Forecasters had warned that today could be the hottest ever June day in Britain. So we were quite relieved to find that when we were dropped off back at the top of the hill above Widecombe to resume our walk, there was a fresh breeze. In fact, for about the first seven or eight miles of today’s walk it was warm but cooled by winds. So windy in fact that sometimes it was at times difficult to hear each other speak.
We were following an undulating path high up on Dartmoor from the start today, with a succession of tors, burial mounds and cairns. There were modest climbs to each, with names like Two Barrows, Single Barrow and Broad Barrow, before we reached Hameldown Tor, about 500 metres above sea level.
From here as we passed the brow of the hill, we looked down upon the best preserved archaeological site on Dartmoor, Grimspound. It’s a remarkable stone circle with a gateway, and is thought to date back to the Bronze Age, around 1300 BC. From what I can gather, some of it is a bit of reconstruction from the late Victorian era, but nonetheless it is an interesting sight.
Following Hockney Tor we descended with a magnificent view down to the road, where we were meant, according to our guide book, to ‘pick up’ (a bit of a vague expression) a broad grassy path.
In fact we spent the next 45 minutes trying to find this path, following false leads and ditches that lead nowhere in particular. The trouble was, it was difficult to see at a distance the difference between a dry ditch, sheep track or simply a change in vegetation. We walked across boggy moss, through sharp gorse, getting our legs cut to pieces in the process, and having to watch every stop to avoid twisting an ankle on holes and grassy tussocks. We followed our gps track pretty accurately, so maybe the map was wrong, or , more likely, we were walking a matter of metres away from a nice pleasant grassy track that we never found.
Eventually we reached the ridge path cutting across at right angles that we were aiming for, had our lunch, and thereafter managed to stick to the route. The end of the moor was reached and we were back onto farmland, shady wooded paths (thankfully, as it was much hotter once down from the height of the moor). The last few miles took us alongside and across the river Teign, and past Holystree Manor, and then a final slog uphill to Chagford, our base for the night.
So another enjoyable day, with only one instance of getting lost this time, and our last day on Dartmoor itself. The next few days are going to take us through quiet mid Devon, before we reach the second of the moors, Exmoor, on Tuesday.
Across the Alps to the Adriatic 