A Train Trip From Peterborough To Belper And Beyond! 16

From here the taxi firm Steve’s Cars of Belper (01773 525323) took some of us back to Belper and three of us to the Black Bull’s Head, Openwoodgate DE56 0SF, a Good Beer Guide pub selling Greene King Abbot, Oakham Citra, Taylors Landlord and four changing real ales from microbreweries. A cab took us to another nearby pub in the Good Beer Guide, the White Hart, Bargate DE56 0JA. This opens at 4pm Tuesday to Thursday and sells five changing real ales from microbreweries. From Bargate a Notts & Derby Bus 71, that accepted the Trent Barton Group ticket, took us back to Belper.

Those who had taken the taxi to Belper earlier were able to visit two pubs a ten minute walk up the hill. First is the Queen’s Head, which has a regionally important historic interior. It opens at 4pm and sells up to four real ales. Nearby is the Thorn Tree, which also opens at 4pm and sells Draught Bass & three real ales from microbreweries.

We visited the Belper House, a smart refurbishment of a listed building which opens at 3 and sells at least one Hartshorn real ale. Other pubs are on Bridge Street (A6) as is the Devonshire. The Riflemen’s, which also opens at 4pm, sells Marston’s Pedigree and also had a microbrewery real ale on the bar for our visit. Next is the Belper Tap, a conversion from former Barakah Restaurant, which opened at 4pm and sold three real ales from microbreweries. Nearby is the Pump It Up, a micropub operated by Matlock Wolds Farm Brewery, which has two small rooms. You can see which real ales are on sale by using the Real Ale Finder App! Finally, we visited the Arkwrights Real Ale Bar, is a micropub below Strutt Club close to the station. Also opening at 4pm it sells five microbreweries real ales.

In order to visit some more pubs in the Good Beer Guide we headed for the Belper Bus Station, an old fashioned Bus Garage, and took another of the Sixes buses (every 10 minutes) to Milford alighting at the King William. This is traditional pub with a quarry tiled floor, open fire and selling five real ales, three from microbreweries.

Another of the Sixes buses took us to Duffield and the Town Street Tap, a micropub owned by the Tollgate Brewery which has no bar. Staff take your order and operate table service – wonderful! A good five minutes walk took us to Duffield Station for the train to Derby. The train to Nottingham was delayed but we still managed to catch the last train back to Peterborough.

Belper is a town that has at least 14 real ale pubs, all within easy walking distance, with a selection of real ales (and more selling only Marston’s Group beers) but only a small number of the pubs open before 3pm during the week.

Mick Slaughter

(Photos: Mick Slaughter and Derek Gibson)