Dartmoor

Dartmoor is an incredible place — full of mystery and wild beauty. We had only half a day to explore it, and I still regret that we had not spent more time there.

Since we were coming from the east, the closest attraction was the Haytor Rocks, a hill with a big granite formation on the top of it. The hike to the top of the hill is easy in terms of physical exercise, but it was nevertheless tiring because we had to navigate through big piles of cow dung. Finally, when we reached the top, Alex wanted to climb up the granite rocks. We circled it to find a suitable way up to the top, but I started to have doubts and decided that it was too risky. The wind was too strong and I could not keep my camera from shaking, plus I was afraid that it might not survive the experience.

However, there was a somewhat smaller rock formation nearby, and Alex happily climbed it. I was not as adventurous. Here he is — my king of the hill.

After Haytor Rocks, we headed to Hound Tor. We wanted to see it mostly because it inspired Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in The Hound of the Baskervilles. Hound Tor is not as big and imposing as Haytor but it is very picturesque, and I can definitely see it as a backdrop for the dramatic events of the novel.

On our way from Hound Tor, just on the side of the road, we saw a grave mound. The place did not look like a cemetery and we did not spot any other graves nearby. It turned out that this is Jay’s Grave, named after Kitty Jay, a suicide victim who died in the late 18th century and was buried outside consecrated ground on a crossroads.

England roads in general are quite narrow (excluding highways of course), but Dartmoor roads are in a class of their own. The two-way road below can barely accommodate a single car. My side of the car was constantly in danger of hitting the hedge. Several times when we encountered an oncoming car we had to back up to find a spot wide enough to pull over.

By late afternoon, we had made it to Chagford, a tiny town in the northeast part of Dartmoor. The town is very old, its written history started in Middle Ages, but a community in this place existed for 4000 years. We ate at a local pub (it was our first pub experience) and were the only tourists there. I decided that it was the right moment to try English ale, but I had no idea what kind I wanted… No help from Alex there, since he knows less about ales than me, and all I know is that they might be lighter or darker in color. In the end, I asked for a darker ale, and it turned out to be very light in terms of alcohol content.

On our way back to the car park, on one of the streets, I saw a small stand that looked more like a kitchen cabinet. On the glass door of that cabinet was a sign Delicious Cakes, and inside I saw something that looked like small pound cakes. No people around, no “sales associates”, nothing. But I was not ready to give up on the Delicious Cakes. I remembered that in Lacock I saw a couple of stands with flowers and herbs without sales persons but with the directions on where to put money if you want to buy something. Aha, I thought, it must be something similar! And as soon as I opened the door I saw a box with some money already there and the instruction to put 3 pounds if you want to buy a cake. Luckily, we had 3 pounds and got a lemon cake. Alex was smitten by my knowledge of English sales practices and the unbelievably delicious cake. Seriously, it was so good that we could not stop eating it. By the time we got back to the car park we only had a small piece left.

That day we saved the best for last, a hike to Scorhill Stone Circle. The circle is a Bronze Age construction dated around 8500 BC. It is only 3 miles from Chagford, but the road to the site is very narrow with overgrown trees and shrubs that reduce the visibility. Nevertheless, the road is absolutely beautiful in a haunted sort of way, as if it led to a forgotten castle where a princess sleeps in a crystal coffin. A very inspirational road.

The picture below shows the place where the hike to Scorhill begins. There is a small creek with clear water nearby, and based on the sign, they use that water for consumption.

Scorhill may not be as big as Stonehenge or Avebury circles but it is so secluded, so naturally part of the landscape and so authentic that you immediately want to start worshipping some pagan god during a summer solstice festival, ride a horse around the stones, or at least participate in some sort of a wild activity…

Next morning we had to go further to the southeast of England but we liked Dartmoor so much so we decided to take the longer road to see some more of the park.

We stopped at the Postbridge Clapper Bridge, it is a 13th century bridge made of flat slabs of stone supported by stone piers. Some 800 years later, it is still a functioning bridge, and you can walk across it — we did!

We had to stop to take a shot of Dartmoor Prison because it was referenced in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s The Hound of the Baskervilles, our beloved mystery. 🙂 That is where the escaped prisoner who hid on the moor must have run away from.