Two and a half big days in the North (part one)

Liam Tutty from Dead Centre has been telling me about the Ale Trail for a few years now so when he asked if I fancied a trip which would include some of it I jumped at the chance. A few days on the beer right after Paddy’s weekend sure, who wouldn’t? We flew into Manchester and got the train as far as Stalybridge.

Stalybridge Buffet Bar is one of the original stops on the Ale Trail and it is one of Liam’s favourites. It’s a charming place and I was happy out with my pint of Neptune Kiwa and pork pie. We didn’t delay too long though and made our way to what we thought would be Marsden but the train didn’t actually stop so we ended up in Huddersfield. Which was grand because we were going there anyway.

There’s a pub at either end of the station in Huddersfield. I really think we’re missing a trick by not having more train station pubs in Ireland. The Kings Head is a big open space while the Head of Steam feels a bit more snug. Both are fine and I enjoyed the Long Moor Pale from Small World Beers and Sup from Northern Monk.

The Sportsman is an Inn that Liam had stumbled upon on a previous excursion and liked. The barman was engaging and they had a great selection of beers and crisps. The Thornbridge Market Porter went surprisingly well with dill and pickle crisps. And my Leeds based friend Jonathan was able to join us for a couple of pints. Our next intended stop had a bus replacement service in place and we didn’t really fancy that so we relaxed where we were and had a great couple of hours. Then we were able to get the train straight to Liverpool where we were staying. I’ll tell you about the rest of the trip soon. Sláinte!