Walk on East Bodmin Moor

It's always a pleasure to walk with our friends J and A and we alternate the choice of route. This week, it was their choice and we headed up onto East (Bodmin) Moor. We were expecting winds, rain and mud and, as it turned out, we had neither of the first two and very little of the third. It's a part of Bodmin Moor that few people visit and, as for every other time we've been in this area, we came across no other walkers.

Our circular route started in the lane just up from the hamlet of Tregenna and from there we headed straight up to Fox Tor. From there, we headed to Carey Tor, via the East Moor ring cairn and Graymare Rock. Then we dropped down to Stonaford by footpaths and lanes. Tolcarne, Clitters, Newton and Trevague were the next points we walked through before we reached Tregenna and back up the lane to our starting point. We clocked 6.5 miles and, as the elevation profile shows, it had a few challenging stretches. Open moor, leafy lanes, footpaths and ancient tracks: what's not to like?

Apple blossom in the hedgerow. Whenever we come across these, seemingly miles from habitation, I always wonder how the seeds got there originally. An apple core tossed away by a farm or mine worker? Or maybe from a passing car?

The only other person we came across: a farmer out checking his cattle on a horse. Given the rocky terrain, this has got to be better than a quad bike. The perspective on this image does not really show how steep the land was at this point: he was just dropping off the top of Fox Tor. And that's why we were surprised that the rider wasn't wearing any sort of safety equipment.

A panoramic view to the south-west from Fur Tor.

The granite outcrop that is Carey Tor.

Carey Tor with a bronze-age hut circle in the foreground.

Tolcarne Farm: a granite gatepost slotted to take slats of wood to keep stock in or out.

Tolcarne Farm: granite mill trough, used for crushing apples for cider. It was probably horse-powered.

The track leading away from Tolcarne Farm and onto the moor.

This remote dwelling at Clitters still has no running water, electricity or internal toilet/bathroom. It cannot be let as a dwelling and can only be occupied for up to 10 weeks a year. It has been licenced to the Hazlewood family since the 1930s. The family are related to Kate Mackenzie who was the tenant at Stonaford Manor on the Trebartha Estate between 1927 and 1993. The Hazlewoods do not want any changes. This is an excellent solution for the conservation authorities, as the dwelling is retained in its original condition as a remote C18 farmhouse. unaltered and unspoilt. It is unusual to find a house of this type plan without extensions and alterations. It really has a great 'spirit of place' feeling and it would be wonderful to be able to see what it looks like inside.

An impressive love heart carved into the bark of a tree in the garden at Clitters. Who were CAB x IRB?  The letters and the heart were picked out in gold paint so does that signify that the carving was in celebration of a Golden Wedding anniversary? Let's hold that thought.

An interesting 19th century porch, incorporating some hefty pieces of slate.

Rear view of Clitters. The three upright pillars of granite were now functioning as posts for a washing line. It's doubtful that this was their original purpose. Were they part of a barn? To the left was a toilet/earth closet and what once was, by the looks of it, a piggery.

A dinosaur in the woods adjoining Clitters, with a granite marker in the front.

Was it a grave marker to Naomi, possibly a family pet? Seems a strange place to bury a body. But, in this remote part of Bodmin Moor, nothing would surprise me.

Even the lanes are a pleasure to walk along. Floriferous banks, dappled sunshine and no traffic.

There are a number of rivers that start in this part of the moor and run southwards to join the sea via the Tamar. I've marked our approximate position in red on the map above. We were at the 'top' end of the Lynher, which runs for about 20 miles before its estuary feeds into the Hamoaze, opposite the dockyard in Devonport. A couple of friends have recently traced the Lynher from 'source to sea' and Mary Atkinson has written of their travels in her blog. You can find it here and I can commend it to you.

And here we are crossing the upper reaches of the Lynher by way of a clapper bridge. The name 'clapper' is derived from the Anglo-Saxon word “cleaca” which means “bridging the stepping stones”, suggesting that the first clapper bridges might have been stone slabs laid across the top of existing stepping stones. Seems logical. And I finish with a short clip of a cuckoo we heard quite close to Clitters.