A great walk to a great pub – The Old Post Office, Ingleton, Yorkshire Dales

A beautiful old hotel stars alongside a quirky village microbar on this stroll amid epic limestone scenery

People are always saying how such-and-such-a-village used to have a dozen pubs, and now has only a Spar. Well, Ingleton, which has a population of about 2,000, has three pubs, an ex-servicemen’s club and a “microbar” called the Old Post Office, which is doing what canny little boozers all over the country do now – providing a warm environment for real ale and friendly chat, while conserving a historic building.

There’s also an excellent pub – Masons Freehouse – on the main road, the A65, just 10 minutes’ walk from the centre. I would recommend having a pint in any or all of these before setting off if it weren’t for the fact that dehydration could be an issue for the classic uphill walk that starts in the centre of Ingleton.