Sunday 11th March High Dartmoor and Eleven Tors

 A foogy start.  Parking at Sourton and following the track up over the cycle path...

 ...to the wall corner and the first tor in view East Tor (76)

Over to the track and up to the 'Points' where one of the many Ten Tors teams on the moor today were having a discussion about where they were.

Further along the track Gren Tor (77) came into view...

...as the fog started to lift to let the sunshine through.

Across to Great Links Tor - but not going there today.

On to Hunt Tor (78)

With Green Tor and Higher Dunna Goat in the distance.

And on to Green Tor (79) with Fur Tor in the distance...

...and the view across to Lower and Higher Dunnagoat.

 
Down to the remains of Bleak House - difficult to believe that people once lived here

Up to Lower Dunna Goat (80)...

....and just across to Higher Dunna Goat (81) looking back to the Lower DG.

Back across the Rattle brook..

...and up to Kitty Tor (82) - with the broken flagpole and range huts.

 
The view over to Lints Tor....

...and the view to Steng-a-Tor

Steng-a-Tor (83) -  the immediate area all round this is very wet.

Dramatically sculptured by the wind.

Next along to Corn Ridge and Branscombe's Loaf  (84) - very, very wet along here too.

The view down to  Shelstone Tor

The hang gliders were out on the steep slope down to Shelstone Tor - trying to get a thermal to take them upto the clouds.  Apparently one person  got as far as Penzance from here once!

The logan stone on Shelstone Tor (85)

 

Sourton Tors (86) were the final tors for the day...

 ...looking down to Sourton...

 ...and across to Meldon Reservoir

A final look back to the hang gliders - looks like a thermal of sorts had arrived.

Thursday 8th March Dr Blackall's Drive

Starting at Bel Tor corner along the drive created by Dr Blackall.  He and his friends were keen carriage riders and he built this drive for that purpose.

Mel tor (71) was our first tor of the morning...

...no problem understanding the direction of the prevailing wind...

...looking back to Yar Tor...

...and across to Bench Tor with Venford reservoir.

Dr Blackalls drive - and along here to find Aish Tor

This is the spot for the grid reference but no way is this pile of stones on what appears to be a burial mound of some sort the tor...

...so around the hill for a while trying to find it - not this either....

 

...I finally decided that this was Aish Tor (72)

Back to Dr Blackall's drive for the walk to Leigh Tor (73).  No problems with this one...

...a real proper job!

From here we went along the main road to the Tavistock Inn.  What a difference compared with the East Dart Hotel on Tuesday.  Two fires going, a very friendly barman and real good value food - shame we can't come here more often.

Back to the car with a good view of Bel Tor  which is on private land and then the short drive to Leusdon....

...and a short walk past the church, down the hill, along a short drift lane and on to the open moor to Blackadon Tor (74).  Now was that stone circle in front of the tor created by children or people with a more sinister motive?

Not far from here is Logwell Rock (75) which was a bit of a scramble and well hidden in undergrowth, but, once you get through it is another proper tor.

Wednesday 7th March Bellever Forest

A perfect evening for a walk.  Clear skies, a very bright moon and a cool breeze. Out to Bellever Tor (69) and then across to Laughter Tor (70) before returning through the forest to Bellever and back to the cars.  On to the Prince of Wales in Princetown.  If I ever wondered why I go walking at night then last night was the reason. You could see for miles in the moonlight and everything looked magical.  Just a shame you can't capture it properly on an ordinary camera!

Tuesday 6th March Waterfalls

Starting from Postbridge we took the path out past Hartyland...

...and up to Hartland Tor  (67)....

...from Hartland Tor with Sittaford Tor in the distance

Along the ridge to cross the stream just below the Beehive Hut

Past this lovely little waterfall on Winney's Down Brook.














To the waterfall on the East Dart River a place you can never ever tire of visiting.  Not a spectacular waterfall but beautiful in its own way and one of my favourite places on Dartmoor.

Looking back down the valley we came up with Fernworthy forest in the distance.

A diversion from the usual route to the Tor on Broad Down (68).  This is next to the wall junction and not a tor in the normal sense just a low flat rock - you can't see unless you are next to it.  But, it is in the book so it counts!

From here down to Braddon Lake shown just below in the photo which looks across to Postbridge.  No lake here just a bit of a wet area.

 Hartland Tor now on the other side of the river and back to Postbridge.

Lunch in the East Dart Hotel with stale bread, a cold room and a barman with a strange attitude - don't think I will be back there in a hurry!

Walking, Paul, Rosemary, Terry, Charlie, Roger, Carol, Colin, Amber and Linda

Friday 2nd March - Lucky Tor

A murky misty day with the sun struggling to break through.  Very warm and humid out of the wind and it felt like a spring day.  Parked on Yartor Down just up from Dartmeet.



Downhill a little to find the 'Coffin Stone' - a convenient resting place to rest the coffin on this steep climb up.  In the Middle Ages a coffin was always carried on mens's shoulders.  More information here  http://www.legendarydartmoor.co.uk/coffin_stone.htm

Next across and up to Yar Tor (62) - a really good place to get an excellent view of the moor but not today.

 The small hamlets of Sherwell and Babney in the distance.

From here down to the road and the kistvaen - this one is also know as the Money Pit - for more about the legend go here        http://www.legendarydartmoor.co.uk/money_pit.htm

Just across the road from this is the memorial to Lieutenant Evelyn Penney who died on active service in Palestine in 1918 aged 19.

 
From here to Sharp Tor (63) - easy to understand why this one got its name.  Sharp Tor is the most popular name for tors on Dartmoor - there are 10 in total.

The view south west down the Dart valley from Sharp Tor...

...back to Yar Tor...

...Combestone Tor on the other side of the valley

Next due south but going around the enclosed land to find Lucky Tor.

Down the steep valley across this little stream...

Eventually Lucky Tor (64) came into view - heavily camouflaged in trees.  There doesn't seem much to it from here...

...but it goes back a long way and stands high up above the river - which I couldn't see but could hear clearly.

If you want complete solitude with just the sound of running water then there can be no better place than this.

Now it was time to climb out of the valley and if it felt steep going down then it most certainly was going back up!  Over Yartor Down to return to the car.

A short drive to the other side of the river through Hexworthy to Combestone Tor (65).  This has got to be the easiest tor to get to - there is a car park right next to it!

Another short drive to Venford Reservoir...

...for the walk to Bench Tor (66)...Sharp Tor in the distance....

....and Lucky Tor in the trees below.

On the other side of the valley Hockingston Tor amongst the trees - now that one looks like a real challenge but that's for another day.