- Brockmoor Junction -
Friday 8th April 2022 begins with the Secretary undertaking a solo ferret around Buckpool and Brockmoor. Mr WME's mission - should I choose to accept it - is to revisit a short section of the Stourbridge Extension Canal, so one 15 bus ride later I hop off at Bromley for a rummage through Buckpool Nature Reserve. Railway remnants and gravel tracks precede a glimpse of Dudley Council's Leys Depot, a corporation compound that backs onto Brockmoor Junction. This is where the Fens Branch provides access to the Stourbridge Extension, a lost waterway that historically served mines and ironworks at Corbyns Hall and Shutt End. Nowadays the remaining stub offers mooring possibilities in among a multitude of ducks and geese.
- Jones Brothers Clock -
Back on the Fens Branch, I continue as far as Cressett Lane (Haywoods Bridge) from whence I can exit into Brockmoor. Features such as the Il Michelangelo restaurant, the fishing tackle and bait shop and the abandoned Brockmoor House pub are fairly familiar although major resurfacing works on the Pensnett Road add a little extra spice on this occasion. Brierley Hill beckons with its High Street not quite as much of a bottleneck as usual; a vintage Jones Bros clock is probably my favourite find of the morning as I gather general pictures of the Civic Hall, Police Station and the Moor Shopping Centre.
- Middle Pool -
News from the Chairman is that he's heavily delayed due to work-related wranglings, so our proposed tour of the Fens Pools Nature Reserve becomes a solitary expedition. Three pools here act as feeder reservoirs for the Stourbridge Canal system and together make for a Black Country beauty spot (if you ignore the odd burnt-out car that is). From Wide Waters I pass Grove Pool first of all, complete with hints of stepping stones across a sluice channel. Middle Pool is the longest of the three with Fens Pool itself being the broadest; wildlife-wise there are many examples of waterfowl but the only great crested newt I see is a sculpted one holding a pageantry lance near the entrance to the car park off Blewitt Street.
- Passing the Pensnett Assessment -
Picking my way through the poetically-named streets of the Upper Pensnett estate - think Byron, Tennyson et al. - I receive word that Mr D9's arrival is now imminent. The bald spot duly alights off his number 5 bus just in time to be the first foot through the door of the Fox & Grapes at 1pm. With Batham's Best Bitter in hand, D9 Destroyer sets about proving that his troubled morning hasn't diminished his darting prowess. A 3-0 lead is quickly compiled while WME Whirlwind again displays an ability to hit the furniture more often than the dartboard! Even though I'm well and truly beaten, it's still a treat to be in a proper Bathams boozer on a Friday afternoon, munching chicken tikka cobs and listening to Absolute Radio.
- Pens Ale Micro Bar -
After that stellar Fox & Grapes start, attention switches to the micropub we've promised ourselves further along Pensnett High Street. Passing the High Oak and the derelict H.L. Myers Chemists shop, we reach Pens Ale which is the sister establishment to Tividale's Tivi Ale. Four cask ales include Golden Glow and Timothy Taylor's Landlord Dark but we opt for the 'Loxhill Biscuit', a gluten-free golden beer from Crafty Brewing. Mock brick decor and bourbon label wallpaper details help us feel at home as we sit in a corner close to the chip shop, the nearest we'll ever get to recreating having a pint in the Four Furnaces. 1983 chart predictions have us recalling Kenny Everett's 'Snot Rap', which like our Hub adventures is all in the best possible taste!
- Baldness beside the Lenches Bridge -
We were very impressed with Pens Ale and can envisage it doing well in a location that seems busy enough near the Tansey Green Road turning. Our next task is to carry on down towards Kingswinford, noting the presence of the Pensnett Trading Estate as our Silly Song Selections are declared; D9 chooses the utterly random 'Bohemian Catsody' for miaow overload whereas I subject us to a ditty about 'Norah Batty's Stockings'. The bald spot doesn't object to a bit of Compo and is similarly besotted by the Lenches Bridge, a refurbished free house with a definite penchant for the Peaky Blinders TV series. We've left our flat caps at home but do partake of a swift Carling so as to appease any gangsters who might be in the vicinity.
- Wye Valley in the Woodman -
Kingswinford itself is where we'll stage our Wetherspoons intermission, once we've dealt with St Mary's Parish Church and the Standhills Road electricity offices. The Cross is the JDW in question, breathing new life into a longstanding landmark on the Moss Grove crossroads. The Secretary has earned his discount plotter's badge today, pouncing for £1.85 pints of 'Hot Night At The Village' as a mahogany-toned porter brewed especially for the company's in-house ale festival. It's fair to say Tim Martin and crew have done a good job with the Cross, making the most of some fine architectural flourishes, but for us there are other Kingswinford watering holes we'd rate more highly. The Woodman on Mount Pleasant is a case in point, serving up crystal clear Wye Valley HPA backed with gorgeous walnut panelling. This pub retains its own traditional bowling green and even manages to squeeze in room for a Thai restaurant!
- Grinning at the steering wheel -
Indeed, the plucky pubgoer is almost spoiled for choice in Kingswinford because there are several other pint possibilities in a relatively condensed area. Take the Leopard on Summer Street, or the Swan near Greenfields Road, or the Mount Pleasant (a Banks's number with roaming children and non-roaming astroturf). Our other top pick has to be the Park Tavern on Cot Lane - it is owned by Greene King but stocks a cracking line up of local brews including Bathams Bitter and is rightfully proving popular in the early evening sunshine. No wonder the Chairman looks so pleased with himself as he delivers a driving demo on the homeward 16.
- Wombourne Pool Bar -
We're almost done and dusted for another trip but D9 bladder necessities invoke a pit stop clause in Wombourne. Our wildcard discovery opposite the village green's tennis courts is the Wombourne Pool Bar, which belies its compact frontage by opening out into a surprisingly spacious interior. Bright red bench seats accompany Golden Glow and scattered scratchings before the Chairman insists on a Sunbeam splash and dash at the New Inn for good measure - well it was handy for the bus stop! All that remains is for us to catch the next 16 back towards Wolverhampton and that's April's hub assortment safely filed - cheers!
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