On a walking trip in the deep South West of England, I recently fell victim to overambitious plans and the frailty of modern technology. As night fell my companion and I arrived, tired, hungry, blistered and cross, in a village enough miles short of our booked destination to require wheeled transport but with no means of finding it because our one mobile phone was on the blink.

The solitary public phone was equally unresponsive, and knocking on the doors of the locals with requests to use phones brought polite refusals from villagers understandably unexcited by the prospect of two sweaty, cross strangers lurking in the hall all night.

In deepening gloom we hobbled up the road until we spotted a warm orange light, which it soon became clear was illuminating a sign for the Fountain Head. Accurately describing the joy of that moment is no easy business. Finding an open shop would have been good, a café better and a hotel excellent — although we may have looked and smelt a bit ripe for the more upmarket establishments — but the sight of a pub was a sheer delight because a pub offers the lot.

If you’re weary, cold, hungry, thirsty, lost, phoneless, lonely or even seeking romance, a pub will solve your problem, or near enough, with an all-round sense of warmth and humanity thrown in. And a bit of mud or sweat is unlikely to upset anyone.

That surge of elation on a lonely road was a sharp reminder that the pub is not just another business, a profit centre to be leveraged or a loss-making asset to be rationalised.

A pub is a remarkable invention, a one-stop, multifunction, multipurpose answer to most immediate human needs short of high-level medical attention, although even there it will often be the first step. It’s the heart of a place, a focal point, a landmark and a community asset. And the Fountain Head is a shining gem of a community asset.

A 500-year-old building nestling in a little valley, it has a log fire, a flagstone floor, a snug and welcoming interior, ample outside space and truly sublime Branoc ale from the very local Branscombe Vale brewery.

Henceforth, I’ll leave my mobile phone at home and get lost on purpose.

The Fountain Head, Branscombe, Devon (01297 680359)

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