we walked right passed it the night before. Yet again a smallish pub with the normal old decor and by now it seemed like the same people having a drink at the main bar. It seemed like a good traditional Pub and it had a good reputation with most of the townsfolk. We then moved around the corner to THE CROSS PIPES, it's a little out of the way in a back street near safeway's and if you didn't know it was there you probably wouldn't know it was there!. It looks a bit grubbie on the outside a
nd doesn't look like it has a lot of turnover but I loved it. It's beer garden was a bit grubbie but inside you can have a go at the darts and it does have a pool table. I had something here that I haven't even had in Australia (fair dinkum) a pint of FOSTERS!!. Strewth no wonder I haven't had one before, I thought the XXXX was rough as guts but next to this stuff it's not that bad. But you know the English love the stuff (strange mob these English).Now that I was as full as a goog and needed some cool air we had a nice nights walk across town to our next drink at THE SUMMERCROSS.
I went back to the Guinness to wash out that bad taste of Fosters in my mouth, and had a look about this place. It seemed like this pub would of been a great pub in it's time. Unfortunately the owners had ripped most of the old decor out and replaced it with brand new fittings. It looked just like an English pub in Perth (Australia). It went out of it's way to make it look like a pomie pub but just didn't have that real beaut English feel that I was spoiled with from all the other pubs in Otley. But it is a nice pub and has real beaut scrutinise tucker but to fair I only ever went into this pub twice in my time in Otley. So you could say this is the least pub I drank at, not a good sign. Then we were off as we stagged (Boris Yelstin style) up the road to our last pub for the night THE YEOMAN.
Now this pub was my second most drank at pub in Otley. It's view wasn't much...as you look outside the window to the Otley Laundrette. But this was a small pub with great atmosphere and it just asked you to come on in and have a pint. The bar staff were always friendly and you had a huge tv above the bar you could watch Sky sport. Well when I say sport I should say Soccer as this was the only sport you could see on tv. This pub was a hang out for your's truly as me and Tania,Jason and the old man would come up here for a game of pool. The pool table was the cheapest in Otley 40pee and you had a couple of small tv's to watch soccer, and they had Guinness and fosters on tap. So with my last pint of Guinness under my belt we had a nice little walk downhill to the oldies place and a good night's sleep.
