MInce Pie and Mulled Wine Pre-Xmas Walk 2022

Time for our annual Mince Pie and Mulled Wine Walk, a pre-Xmas ritual. This time we hit lucky with the weather and had a very pleasant circular walk from Merrivale. And the Dartmoor Inn was a very friendly venue at the end. We can recommend them.

This is a walk that we've done several times previously and it never disappoints, whatever the season. And we've done them all. It comes in at just under 6 miles but has enough 'up' to make you feel that you've had a good stretch. Beginning and ending in Merrivale, it goes through Long Ash Woods, drops to Daveytown and then heads up onto the moor alongside Criptor. From there we meet the old Princetown to Yelverton railway line and follow this for a while until we get to the other side of King's Tor. From there, we head across the down for the stone rows and thence back to Merrivale. Scenery, history and good company. All the makings of a very pleasant day's trek.

Looking back on our starting point, the Dartmoor Inn at Merrivale. We'll be finishing there for post-walk, pre-Xmas refreshments. Great Staple Tor looms in the distance and old workings of the Merrivale Granite Quarry can be seen to the top left. 

A stream formed on the slopes of North Hessary Tor and tumbling down through Long Ash Woods. Water is being taken off for consumption elsewhere, probably nearby Long Ash Farm. The short video at the end adds sound to the scene. The stream feeds into the River Walkham further down the hill.

Long Ash Woods, north facing and doesn't get too much direct sun. Hence the wonderfully stark display of moss-covered rocks. 

I suspect that this was an old boundary wall to keep cattle from the steeper reaches of the hillside, Lots of granite around for the construction of these walls and all that was needed was some skilled, and cheap, labour to get the job done.

Vixen Tor across the Walkham Valley. A tor with a chequered history of private ownership versus public access. Since around 2020, the landowner has prevented access because of concerns over potential liability if someone has an accident. But this concern apparently can be simply addressed by a sign with words to the effect 'You enter at your won risk and no liability for accidents will be accepted'. This solution, sadly, seems to be too simple for all those involved.

I just love this gate and it's one of my favourite spots on Dartmoor. We come out of the green-bedecked woods and then enter a much more open stretch of moorland. It's like a portal into another world; the cupboard into Narnia and the world beyond. And that's Dora the Dog waiting to be transported. On the other side of the gate, she becomes a human.

Vixen Tor middle left and the three Staple Tors in the distance - from the left, Great, Middle and Little, although you might have difficulty making out Little Staple Tor because it is, mmm, little. Just a jumble of granite at a distance but quite substantial close up.

These instructions indicate a heart-warmingly high level of trust. It also saves the delivery drivers a half-mile trek along an extremely rutted track.

A footprint in the mud. The largest pad was about 2 cm long and all pads had a 'bubbly' appearance. My money goes on it being from a corvid of some sort - crow, magpie or raven? Or is from the Three-toed Monster of Criptor?

A couple of the spoil heaps from the quarries on and around King's Tor. There were four main quarries - Ingra, Swell, Foggintor and Merrivale. All closed now - Foggintor in the early 1900s, Swelltor in the 1930s and Merrivale in 1997. It would be hard to imagine what is must have been like with them all working. And even harder to imagine the number of people who would have lived and worked in the area. Enough to fill a decent sized school with children, that's a fact.

Yet another view of Vixen Tor, this time from the old railway track as it goes around King's Tor

Five tors on view in this shot - from the left, Roos, Great Staple, Middle Staple, Little Staple and Cox. We've walked them all and we might very well be heading up there again fairly soon.

Low lying clouds over Great Mis Tor. Although we had lots of blue sky on our way around, there were times when the clouds looked quite threatening. But nothing came of it and the weather was in our favour for the duration.

An even more dramatic sky over Great Mis Tor with one of the old road guideposts in the foreground. The posts were initially placed in the early 1700s, after an act of parliament in 1696 which empowered justices to erect guide stones where required across the moor. They marked the route between Tavistock and Ashburton and have an incised T on one side and guess what on the other? Yes, it's an A. I'm not sure how many of these guideposts still remain but the old route they marked crosses some of the wildest parts of the south moor.

Two long stone rows dominate the Merrivale prehistoric landscape.  Side by side on this gently sloping down are the remains of a Bronze Age settlement and a complex of ritual sites, including the stone rows, a stone circle, standing stones, kysts and a number of cairns. The monuments were probably built over a long period, estimated at between about 2500 BC and 1000 BC.

The two standing stones at the western end of the rows. The best time to visit is when there is no-one else around.

Almost back at the Dartmoor Inn and this shot looks up the Walkham Valley, with a tree obscuring Great Mis Tor. In the middle right can be seen the remains of the embankment which was intended to provide a railway branchline from the Merrivale quarry to the Princetown line. It was never completed and it is just there, going nowhere.

And the soundscape of some running water to relax you. You deserve it.

And a little more from the stream we had to cross as we made our way passed Criptor.