The Ragleth Hill Walker is Rewarded with Bass

Walking The Strettons
Day three on our Ludlow trip found us travelling 17-miles into the Shropshire Hills to the touristic town of Church Stretton.
The plan for the day was to walk for a couple of hours over the ridge of Ragleth Hill, then visit a pub each in Little, Church and All Stretton.  Apologies to All Stretton who I've cut off the route map...

We could have failed at the first hurdle if we'd have gotten soaked to the bone by a wickedly heavy rainstorm.  Luckily we were sheltered in town throughout this, donning the waterproofs as it eased to a drizzle, stripping out of the waterproofs ten minutes later as we began to climb a hill and broke out in a sweat.
Our route took us through the steep residential roads at the edge of town, then into woodland with some carpets of bluebells.

As the trees thinned, we emerged into open grassy hillside, striding on to reach the peak where views opened up in all directions.

Wonderful. 

After a wind-blown but thoroughly enjoyable stroll along the ridge, we reached the marker for the highest point at 398 meters.  Then it was steeply downhill to the village of Little Stretton.  My beer-sensors could even pick out the pub from the high vantage point.

We made it down, waited for a gap in the traffic to cross the busy Shrewsbury-Ludlow dual carriageway, took the old bridge over the railway lines, then walked straight down the lanes to the village pub.
Did I curse those customers who pulled up just as we rounded the corner and parked their car right in front of the pub instead of in the car park all of 20-meters away?
Hell, yes I did.

Green Dragon (Ludlow Road, Little Stretton, SY6 6RE)
I missed the boot rack in the porch.  They even had a box of plastic shoe covers if you didn't want to display your socks to the world, the Green Dragon certainly not wanting muddy boots traipsing through their rooms.  Fortunately my boots look scruffy but were relatively clean on a mud-free day.

Perhaps quite predictably, I was at the bar in a shot asking for a pint of Bass.
Other options were the Wye Valley big twosome of Butty and HPA, and the local Ludlow 'Gold'.  The Bass was on fine form in this GBG pub.

It's a place that has certainly been given a smart makeover at some point and is geared towards food with two distinct dining areas either direction from the bar. Maybe not a rustic village local then, although tables in front of the bar were occupied by a few folks just popping in for refreshments.
No mild smut in the gents, but you do get a bit of Jack Nicholson on the back of the door...

Our onward path took us up lanes to a caravan park flanked by steep hills, one of which our path took us partway up.  We then traversed the slopes on a route through fields of grazing sheep, eventually emerging at the HF hotel and residential streets of western Church Stretton.
Joules had served us well in Ludlow and the Kings Arms seemed to be the most picturesque pub option in town.

King's Arms (53 High Street, Church Stretton, SY6 6BY)
The Grade-II listed building dates back to the late 16th or early 17th century and was first recorded as being a pub in 1840, although probably operated as such prior to that.
It's full of olde-worlde charm when you step through the door - chucky stone walls, wooden beams, and red-brick floor.  The best seats in the house were to the side of the bar by a wood burner, occupied by a large group of walking types on this occasion, chatting about how many years they'd been coming here.
As you head further back into this Tardis-like inn, it becomes a bit more Joules-y.

 

Big tables, wooden barrels, old signs as decoration.
The ale choice was an identical one to that which we'd found at the Rose and Crown a couple of days earlier: 'Slumbering Monk', 'Pale', 'Citra', plus two seasonals.  I opted for the  'Batch Beer American Pale Ale', 4.1%, brewed with the triple C's of tropical, piney hoppiness that is Citra, Chinook and Cascade.  Not bad at all.
Pity there were no decent tables to take it to, the large back section being set up for the imminent arrival of an afternoon coffee booking.  The garden's very nice though...

It's just over a mile further along the valley to All Stretton which has a 2026 Good Beer Guide entry that I figured we should poke our heads into whilst in this neck of the woods.

The Yew Tree Inn (Shrewsbury Road, All Stretton, SY6 6HG)
In the middle of the afternoon the lounge, with some nice exposed wooden beams, was set ready for diners later in the day, whilst the drinkers bar in the corner had a bit of an unwelcoming feel to it.  Service without much of a smile and a handful of locals getting in the way by standing at the bar.
Peering around them, I could see the now common sight of Ludlow 'Gold' and Wye Valley 'Butty Bach', plus (my pick) the more unusual Green Duck 'Little Green Men'.
A decent fruity pale ale from the Stourbridge brewery, taken outside into the sunshine on the patio.

Leaving the Strettons, there was another Beer Guide pub that we could call into on the way back to Ludlow.

The Apple Tree (Onibury, SY7 9AW)
This red brick building has gone through a few incarnations over the years.  It was originally built as a pub called The Raven at the end of the 19th century.  Since then it has served as bakery, butchers, village store and Post Office, the front windows looking very shop-like.
It transitioned back into a pub in 1998, the new name giving a nod to the local orchards and cider-making country.  There is an apple variety called the Onibury Pippin.
Perhaps I should have had a cider (fizzy keg only, sadly) rather than a Wye Valley 'HPA' (other options being 'Butty Bach' (again!) or Ludlow 'Stairway').

We sat at a chunky table in the corner of the bar, which felt more like a micro than a pub room, albeit one in a characterful village setting rather than in a parade of bland shops in Solihull.
It was doing a good trade with the locals who must have clocked-off early on a Friday afternoon.  A handful of old boys giving us a friendly welcome, the younger generation 'blokes of Onibury' getting well into a session on Carling and tequila shots.

Great to see the pub being so well used - I just wish I hadn't arrived right at the beginning of a round being brought - "Who haven't we done?  Go and ask Gav if he wants a Carling.  Nah we've done Stu - whose is that one on the bar?" - all whilst the cheery staff member totted them up on a bit of paper and calculator in the seeming absence of a cash register.  

We'd done four very different pubs and a cracking short walk in the Shropshire Hills.
Right ⮚ Back to Ludlow and the Blood Bay to see if the Bass had come on.
Yes it had and it was gorgeous.
🔺🍻

 

Leominster and Leintwardine

The plan for Day 2 of our trip to Ludlow was to catch the train into Herefordshire and visit the town of Leominster.
First things first: a quite wonderful breakfast at CSONS down by the River Teme.  Following by a browse of local traders day at Ludlow market where we weighed out bags down with cake, locally roasted coffee beans, and SY8 rhubarb ketchup.

Before Leominster: a side-trip to the village of Leintwardine.

A Herefordshire village 10-miles from Ludlow, home to around 850 people, 2 churches and 2 pubs.
This was the one that we were interested in...

Always trust a weather-worn faded pub sign...and a blue plaque...

So, what's a parlour pub?
A change in the licensing laws in 1830 allowed private householders to sell ale and cider from their own homes as well as being able to brew beer, just so long as they didn't open on a Sunday or offer fortified wines or spirits.  So started the practice of beer houses, where drinks would be served from a jug in the parlour.  By 1838 beer houses outnumbered traditional inns and hotels with some 46,000 throughout the land.  
In 1869 the rules were changed again, making it harder to get a licence and preventing new beer houses from opening.  Over the following years many closed, whilst others transformed into regular pubs applying for full licenses.

Sun Inn (Rosemary Lane, Leintwardine, SY7 0LP)
Remaining examples of parlour pubs are few and far between, so what a treat to step into the Sun Inn and the parlour that Flossie ruled over for 74 years...

To the other side of the entrance corridor is the bare bones red-brick-floored public bar...

This could have been lost forever when Flossie passed away in 2009.  CAMRA launched a "Save the Sun" campaign and a neighbour and local brewer brought the pub from the family, whose desire was for it to continue as a pub.
The original rooms remain intact although all the action is through the back in an extension which contains the bar, additional seating and access to the garden.
Beers available on our visit came from Ludlow Brewery, Hobsons and Wye Valley.

Much as I liked the front rooms, it made sense to take my Hobson's 'Best Bitter' (and a pickled egg) to the toasty seats by the wood burner, in the extension where a handful of locals sat around the edges with pints of beer and newspapers.

One remarkable pub ticked off, it was time to head back into Ludlow and catch a train to our second destination of the day.
The Transport for Wales service whisked us to Llanllieni in 10-minutes, Welsh announcements first - not that the English pronunciation is especially helpful being as it has three extraneous letters on paper.

Leominster
This north Herefordshire market town is 9-miles south of Ludlow and is home to around 12,000 folks.  As is often the case, it doesn't look especially appealing stepping out from the station, but a short walk took us to the centre where we could OD on timber-frames and listed buildings (in excess of 150 of them).
We made our way to the market square where a quick check the time on the impressive clock  (pictured at the top of the post) confirmed it 14:30 - beer o'clock.
Our first port of call was to the Press Room in the corner of the square...

The Press Room (1 Corn Square, Leominster, HR6 8LR)
Many years back this building housed a pub called the Duke's Head.  That is long gone, later uses being as a printing business and as the tourist information centre.  So it's great to see it returning to selling beer, albeit alongside coffee and cakes.

The bar counter has been constructed by a local carpenter to include an unusual window to show the workings of the beer engine...

Rather like the Blood Bay in Ludlow, parts of the bar are salvaged from closed pubs - the bar back has come from Penarth and the beer engines from Nottingham.

On our visit they were serving Hobson's 'Town Crier' or Hop Shed 'Java Pale' from the hop farm brewery in Worcestershire.  This was formerly just called 'Pale' and has been given a rebranding that make me think 'coffee'.  Brewed with three varieties of British hops, it's a floral hoppy and fruity brew.

I left Mrs PropUptheBar and the dog sipping an Erdinger Alkoholfrei isotonic beer, whilst I took the opportunity to pop into Wetherspoon's a couple of doors down.
The darkening sky is indicative that the weather was about to take a turn...

The Duke's Head (Corn Square, Leominster, HR6 8LR)
And indeed it did - hail-stones briefly pummelling the skylight extension to the rear of the Duke's Head which the bar counter sits under.
The pub looks fairly traditional and small from the frontage on the square, and would be were it not for the conversion to extend it into two additional areas at the back.

Quick bit of Spoons carpet appreciation...

The onward to see what cask ales were on offer: Ludlow 'Gold', Moorhouse 'Pendle Witches Brew', and Pheasantry 'Dancing Dragonfly' sharing space on the hand pumps with the Spoons regular fare.
£2.20 for the guest Pheasantry from East Notts, a fruity and boozy 5% golden ale.

Moving on, we strolled up Drapers Lane and quickly found our next destination.
Changeable weather on this day which has gone from a downpour to deep blue skies...

Grape Vaults (2-4 Broad Street, Leominster, HR6 8BS)
This was a cracking pub.
Am I pushing my luck if I claim that all pubs with 'Vaults' in the name are brilliant?
The Grape Vaults is a 19th century inn that has never been spoilt by any flashy refurbishment, retaining many historic features within a simple interior.  No music or games machines to distract from the chatter of a group of folks spread across the small tables in front of the bar, the sunshine beaming through the windows.

Beers came from Ludlow Brewery: Best, Gold or Blonde.
The Best was on superb form, a fittingly good pint for the delightful surroundings.

Moving on - slightly reluctantly - from the Grape Vaults, we strolled along the lane to the Priory Church of St Peter and St Paul, busily bell-ringing on a midweek teatime.  Then through the greenery of The Grange park with the old market hall as its focal point - a building dismantled to open up a junction in the town centre in 1850, then rebuilt near the church in 1859.

Back out on Eltham Street we made our way to the 2026 Good Beer Guide listed Chequers - another Grade-II-listed good-looking old timber framed building.

The Chequers (63 Etnam Street, Leominster, HR6 8AE)
This is considered to be the oldest pub in town, dating back to at least the 1600's when it was operating as a coaching inn with stables to the rear.  It was first recorded as being 'The Chequers' in 1843.  The front room is the most characterful bit of the pub with wooden beams and a spectacular fireplace.

Those would be the best seats in the house on a winter's eve with logs burning on the hearth.

This is a Wye Valley house, with the biggest range of their beers I can recall seeing in one place: six in total - Stout, Pyoneer, Butty Bach, Hopfather, HPA, and a seasonal mild.
I'm never one to turn down a mild, picking 'The Malt Awakens' with its Star Wars themed name and pump clip.  Another cracking pint.
The music didn't live up to the beer - Lukas Graham, Bon Iver, then Niall Horan making for a bit of a bland-fest.

But I'm not complaining...it's a super pub which began filling up with customers whilst we were sat in the front window alcove.
Four varied drinking establishments visited in Leominster, decent beer in all, the Grapes Vaults standing out as the town highlight.
We briefly thought about calling into the White Lion close to the railway station, but then figured we could do much better hopping on the next train back to Ludlow.  And so we did, with Black Country Ales and a much more modern parlour pub.

The Blood Bay - Ludlow

A short break during some of the chillier days of May 2026 took us to the western edges of Shropshire and the historic town of Ludlow.
Our base for three nights was the Wheatsheaf Inn, five minutes walk from the town centre, sitting just outside the old town walls.

The Wheatsheaf Inn (Lower Broad Street, Ludlow, SY8 1PQ)
As befits historic pubs outside the town walls, they once had a reputation for a much rougher and rowdier crowd than those on the other side of the gate.  In the 17th century the landlord is recorded as being fined for “harbouring...lewd and evil disposed persons, rogues, beggars and such like."
Maybe in this day and age they'll be more willing to accommodate a scruffy bugger like me, although this being Ludlow, I wouldn't bank on it.

After dropping our bags off, we decided a pint in the Wheatsheaf could wait until later, wanting to make the most of the blue sky and pay a visit to the castle.

Construction of Ludlow castle began around 1085 with numerous additions being made over the next two centuries.
Historic residents include Edward and Richard, ill-fated sons of Edward IV, who were whisked away from here to become the 'princes in the tower', never to be seen again.
Catherine of Aragon honeymooned at Ludlow Castle.  A miserly five pounds was spent sprucing it up in readiness for Mary Tudor's year-and-a-half overseeing the Council of the Marches.
Author Daniel Dafoe popped his head in when it was falling into disrepair.  US forces played baseball in the castle grounds when stationed here in the second world war.

In this day and age you can spend £10 to wander around the ruins and imagine what life used to be like within these fortified walls.
Or you can come and see Snow Patrol and Rick Astley as part of the summer gigs lined up for 2026.

I thought the castle was great - especially the superb views afforded by the stone staircases to the tallest remaining tower.
Back through the market place, the town was looking good in the sunshine.

Joules would provide our first beer in Ludlow at a pub tucked into a courtyard just off the market square - down the alleyway to the left of the picture above.
A turn through an archway gives you the first glimpse of the timbered buildings...

Rose & Crown (8 Church Street, Ludlow, SY8 1AP)
This is possibly Ludlow's oldest pub, even though you'd probably take a punt on one of the timber framed inns taking that title.
Joules claim that historical records show that an ale house existed here in 1102.  Parts of the current listed building date back to the 13th and 15th centuries.
Joules, from Shropshire town Market Drayton, took over in 2016 and unearthed old features such as fireplaces and wooden beams, returning an historic feel to this old coaching inn.

It consists a U-shaped layout, with rooms surrounding the small courtyard: dark wood panelling to the left where you'll find the bar counter, stone floors and fireplaces to the right.

Of the cask ales on offer, three were Joules regulars ('Slumbering Monk', 'Pale', and 'Citra') and two were limited edition/seasonal brews ('Bilby's Trail' or '1038 American Pale').  That's a line-up very heavy on pale ale and crying out for a mild or stout.
Looking for something I'd not tried before, I opted for the light and crispy 4% 'Bilby's Trail', easy-drinking and in good condition.

 

Moving on, we wandered through town, taking the opportunity to photograph the Feathers Hotel in the sunshine.

Looks incredible.  Reportedly very ordinary inside, and we never did build up the motivation to step inside and see for ourselves.
Instead we patronised another good-looker, the Old Bull Ring Tavern.

Old Bull Ring Tavern (44 Bull Ring, Ludlow, SY8 1AB)
This was quiet, possibly due to the odd food service times (the A-board advertised food from 12-5, which struck me as shutting the kitchen just as folk start to think about tea).  It has spent about four months closed in 2025, reopening in December, so I guess they may still be testing the waters.
Heading through to the right side room with bar counter we found Wye Valley 'HPA' and 'Butty Bach' on offer, as well as Devon interloper Otter 'Bitter'.

I grabbed a pint of the 'HPA', taken through to the quiet and brightly lit second room.
A bit too brightly lit for me.  For a pub dating back to the 14th century, complete with ghost stories, and named after a grisly 'spectacle' that would have taken place on the market square, I'd kind of like rickety floorboards, dark corners and flaking paint.  But that's just me.

The Bull Ring couldn't feed us at 6pm, so we headed for a cafe/bar on the market square for a bite to eat.  The Old Bakehouse was a relaxed and pleasant place that provided us with tasty plates of food and a bottled 'Butty Bach' in the absence of anything exciting on the beer taps.

Our next pub stop was the undisputed highlight of the evening...

The Blood Bay (13 High Street, Ludlow, SY8 1BS)
Although it's not actually the historic hostelry that it appears to be at first glance.  
The building previously housed a newsagents and was brought by a local entrepreneur named Jon Saxon, who had a plan to convert it into a pub.  When they began a 9-month renovation project, Georgian and Victorian features were uncovered and the idea emerged to recreate how the ground floor would have looked in the 1820's.  The oldest layers of paint and wallpaper were scanned to recreate these and decorate in the original style.  The bar counter and beer engines were salvaged from a pub demolition in Islington.

The front room is tiny, with a handful of small tables in front of wall-hugging bench seating and dumpy stools.  A mahogany divider behind the bar splits the ground floor into two, with a couple more tables on the route to the back.  But we found the best seat in the house...

A great wooden benched booth with small serving hatch to the back of the bar, lest you declare it too far to walk around to the front.

Beers being served on our visit were Uley 'Taverner' from Gloucestershire and Teignmouth Brewery '1846' Irish cream stout from Devon.

The Dark Ruby Mild and Bass were "coming soon".
"Won't be long," said the friendly chap at the bar.  "The Bass will go on as soon as the Taverner's finished.  Taverner's just as good, mind."
Well, not quite, in my humble opinion, but it was in great condition and a really enjoyable premium bitter. 

I stuck around long enough to try the second beer - the 6.2% stout being absolutely superb.  And long enough to climb the stairs to a very respectable WC and a characterful first floor room, devoid of customers...

We ended our evening back at the Wheatsheaf, with another Wye Valley 'HPA', sat under the fairy light-lit wooden beams.

More Ludlow pubs to follow, as we spent the next couple of days exploring nearby towns and villages and the evenings seeing what else the town itself had to offer.  Expect parlour pubs, a brewery tap, hills, and more Wye Valley beer.
And a return visit to the Blood Bay when that Bass come on?  Yes, I expect so.