Page 45 - 2018 AMA Winter

easily subdued. Over the next 91⁄2 hours, I would become closely acquainted with at least two of them whilst also narrowly avoiding confrontation with a cow and attacks from swarms of ‘giant knat-like things’ on almost every summit. Great Mis Tor on the southern extremity of Merrivale Range was achieved with ease and used as a springboard for some micro-navigation East to Beardown Tors and Wistman’s Wood ticking off several terrain features on route. If you really want to test your navigation, then Dartmoor is the place for you.
With concerns over de-forestation becoming more prevalent, it is reassuring to know that our ancient woodlands are becoming increasingly protected to guarantee their longevity for future generations. Wistman’s Wood on the banks of the West Dart River is one such example holding status as a National Nature Reserve. www.visitdartmoor. co.uk describes its significance eloquently as an ‘amazing oak woodland...important for the mosses and lichens that festoon the trees and the impressive granite boulders found on the site.’ Natural England share this view noting that Wistman’s Wood ‘is surrounded by granite tors and moorland... the oldest trees [being] about 400 years old... [and] the site of one of the largest Bronze Age settlements in Dartmoor [with] the remains of almost 100 ancient buildings’. Equally eloquent but less comforting is John Swete’s (2000; p71) interpretation: ‘It is hardly possible to conceive anything of the sort so grotesque as this wood appears, with their branches just spreading themselves over the enormous blocks of granite
Climbing Sheeps Tor
Natalie on Foggintor Quarry
among which they are intermingled; and their upper lateral roots twisted around their bases’. More eerie is the legend of Wistman’s Wood. Legend has it that the woods were the home of the demonic Wisht Hounds, whose favoured hunting ground included the woods and cliffs of the Dewerstone. As the sun sets, it is said that these hounds, with their blood red eyes and lust for human flesh, would roam the moors in search of lost souls and unwary traveller’s.
‘As the sun sets, it is said that these hounds, with their blood red eyes and lust for human flesh, would roam the moors in search of lost souls and unwary traveller’s’
Up-and-over Littaford Tors and down to the Cherry Brook on uneven, wet and overgrown ground. Around Bellever Forest for the final ascent to the Tor itself where the opportunity was taken for a bit of simple scrambling/bouldering on one of the many granite outcrops. The boots came off, wet feet were dried, a late lunch was taken in the shade of the most dominating outcrop and 360° vistas were admired and appreciated. It was truly a tranquil place but all good things must come to an end. Wet socks were re-acquainted with dry feet and the journey continued. Heading North, I delved into our Bronze Age past. The area surrounding Lakehead Hill is a prime
example of Bronze Age Dartmoor with cairns, cists, stone rows, hut circles and settlements in close proximity. Kraps Ring is one such example scheduled under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeo- logical Areas Act 1979. Historic England note that ‘the partially enclosed stone hut circle settlement...survives compara- tively well and together with other nearby broadly contemporary settlement sites and ceremonial monuments provides an important insight into the nature of Bronze Age occupation and exploitation in the centre of Dartmoor’. Although I included this as part of a longer hill walking day, this whole area makes for an enjoyable family day out with easy access from the Higher Cherrybrook Bridge car park. Postbridge with its iconic clapper bridge – the feature of many calendars and postcards – is just to the North and a short commute from Bellever. It offers an idyllic setting to enjoy afternoon tea at the East Dart Hotel and is the perfect end to such a day. But there was no time for such luxuries as the Westward journey ‘home’ to Princetown was an inevitable reality.
Powdermills, nestled between Littaford and Bellever Tors, was the first prominent landmark on the return journey, and more recent from an historical perspective. Although now the site of Powdermills Pottery, a bunkhouse and tea room, the original site (now remains) is home to a Grade II listed gunpowder factory established in 1844 by George Frean. In the age of water power, the factory comprised buildings associated with the
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