Hiking in Dartmoor National Park | Great Links Tor | Black-a-tor Copse

Dartmoor National Park has always been in the back of my mind. Whenever anyone mentioned hiking, it would always find its way into the conversation. This April I got the chance to finally see it with my own eyes.

Once I left the train station in Okehampton I went southeast towards the Nine Maidens Stone Circle, a burial chamber from the Bronze Age. Legends say that there were once nine maidens who danced on Sabbath so they were damned to be cast into stone and dance every day at noon, for eternity. Locals are even weary of anyone trying to restore the monument and fear that meddlers will be cursed.

The weather started to change and I pushed forward towards Yes Tor and High Willhays, passing many waterfalls along the way. High Willhays is the highest point in Dartmoor and Southern England, standing at 621 metres high. As I reached the top it started to rain and I knew I had to quickly pitch my tent. I was soaked by the time I had finished but I was grateful to have a warm shelter where I could change my clothes and go to sleep. The storm intensified before it died out and the temperatures went below zero. I woke up to ice on my tent and 56 mph winds. Shooting the sunrise was beautiful, but incredibly painful, as I had forgotten my gloves and the wind felt like knives slashing my hands.

Once the sun thawed the ice and I could pack my tent I left towards Black-a-tor Copse, one of the three high altitude oak woodlands in Dartmoor National Park. The high humidity and low pollution are perfect conditions for many species of moss and lichen that grow here, some on the verge of extinction in other areas around Europe. I was enchanted by the beauty of this place and the birdsong that filled the air, accompanied only by the constant murmur of the river.

My stop for the afternoon was Great Links Tor, which was chronicled by William Crossing, who thought it looked like a castle when viewed from certain angles. There are however two theories with regards to its name, which are both quite different from the writer’s perspective. One suggests that it comes from the long extinct in these areas lynx, while the other questions whether or not “links” is derived from the Celtic “lenneck”, meaning “marshy”. I had an incredible time exploring the rock formation on such a beautiful sunny day, climbing to the top and witnessing the vastness of Dartmoor. I waited patiently for the sunset and it did not disappoint. Stunning red light filled the air, while our star was shining under a blanket of thick clouds.

The next morning I woke up to the fabled Dartmoor fog, which made the landscape mysterious and bleak, but I went on my way towards the Meldon Reservoir. Right as I was approaching Okehampton I passed through the most enchanted place: hills full of bluebells and old oak trees. I must have spent an hour there just trying different compositions.

After three days of hiking I finished the trip in a pub in Okehampton. I was sitting at a table in the back when I looked at the picture on the wall next to me. It was a copy of Turner’s “Okehampton on the Okement”. I realised the castle he depicted should not be too far away so I shortened my stay, ate quickly and went in search of the ruins. The castle built by Baldwin FitzGilbert between 1068 and 1086 stood majestically on a hill, bathed in sunlight and surrounded by ravens. The home of the Earls of Devon was destroyed by Henry VIII in 1538 and left a ruin. I almost missed my train trying to get this photograph and I had to run to catch it. Once onboard though, I couldn’t stop smiling at the thought that my favourite painter had captured the same castle exactly 200 years before me, in 1824.

Part of my Treasure project which aims to raise awareness and funds for the 10 defunded national parks in England. For more information please visit: https://www.andreistance.com/treasure

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