A walk at Venford Reservoir and its environs

Boots on for a very enjoyable circular walk, starting at the Venford Reservoir and then crossing some open moorland near Bench Tor to contour above the West Dart River through White Wood. Thence across Holne Moor to Coombestone Farm for a walk along the Holne Moor Leat back to our starting point. A reasonably energetic 6 miles with panoramic views all the way. And the weather? Clear with a brisk wind!

Our route, with the profile showing the ups and downs. The Venford Reservoir is the smallest, and some would say prettiest, of the Dartmoor reservoirs. It dates from the early 20th century and is filled by the Venford Brook.

Crossing the moor near Bench Tor, walking into a cold head wind. Luckily we soon dropped out of this as we descended into the valley.

Gateway to the South!  We could just about make out the Devon coast near Teignmouth.

Looking down into the valley of the West Dart River. There were kayakers down there, having fun in the rough water.

Green, green, green. Everywhere was green with moss and ferns. Look closely and you can see all sorts of anthropomorphic shapes. I could see the Queen Mother and Ozzy Osbourne looking down on me. Spooky!

Catkins. I like catkins. No sign of the male flowers yet.

Although it looks as if we are walking along a track, we are actually walking along the top of the large bore pipes taking water from the reservoir some thirty miles to Paignton.

More green. I won't apologise - I like it.

Looking down on the West Dart again. There was a buzzard hovering when I picked up the camera but it flew off before I could get it in shot. So, here's where it was.

A tribute to the stonewallers' art. Look at the different shaped boulders he's managed to incorporate in this wall.

There are many leats cutting across this part of the moor. Some relatively short ones serving local mines and a couple of much longer ones taking water some 10 - 15 miles to feed the woollen mills at Buckfastleigh. This is the longest of the longer ones - Holne Moor Leat - and it was built in the early 19th century. It's in pretty good condition but nowadays it ends by feeding its water into the Venford Reservoir.

Ferns grow anywhere. Hooray - I love ferns.

A Bronze Age hut circle within a large circular enclosure. This is a good time of year to spot these structures as the bracken isn't obscuring the features on the ground.

A landscape looking due east.

Another landscape towards the east, taken about 1 minute after the one above. It's the changing interplay of sun, shade and clouds that makes each walk on Dartmoor unique. Nothing stays the same for very long.