CROWN & SCEPTRE

 

Run #2058 Monday 13th January 7:15 pm from the Crown & Sceptre 2 Petitor Rd, St Marychurch, Torquay TQ1 4QA with Poacher.

Run #1952 16th January 2023 was the last time we visited this olde hostelry, when a pint was £3.40 and the hash fare was scampi and chips at £3.75. Ahh, those were the days, Shirley.

The standard blurb re parking now follows, although it is a futile exercise as hashers have ignored common sense over the years and insist on trying to get a space in the pub's miniscule car park at the last minute. Sigh.

However, herewegogo. Great time and effort has been (fruitlessly) expended in compiling the map below.

The map shows possible (local knowledge) spaces but your best bet would be to find a space down in St Marychurch itself near the Cooperative stores (marked as CO-OP within a red circle). It's only about 200 yards away from the pub.

TVH3 The Words for 6th January 2025

The Castle Inn, Stoke-Gabriel

Run No. 2057 "The Magnificent Seven + 2"

 

HARE: Poacher

 

Who wuz there: Poacher, Man-Pig, Piltdown Man, Georgy Porgy, Smellie, Beeflicker, Smash, Miss Mash & Ernie

 

Circle

The Hash can be a fickle animal. This is frequently reflected in the first Hash of the year. At one extreme, Hashers make a New Years' resolution to do more Hashes. They turn up at the first Hash of the year never to be seen again for 12 months! 

 

At the other extreme, post Christmas blues, cold weather and apathy combine for a low turn out. One can never forecast which way the Hash will go. As an exemplar, last Saturday's Devon A2B had a spectacular 60 runners turn up (albeit that it was a combined run with Plympton to mark their 2300th run). Compare that with last night. A paltry 9, but this at least one up on last week!

 

In fairness, the weather was pretty appalling; cold wet and windy. There was heavy rain and the car's thermometer registered a chilly 2 degrees outside. 

 

Snow on Dartmoor prevented Pisswell and Beefy from making the journey south....snowed in (Inn!?). The road works on Kings Ash Hill didn't help much either. I did feel sorry for Poacher having made the trip up from the South Hams to lay a lovely trail; the first of a trilogy of January Poacher trails for TVH3.

 

So, was it worth the trip? You betcha!

The briefing was, well, er, brief.

"It's muddy out there. There is a fish hook and a Ha-Ha and a couple of Long/Short splits".

 

Trail

The start of the run was bitterly cold. In fact, it took a good half hour to warm up. For the Walkers, Piltdown Man, Georgy Porgy, Smash and Miss Mash, they never warmed up and were more than glad for a rapid return to the pub.

 

The trail started by taking us left out of the pub and left again down Mill Hill and to our first check outside Mill Hill Court. The trail then took us down The Barnhay to what looked like a dead end...but wasn't. A narrow ginnel took us across the end of Church Walk and it was straight over and into what looked like an orchard.

 

Beeflicker was, inevitably, leading as we reached the foreshore of the Mill Pool and a left turn along a very wet footpath up to the junction of The Mill Pool and Coombe Shute and another check.

This confused everyone so Beeflicker and Man-Pig checked out Byter Mill Lane (again), a bit further this time but only to find the Ha-Ha. Back at Coombe Shute, we saw Smash and Miss Mash for the last time. The weather was bitter and I think that they'd had enough.

 

After some zigzagging, the Hare had us heading up Lower Broadpath and then back down Broadpath to Stoke Hill and another check. 

 

Beeflicker had disappeared who knows where at this stage. The Pig checked downhill only to find the check that he'd been at 3 minutes earlier. Back up to Hillfield and the first of the Long Short splits. We checked out the Hillfield cup-de-sac and found nothing. 

 

Upon our return to the entrance to Hillfield, we found a fresh arrow in flour. This pointed to an obscured footpath that runs between Paignton Road and Broad Path.

 

Ernie, Smellie and I looked at each other. It was wet and cold but, on the plus side, we were beginning to warm up. The Pig was sure that it would be a short loop and said that he'd give it a go. Ernie and Smellie agreed to join him but, only if we made it a run/walk. 

 

And so the trio embarked on the Long, passing some children's play equipment that was behind a hedge to our left before arriving at a gate. A barely discernible track crossed open grassland to another gate just inside the Paignton Road. An arrow then had us follow a tarmac footpath that kept us off the main road until we arrived at the edge of the village and...... a pavement!

 

The marks now took us along the right hand side of Paignton Road, New Road and School Road. We looked to be heading straight back to the pub. We were all looking to our right so it was with some surprise that Ernie glanced to his left to see the second Long/Short split pointing the Longs down Duncannon Lane.

 

This looked strangely familiar. The Bird had informed us that the last time that TVH3 had run from Stoke Gabriel was back in 2016 on a trail Hared by Wigwam. If I remember correctly, we ran through the graveyard and passed Mig Man's grave. I mentioned this to Smellie and we both reflected on our time running with Mig Man. Although it went unsaid, at that moment, we both missed Mig Man; not a sad moment. More of a "Thankyou" for having had the privilege of having shared some time with one of the great gentlemen of the Hash - kind and positive.

 

Dungannon Lane looked familiar. I cast my mind back to a trail that may have been laid by Woof Woof 15 years or so ago. I vaguely recalled a track across open pasture somewhere along this lane. At that moment, to our left was an opening onto open ground. 

 

Initially, we couldn't find any marks but, after a few yards, blobs of flour, "On-On". Through an opening in a bank, a little more open pasture and then through a metal kissing gate and into the woodland that borders the creek. More blobs of flour but it was slippery so the pace was slow.

The trio of Longs followed the footpath through the woods, catching glimpses of the Moon reflecting off the creek to our right.

 

"Proper Hashing this", said Ernie. "I'm enjoying this", at the same time as an overhanging brach snagged his beanie pulling it off.

 

Eventually, we arrive at a fairly large junction. The Pig is sure that it is left and so it is as we find our first mark but something has changed. The path here is very wide; much wider than I remember it. There is also a horizontally boarded fence to our left - apparently protecting a fairly recently planted holly hedge. We are on trail so we push on and arrive at another gate with baffling lock release system. The Pig is pulling the lever back-and-forth and from side-to-side but nothing is happening. It is only on inspection by torchlight that all becomes clear. Pull the loop vertically upwards - oh blessed release.

We traverse the molehills, up a gassed slope and onto the rather new looking driveway that is Wood House Lane. This drops onto the lower part of Mill Hill. I point Ernie and Smellie back up Mill Hill as I have left my car at the bottom of the Hill. Time for a change of clothing and a pint of ale.

 

Down-Downs

And then there were five, again, that rapidly diminished to two.

Even before having returned to the pub, Smellie and I agreed that the numbers didn't warrant Down-Downs. By the time that I'd arrived at the pub, Smellie was finishing a cup of tea as Piltdown Man and George Porgy had been back a while and were keen to get home and warm. I don't think Smash and Miss Mash made it to the pub and there was no sign of Beeflicker. Ernie, too, had decided to get home early. So it was left to Man-Pig and Poacher to enjoy the hospitality of the Castle Inn.

 

Poacher had very kindly got a pint waiting for me upon my return. He also shared his pizza and chips. It was a very nice welcome back from the cold outdoors. Cheers Poacher.

 

The trail was really very good but you would have needed to have done both of the Longs to make the most of it. 

 

Stoke Gabriel is a fantastically picturesque village and we really should try to get back down here in daylight in order to appreciate its beauty.

 

Poor Poacher had told the pub that they could expect, perhaps twenty Hashers? On another day, twenty might have been a fair guess. I didn't know who to feel more sorry for, the pub or Poacher. 

 

Nevertheless, the pub was very welcoming for those that did make it into the On-Down. Ernie, Smellie and myself thoroughly enjoyed the Longs so a big "Thankyou" to Poacher for laying the trail and getting us out and doing something worthwhile on what would otherwise have been a boring evening in, watching the box.

 

Next week

Next week's Hash is from The Crown and Sceptre, St Marychurch, Torquay. Once again, your intrepid Hare is Poacher. If next week's trail is anything like last night's, you won't be disappointed.

 

On-On to next week.

 

Happy New Year. MP

CASTLE INN STOKE GABRIEL

 

Run #2057 Monday 6th January Circle up 7:15 pm from the Castle Inn, Stoke Gabriel TQ9 6RZ with Poacher welcoming in the New Year for TVH. The last time we were here was October 2016 with Wiggy. The car park opposite the Castle is, bizarrely, for Church House Inn customers (further down the hill) only.