As said in the teaser, Bollington has an amazing eight real ale pubs in total, with a further three within a 1½ mile radius. So this visit isn’t even scratching the surface!

Our first destination is the Vale Inn, aptly the first pub owned by Bollington Brewery, which was originally just around the corner (now re-located to Macclesfield). Five handpumps selling, you’ve guessed it, Bollington beers. Home cooked food is also available, with the chunky chips coming highly recommended. For the summer there is both a beer garden and, on selected days, a village cricket game being played nearby. Should you wish to stray from the real ale then Moravka lager, brewed to a Czech recipe in nearby Taddington, is a permanent fixture. There are also traditional pub games available, so maybe I can get a cribbage card game going! [Rules and tutoring will be provided.] The only downside to the Vale Inn is, it is well away from the centre of the village, so a 15 minute walk is required to get to our next establishment.

The Church House actually is a street corner boozer, being situated at the junction of Church and Chapel Streets. The main, open plan, room contains the bar and is supplemented with a cosy back room. In keeping with the ‘olde worlde’ feel, the Church House also keeps traditional hours, closing between 3pm and 6pm. The beer range is not as extensive as at the Vale Inn but the meals offered are excellent, (menu here). NOTE: Meals stop at 2pm, so if eating here get your skates on to beat the clock.

The saying "One door closes and another opens" sums up our next destination, the Cotton Tree. Doors don’t open here until 3pm! so we mustn’t rush the 2 minute walk (according to Google) between the two. No food here, being a traditional wet led pub (but ‘traditional’ pickled eggs are stocked) with four beers usually being on offer. The Cotton Tree is also noted for a large range of ciders. Should you wish to stray, this is the place to do so, as the Macclesfield and East Cheshire branch awarded its Cider Pub of the Year award on Saturday last! Traditional pub games are again available, so maybe this should be the venue for a game of Fives and Threes dominoes.

Our final outlet in Bollington, the Poachers Inn, is a further 5minutes walk up the road, where we are again greeted by a pub full of character and history. Outside, a secluded beer garden is nestled to the rear of the pub providing a real sun trap on a lovely summer's evening. Two of the five hand-pumps are reserved, one for a Beartown beer with the other for Macclesfield’s Storm Brewing. There is usually a dark beer on offer as well. The meals here are also well worth trying, but unfortunately not today, as the kitchen closes between 3pm and 5:30pm. This mean we will, unfortunately, be unable to partake in the Wednesday 'Pie and a Pint' Night which offers a choice of 2 or 3 pies, but not until after 5:30pm.

We head back towards Macclesfield with our bus departing at 5:07pm from outside the Cotton Tree. If we are enjoying ourselves there are still three other buses (5:37pm, 6:07pm and the last of the day at 6:37pm) back to Macclesfield. For the adventures there is also the 391 at 5:59pm and, surprisingly 7:34pm, all the way back to Stockport.

For those of us Macclesfield bound we could nip in to the luxurious train waiting room, commonly called the Waters Green Tavern.

"Hang on a minute! Where is this Nancy you promised we would be meeting?"

Cast your eyes south and upwards and you should catch fleeting glimpses of a white obelisk on the top of the hill. White Nancy was built in 1817 by John Gaskell junior of North End Farm to commemorate the victory at the Battle of Waterloo (as was Stoodley Pike above Hebden Bridge). Though it appears solid, there is actually an internal room, but there is now no accessing it. Strangely it wasn't called White Nancy because of its colour as it wasn't until 1925 that it was first painted!. The traditional all white colouring is supplemented at different times of the year by Remembrance Day poppies and/or soldiers, Christmas decorations, Olympic commemorations (if we win a few medals) and occasional others.