In reply to Mick Ryan - Senior Editor - UKC: What makes a great hillwalkers or climbers pub?
Location has to be key part, but there has to be more to it than location. The Wasdale Head Inn, Vaynol, Old and New Dungeon Ghyll, Pen Y Gwyrd, Bryn Tyrch, Cobdens, Clachaig and Kingshouse are all in fabulous locations, but that means that more often than not at weekends and especially bank holidays they're unbearable. So in a good location yes, but not so busy that you can't get served without a very long wait and a scrum at the bar.
Somewhere close enough to a campsite that everyone can end their day there, not all-bar-one who has to ferry the others back elsewhere.
Good beer, and good food served in reasonable quantities. Not fizzy keg nonsense and food that appears only to have been taken out of the packet and microwaved for as long as it takes to put the 300% markup on the charge.
Somewhere that acknowledges that walkers and climbers are a key part of its clientele and is accepting of their foibles (and frequently less than adequate personal hygiene after a day in the great outdoors) but is not a ghetto frequented by them alone, and whose staff don't try and excuse a surly and unthankful attitude by pretending that it's 'character'.
And a real fire in the colder months, where well-behaved dogs are tolerated but the owners of poorly-behaved ones ejected, where musicians of a certain standard are welcomed (or even supplied) but those who are not are encouraged to join with everyone else in enjoying the hubbub of relaxed conversation.
And I'm sure there's more. Having thought about all the above, I think the nearest to it is the ODG in the middle of the week. What makes it somewhere to avoid at weekends (too many people in too small a space) becomes much better away from those days. At weekends, then things are different and I'm not sure the perfect pub exists. Some come close - The Newfield Inn at (the Duddon) Seathwaite came very close to being it when Chris was the landlord, but he moved on and I haven't been back for many years, and the Coledale Hotel at Braithwaite isn't bad, but is just a wee bit too small making it difficult to get a table for food sometimes.
So there's a gap in the market for a willing entrepeneur, though I suspect the easiest way to use the idea to make a small fortune will be to start with a large one...
T.