61. The Linnet Inn

Boho Many readers will know of the famous caves at Boho (pronounced Bo), especially the one that goes down a distance of 200 feet and that pot-holers claim opens out into a cathedral-shaped cavern the size of Euston Station; how many know, though, that in the village of Boho itself, there is one of the most unusual pubs in the country, designed and built in honour of the caves?

The Linnet Inn boasts a lounge at the back which for all the world resembles a cluster of roughly hewn caves; these have been constructed from local stones and the result is highly effective, especially in harmony with the rough timber beams, caveman-like drawings on the walls, and Moher flagstones on the floor.

The only way to appreciate just how startling this unique development is, is to pay a visit and see for yourself.

The rest of the Linnet Inn is well worth a trip too; it is thought to be one of the oldest country pubs in the north, and the original building goes back into the mists of time, but it is known that it was a shebeen long, long before it was licensed as a pub. The Inn today is rare in having a fine wheatstraw thatched roof.

Its owner, Brian McKenzie, can tell you its history from about the mid-seventeenth century.
Apparently, the Inn takes its name from a song written by a local poet called McGuinness who composed it for a neighbouring blacksmith. When the poet took his pony to be shod, he found the lovesick smithy in his forge, high up on the hill, watching the girl who had won his heart, as she walked down below in the valley.

The winsome lass is featured on the Inn’s signboard. We’d recommend the Linnet Inn to anyone wanting to drink in a pub with a difference.

No, you won’t need climbing boots and ropes to reach the Caves Lounge!