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Monday 8 August 2011

Dick Hudson's


Friday evening and I needed to get some space after a heavy week at work so I decided to drive up to the edge of Bingley Moor, to a pub known as Dick Hudson's.  I didn't go in (sorry Alan!) so I can't tell you what it's like inside or what the food is like, though it was busy.  It underwent a major refurbishment earlier this year, but it seems to be getting mixed reviews.  It sits in a lovely spot though, with panoramic views over Bingley and the Aire valley, right over to the city of Bradford on the skyline.  On a pleasant evening it would be good to sit in the garden and enjoy a glass of real ale and the scenery.  I had a bit of a walk and appreciated the 'wide' end of my new lens, great for capturing the view and all that sky.

There has been a tavern up here since the 17th century, a traveller's rest on the old pack horse trail from Ilkley to Bingley.  The pub moved to its present site, Highgate Farm, when a road down to Eldwick was built.  In 1850 the farm and pub, then known as The Fleece, were taken over by landlord Dick Hudson and it has been known as Dick Hudson's ever since, though for a long time the sign still said The Fleece.  In Victorian and Edwardian times, the pub became very popular with working class families escaping the nearby textile towns at weekends and Bank Holidays to enjoy a bracing walk over the moors to Ilkley.  The pub made a good halfway house for dinner and tea and apparently did a roaring trade in roast beef and Yorkshire pudding, and ploughman's lunches.  (Not much changes then..)  For an interesting write-up of its history, see here.

12 comments:

  1. Used to be a good pub - but it's 10 years or more since I went there.

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  2. It's such an impressive building - I can imagine sitting in there with a roast dinner and a big glass of cider!

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  3. Looks beautiful ! and I am happy to say that I really took the opportunity to be in the UK to visit pubs and have lunch, lol !

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  4. Great buildings and beautiful light!

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  5. A nice building! Interesting history too.

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  6. You are such a good historian, Jenny. I love the building. Are you loving your new camera so far?

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  7. I love butterfly bushes! Great looking building too.

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  8. There is nothing like a real English pub - this one looks wonderful!

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  9. It looks a great place for a rest and soak up the view. I bet it was easy to get the whole building in your wide angle lens.

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  10. Shame on you Jenny. I do know the pub however : is there a pub in Yorkshire I don't know.

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  11. I'm about ready for a real ale and that sounds like the perfect place to have one.

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  12. Magnificient looking place, I would have wanted to go in! ~Lili

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