Navigating Nuneaton and Bedworth

It's strange how little patterns can sometimes emerge as I build adventure upon adventure. Take for example the fact 2020 is barely two months old and already I've visited Warwickshire three times, what with the Leamington and Curdworth outings now being augmented by a day spent in Nuneaton and Bedworth...

- Felicitations from Bermuda Park -

Saturday 22nd February 2020 and the trilogy-completing trip will see me joining Nick for a foray into North Warwickshire. I start aboard the 8:57 Euston train leaving Wolverhampton, whereupon I find myself surrounded by Girl Guides all heading to a convention at the National Exhibition Centre - Captain Tawny seems particularly formidable! At Coventry I intercept Nick on the local train up from Leamington and we both then alight at Bermuda Park, giving me my first ever look at a station that first opened in early 2016. An unstaffed facility, the stop serves the adjacent industrial estate including a Booker Cash and Carry outlet.

- Crayfish Calling? -

Eager to explore Bermuda more widely, we follow a footpath over the A444 to reach the 'Phoenix' community centre and a bus turning circle served by occasional routes to Atherstone. Bermuda Village is particularly interesting as a preserved collection of miners houses originally constructed for workers at the Griff Colliery. Habitats of a different variety are however evident at Ensors Pool although flooded paths mean we can't get close enough to spot any endangered white clawed crayfish ourselves. We therefore backtrack towards Heath End for photos of the Hare & Hounds (an Edwardian boozer dating from 1904), a modern church, and a dance studio housed in the former Free Methodist Chapel. 

- Coventry Canal at Queens Road -

To Stockingford next and an encounter with a White Lion, albeit not as dangerous as it sounds (clue: an opening half of Sharp's Atlantic whets the palate nicely). Nick has a nose at a trophy shop, wondering if a certain Mr Beardsmore would deserve a bronze cricketing trinket, and there are hints of residential estates off The Raywoods or Northumberland Avenue. Our immediate target is the Coventry Canal and a section neither of us have walked previously, namely from Queens Road to Bull Ring between Bridges 21 and 20. It's not the most scenic stretch of towpath in truth but there is a traditional little wharf facility operated by Star Line Boats complete with Calor Gas and other fuel supplies. 

- A naughty nun! -

Reaching Coton we break for lunch at the Horseshoes, a Good Beer Guide-listed pub that for a while was the taphouse of the Tunnel Brewery but has now reverted to an Everards establishment. The lighter bites menu keeps hunger at bay while Nick is lured away from the ales by the prospect of Thistly Cross Cider (the whisky cask version). Just down the road is the Griff & Coton Club which hosts a number of sports teams - cricket, netball, bowls, rugby - and is an enduring legacy of the local mining industry which exploited the reserves of the North Warwickshire coalfield. The club grounds have been daubed with some very startling graffiti including a nun with a hot dog fixation. 

- Black Swan in Hand -

Continuing into Nuneaton's main centre via Edward Road's multitude of corner shops, we keenly reacquaint ourselves with the Lord Hop on the corner of Queens Road and Dugdale Street. As an award-winning micropub we have high expectations but these are ably met by a spectacularly good half of Elliswood's Dark Night Winter Porter. Such quality is a hard act for the other town pubs to follow although the Blue Bear (with O'Neill's Barn Owl Bitter) and the Black Swan in Hand (Jennings Cumberland) both serve up a decent drop; the latter is very sports-centric with the Italy v Scotland Six Nations fixture in full flow.

- Bedworth Station Sign -

Successfully sprinting for the 16:16 train (made with seconds to spare), we proceed to Bedworth where prior research tells us we might struggle to find much in the way of cask contentment. These suspicions are confirmed in the Prince of Wales on Bulkington Road, a friendly community local that was mooted to close in January but is carrying on trading for the time being at least. No real ale on this occasion and the Guinness is off too, hence Nick does the unthinkable and opts for some Carling - in all the ten plus years I've known him, I've never seen Nick drink lager before so I've had to hide the photographic evidence in order to protect his reputation!

- Admiring the Ashby Canal -

We're not in Bedworth purely for the pubs though as there are also waterways we're intent on investigating. The Coventry Canal makes its second appearance of the day care of a dusky walk out to Marston Lane, and there's just enough daylight left with which to marvel at Marston Junction and the early reaches of the Ashby-de-la-Zouch Canal. Furnace Road then connects us to the town centre only to discover that the Bear & Ragged Staff Wetherspoons is absolutely heaving, and our final port of call becomes the Travellers Rest back near the station as a quick Quadhop (Downton Brewery) precedes the train home. Cheers!