Tuesday 10th April Wheal Betsy

With the expectation of bad weather we did a 'low level' walk starting from the newly opened Royal Standard in Mary Tavy.  A very pleasant surprise - Brian Wilson was with us for the walk and lots of catching up for me after a break of 24 years!  Through the village and around the edge of Gibbet Hill crossing the main road to make a detour to...

...Wheal Betsey, a disused Silver/Lead mine.  Note that nothing is growing on the slopes of waste.

 
So what is everyone looking at...

 ...the curved chimney stack and no one knows why it was built this way!

Looking back down the valley.

We ventured on towards Wheal Jewell Reservoir and most warmed up going up the slope so it was logical to take off the waterproof outer layer.  Then 5 minutes later a heavy hail storm meant they all put them on again.

After yesterday's rain there was a good flow of water from the leat feeding the reservoir.

 
How quickly the weather can change - the hail storm moves over Hare Tor and Ger Tor and then...

..5 minutes later its all clear again.

 

Around this rather unattractive reservoir that feeds the Hydro Electric power station at Mary Tavy.

Our special couple celebrating their 47th wedding anniversary wearing black armbands.

Then down the lane to Horndon and over many stiles to...

...to the church in Mary Tavy...

 ...with the grave of William Crossing - a man who knew Dartmoor better than most

A team photo

Rosemary, Terry, Charlie, Brian, Colin, Roger and Amber.

Bud and Chris were waiting in the pub, newly re-opened and just as smart as before.  Not very busy but a good lunch.

Good Friday 6th April Hen Tor

Well it is a good day - I am just getting over a very nasty cold, I don't currently have an infected finger and I don't have any back ache!  Furthermore, the sun is shining and the strong cold wind of yesterday has eased.

So off to the car park by Gutter Tor and around the track towards Ditsworthy Warren House - with Hen Tor, my first Tor of the day in the distance,

Down to the ford, which with the lack of rain was very easy to cross today...

Over the completely dried out leat.  With the lack of rain the moor is exceptionally dry.  Of course the boggy bits are always wet even in drought conditions but not so long ago in January the ground was so wet it made the going hard - but not today.

 ...and up the hill to Hen Tor Brook - looking over Hentor Meadow towards Hen Tor.

Soon around the side and back of Hen Tor (94)

Looking down and back to Ditsworthy Warren house, Gutter Tor, Sheeps Tor and Sharpitor in the distance.

Then to try and find Little Hen Tor (95).  This is the spot but nothing looking like a tor - just a scattering of large rocks.

Over then to the lovely little waterfall on Shavercombe  Brook...

...and coming out of the valley the view across to  Drizzlecombe with the fourteen foot tall Menhir clearly in view.

Just to the left of the valley is is Shaverocmbe Tor (96)...

...looking back across to Shavercombe Tor.

Next over the side of the hill to Deadmans Bottom.  Apparently the dead man found here was removed over 200 years ago! The valley has been scarred and deepened by tin miners.

The Langcombe Brook at the bottom of the valley.

A short  walk up the hill to Little Gnats Head (97).  Lower Hartor Tor and Higher Hartor Tor in the distance.

Just below this is Calveslake Tor (98) with Evil Combe in the background.  Doesn't seem a bad place to me but I don't think you want to go through the boggy bit at the bottom!

From Calveslake Tor to Lower Hartor Tor.

Down to and across the River Plym

Lower Hartor Tor (99)...

 ...and up to Higher Hartor Tor (100)...

...with the Dartmoor ponies on top.

The Eylesbarrow track back to the car park.

Finally on private land just off Burcombe lane is Nat Tor (101).

With the lack of rain the moor is exceptionally dry.  Of course the boggy bits are always wet even in drought conditions.  Not so long ago in January the ground was so wet it made the going hard but not today.

Just five of us from Two Bridges - not quite dark and soon we will be walking in daylight again.  We took the usual route out to Crockern Tor and along the ridge past Littaford Tors to Longaford Tor. A very cool breeze on the higher ridge.  The planets were bright and Mars turned out to be something else.  Then down to the weir for the coffee break.  Next up the steeper bit to Beardown Tors and back through the woods and  past Beardown Farm. 

With Anne, Jon, Pete and Ian

Tuesday 20th March Belstone

A gloomy day on Dartmoor.  We walked through the picturesque village of Belstone and out on to the moor.

Our first stop was the Nine Maidens - the remains of a Bronze Age burial site.

A short distance then to Scarey Tor (87) - it's not and no idea why it got the name.

Down to  Gullivers Steps and the paved ford.  Paved in the eighteenth century by the army so that horses could draw gun carriages through the water.  Without these the cobbles the carriages would have gouged deep ruts in the river bed.

 Nearby is this boundary stone with the initials OPB marking the spot where Okehampton and Belstone parishes meet on the line of the old "Forest of Dartmoor" boundary.

 We followed the very old military road alongside the Black-a-ven Brook.













Along the military road with Oke Tor and Steeperton Tor in the distance...

...and up to Oke Tor (88)

It now being the start of the picnic season we stopped on the side of Oke Tor for an early lunch...

..but by the time we had finished it was feeling colder and with the wind on the ridge extra clothing and gloves were necessary.  In the middle distance Knattborough Tor (89)....

..not much of a tor at all really

A short distance to Winter Tor (90)....

...Higher Tor (91) was just up the hill

With to Belstone Tor (92) along the ridge past Irishman's Wall in the foreground.

 Finally down to the appropriately named Tors End (93)

Then back into the village of Belstone past a tractor which has seen much better days!

A seat where the wooden boards have been  removed - they have been neatly sawed through so probably the result of the health and safety police - vandals would just have smashed it up!

A memorial to Winston Churchill.

And the village stocks!














On today's walk Charlie, Roger, Carol, Colin, Amber, Terry and Rosemary.