Do you love a city trail? Following a little map around the hotspots of a city; searching for statues, street art or historical plaques? Some cities even take you out to lesser known areas to encourage tourism to recently gentrified areas or hidden gems. If, like me, you love these wonderful ways to explore a city then Hull has a wonderful adventure for you to enjoy.
Hull’s connection to fishing dates back centuries, perfectly located on the Humber Estuary for access to the North Sea. The fishing trawlers and ships cover areas as far as Iceland and Norway. Whilst this industry has reduced significantly in recent years, it is still a key part of the city and, if you take some time to wander around the marina, the history is still very much alive in the rejuvenated dockland buildings.
It is therefore not a surprise that the trail Hull offers to visiting explorers is a Fish Trail. A route that takes you from the Historic City Hall, down to the Marina, through the redeveloped Docklands and back through the Old Town. This 2.5 mile walk takes between 2 and 3 hours to complete (at a gentle pace) but you will go past all of the main sights of the city and get a wonderful feel for the area, as well as having fun ‘collecting’ the fish along the way.
So I started at Hull City Hall, unsure of exactly what I am looking for. There is a map supplied by Visit Hull. I would treat this map as a ‘serving suggestion’ rather than an ‘recipe’… if that makes sense. The locations are approximate and by the time I left the City Hall, I knew I would need something more. So a brief Google allowed me to find this more detailed guide and this proved a little more useful. I would suggest that, if you want to undertake this trail, prioritise enjoying the search and take your time explore the areas to find the fish. After you have located a few of the fish, you know what you are looking for. I was unsure to start with and you are standing right next to a large sculpture that has fish carved around the central column… was that what I needed to find? After a longer search, I found the anchovies and immediately picked up the vibe of the trail and roughly what I was looking for. I was well on my way!
One of the things that I loved about this trail is the difference in the sculptures. They are not identical, in material or style, but they are really appropriate to their location and the fish. It is really well done. The MONKfish is in front of BlackFRIAR, the Electric Eel is outside an electric substation and the shark is in front of the old bank building. The artist had fun and you really get involved with that along the way.
A couple of hints to help you out:
You are looking on the floor for all but five of the fish
The fish are generally facing the direction that you need to walk
A number of the fish are very small, I believe they are life sized depictions, so look carefully as you could easily miss them
Fish 35, 36 and 37 were a little confusing. The description on the Visit Hull Guide state that they are near the George Hotel. This is correct if you were say comparing it to Tower Bridge in London but it is misleading for the trail. These three are down a back alley, not on a road. Find them in the correct order, they are labelled if you are not a mariner, and follow the direction the fish are ‘swimming’.
The public works of art are by the sculptor Gordon Young who is famous for his pavement sculptures (including the comedy carpet in Blackpool). This trail was launched in 1992 but all of the art stands up to time and they are visible. The only disclaimer here is that if there are any public works happening in the area and the pavement is disturbed in the process, then it is unlikely that you will be able to access those particular fish.
I would recommend this tour of the city for wholesome fun. It is free, so if the sun is shining then pop on your comfiest trainers, hit the streets and pick up an ice cream around the marina to celebrate your half way marker. Have a look and see what Hull has to offer!
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