Yesterday Mrs Ken and myself decided to have a trip up to Weardale, more specifically Tunstall Reservoir near Wolsingham. We hadn't been there for over 30 years and were prompted by a friend who had visited the place the other week. A quick research of the Good Beer Guide found the Black Lion Pub in Wolsingham as a good place to have a pint after our walk round the reservoir.
I have only ever driven through Wolsingham, never stopping. 2 pubs are always passed, The Black Bull and the Bay Horse but the Black Lion was new to me.
It was quite warm and sunny so I was ready for a pint. Finding the pub, we entered ( this was about 5pm) to find only 1 customer in the bar and the barmaid. I made the mistake of ordering the wife's drink first, a latte. So the barmaid disappeared round into the kitchen for the ingredients for this while I chatted to the guy at the bar. Turned out he was a fellow CAMRA member who knew Washington, where I live, well and was able to rattle off some locations and pubs from his memory.
During this reminiscing the latte was in the construction phase when the barmaid accidentally knocked over her small bottle of milk. " Now don't cry over your spilt milk" I joked which she took with good humour. After 5 minutes of latte making she asked what I wanted. " Its been that long Ive forgotten !" ( another joke ) The pint of Pennine Amber Necker I asked for was spot on for a warm day.
The CAMRA guy finished off and some people appeared from the back of the pub. There was a pub garden !! We decided to go outside. The barmaid said to the wife " are you OK carrying that cup, do you want a hand?" I said, " you can carry my pint if you want" . It was that sort of friendly place where we were made to feel welcome as soon as we walked in the door.
The small garden was a suntrap and we noticed sitting on one of the chairs, partially obscured, a cat dozing in the sun. After 5 minutes a couple came into the garden with a dog. The cat didnt see the dog and the dog ( think it was a spaniel) didnt see the cat. Foolishly, the cat decided to move. The dog nearly crapped itself, emitting these loud wolf like wails. The cat did a runner over the garden wall and the dog nearly knocked over two tables in its panic.
Things calmed down then we left this great little pub to head home.
It got to thinking about how good some out of the way back street pubs are. Off the beaten track they are well worth seeking out. The Steps in Washington, The Monument in Penshaw and the Dun Cow in Seaton spring to mind.
So if you are in Weardale anytime :- black-lion-wolsingham
