Walks discussed discussed
All the map reproductions on this page are under licence from the Ordnance Survey. Reproductions are from the Explorer OL 28 Dartmoor map and it is illegal to copy them in any form. Anyone who intends to carry out this walk using the directions given should be in possession of a current edition of that map and should be reasonably competent in navigation. The author bears no responsibility for the safety of walkers. Please read the important safety notice, if displayed, at the end of this article.
The walk that I am going to discuss is a linear route of the first section of a ‘crossing of Dartmoor’ walk, the second section has already been covered in the January 2009 site.
I apologise for publishing the walks in this sequence, but due to illness it was beyond my control.
The route starts at Okehampton Camp and goes to Dinger Tor, then via the Amicombe Valley to Sandy Ford, over the Amicombe Brook, and out to Lynch Tor and Limsboro Cairn. From here it crosses Cocks Hill and Peter Tavy Great Common to reach Great Mis Tor and then over North Hessary Tor to reach the destination of Princetown.
This is not a suitable walk for inexperienced walkers to attempt on their own. Apart from the section from Great Mis Tor to Princetown the walk is within the boundaries of the Dartmoor firing ranges, so please read the safety notice at the bottom of the page.
From whichever direction you are approaching Okehampton, drive into the centre to the traffic lights at the junction of Market Street and George Street and turn into George Street. At the next junction take the centre Station Road and at the following junction fork right into Tors Road. This road winds uphill to cross the Dartmoor Pony Steam railway track and the A30 and becomes Camp Road. Shortly after it turns sharp right to pass Fitz Well and St. Michael’s Bungalow to reach the ford by the moorgate. Park on the left road verge before the entrance to the camp on the right.
The walk starts at the moorgate by the Okehampton Camp (Also referred to as The Okehampton Battle Camp).
For those not familiar with the Okehampton area, opposite is a map that shows the approach to the camp more clearly than the Ordnance Survey OL28.
Leave the car park and pass onto the moor. Do not cross the ford, but take the track on the right, with the Moor Brook on your left hand.
When you arrive at Anthony Stile (signposted) take the track on your left and almost at once fork left (196º) to take the track leading towards West Mill Tor, ignoring any other tracks joining or leaving.
Ahead you will see West Mill Tor and diagonally on your left hand you will see Rowtor (124º), later do not turn left towards Rowtor.
Having passed the track that turns towards Rowtor, if you look to your left you will see, on the far side of the Black-a-ven Brook, the boundary of East Okement Farm, and beyond that Belstone Tor and possibly Cosdon Beacon.
Both Cosdon Beacon and Belstone Tor are interesting in their own right. Cosdon for its numerous archeological features and Belstone because it reputed to be part of the route of the St. Michael Line, a Ley line that originates at St. Michael’s Mount and runs to Norfolk. The Dartmoor section starts at Brent Tor Church (St. Michael’s) and runs through Lydford, Brat Tor, Yes Tor, Belstone Tor, and the Nine Maidens (a stone circle nearby).
Many people scoff at the theory of Ley lines, others firmly believe they exist. I mention the subject only as an aside interest.
Once you are past West Mill Tor, Yes Tor begins to appear on your right (around 236º). You will also see a track, forking off to the right leading towards it. Do not take this track but carry on in a southerly direction.
Okehampton Camp - Dinger Tor route.
The next joining track you will see runs back on your left in a north easterly direction. This runs down to join the military road that runs out from the Cullever Steps area to Okement Hill. You will notice the area that it crosses is called Curtery Clitters.
The term ‘clitters’ is used to describe a rock field of small to medium sized boulders that probably started life as a nearby tor, but over many years disintegrated through constant weather errosion. You may detect a stream running through the far side of the area, this is the Black-a-ven Brook
You will now find that you have the bulk of East Mill Tor on your left hand. If you had been looking over to the left shortly after passing West Mill Tor you would have seen the massive bulk of Oke Tor across the other side of the valley. This is one of a number of tors that lay on a ridge that runs from from the Steeperton Gorge area to Belstone Tor - a wonderful scenic walk.
There is now only one more track joining the one you are walking on, this will appear on your left hand and once you have passed it you will shortly arrive at Dinger Tor.
I love Dinger Tor - well not so much the tor itself, as the area it is in. Look below into the valley (225º) and you will see Lints Tor, and on its right hand side, further on in the valley the West Okement River. To the left of Lints Tor, rises the mass of Amicombe Hill and below it, out of sight, the Amicombe Brook running through the valley that you will shortly be walking through.
Years ago, my two sons and I did a cross Dartmoor walk from Okehampton Camp to Ivybridge. We started from the camp in the early evening and camped at Dinger Tor overnight - the brilliance of the stars was out of this world.
The following morning we set off towards Lints Tor and then skirted the front of Great Kneeset to reach the Amicombe valley. A small valley, which I suppose some would describe as innocuous, but to me it was a place of great beauty, with its long flowing grasses moving like waves in the wind and ranging in colour from a deep cream to almost brilliant white. This is true Dartmoor - a place of wonderful, if simple, sights and memories.
Okehampton Camp - Dinger Tor map1.
Okehampton Camp - Dinger Tor map2.
The track from Dinger Tor to Sandy Ford is not difficult, but to find the best crossing point of the Anicombe Brook may be. Because of this I have marked a suitable point with a red dot on the map.
Leaving Dinger tor it is best to aim for the 495 metre spot height, so walk down on a bearing of 189º to reach this point. This should take you nicely between the heads of two springs, which at times can be quite muddy.
Having reached this point it’s a simple matter to walk down to the crossing point on a bearing of 219º to cross the confluence of the West Okement River and the Anicombe Brook. Whatever you do don’t try to cross to the north of this point as the West Okement can be quite deep in places. Having crossed it’s best to walk diagonally uphill for a little distance to get clear of any muddy soft ground near the brooks bank.
There now follows a contour walk through the valley to reach Sandy Ford (by the way, on you own map you may have seen another Sandy Ford to the north west of Lints Tor. Don’t go to this one, thinking I’ve made some horrible mistake - I assure you I haven’t!).
The simple beauty of the Anicombe Valley I’ve already mentioned. If you do the walk I just hope that you get the right conditions to see it at its best.
There is only one slight obstacle on the walk through this valley, and that occurs as the height of the hill above you on your right begins to decrease. You will see on the map a spring running down to the brook. At lower levels this can be quite wet and boggy to cross, so it pays to walk diagonally uphill before you reach it in order to clear its head, or at least avoid the worst of the boggy ground.
It’s now just a question of walking down in a southerly direction to find Sandy Ford a little to the south east of the remains of the Tinner’s hut.
Once you reach the ford, look across to the east and you will see the massive bulk of Fur Tor. This tor is one of the largest and deepest in the moor.
On three of its sides it has extremely steep hundred metre drops, covered in clitter and larger boulders. The fourth side is a relatively flat ridge coming in from the south east, but this can be wet ands boggy in all but very dry weather.
Personally I consider the best approach to be from Devil’s Tor, by the Beardown Man and north of Beadown Tors. If you walk due north, with a few minor deviations you can pass between the Tavy, West Dart and East Dart heads. This leaves a short ridge walk to the northwest to arrive at the tor. This may look easy on the map, but the ground underfoot is very rough and the going far from easy. However the effort is well worth it.
The crossing at Sandy Ford should be easy unless the brook is in spate, but even then the bottom is fine sandy shingle to give a good footing. You will find this a good point for a coffee, or whatever you carry. The lads and I had a small kettle which we filled from the brook and boiled up a Gaz burner. Despite the fact that there are cattle around at times, we survived and lived to tell the tale. So providing you boil any water well for a few minutes don’t worry - enjoy your coffee.
Dinger Tor - Sandy Ford route.
Dinger Tor - Sandy Ford map 1.
Dinger Tor - Sandy Ford map 2.
The next stage of the walk is (or what should be) a fairly pleasant trek across pleasant open moorland, with good views across the surrounding area.
Head up over the Meads on a bearing of 200º. This will bring you up onto what will almost be ridge walk - there are a few ups and downs, but nothing out of the ordinary, just keep walking in a generally southerly direction. Across on the right you will get odd glimpses of the high ground around Tavy Cleave and for a while you will still see Fur Tor on your left, but this will soon be obscured by high ground nearer to you.
After about a kilometre you should reach a group of military tracks. It is just as well to ignore these as they don’t lead to your destination. Anyway, by now you should have the tor and cairn in sight, so make straight for them. As you reach the tor, look down on your right to see South Common Plantation, a perfect little circle of trees near Bagga Tor.
The combination of the tor and cairn is recognised as a Tor Cairn. Although little archaeology research has has been carried out into such groups English Heritage has recently defined them as “ Circular banks of stone and turf, sometimes with a ditch, surrounding a natural outcrop of rock, usually a tor or boulder. The functions of tor cairns is not precisely known but they may be considered to be religious ceremonial sites dating back to the early and middle Bronze Age”.
This theory fits in very nicely with the fact that 2½ kilometres away on Langstone Moor is a large stone circle. This circle is very close to the track you will follow next to Great Mis Tor, for that reason I have included it in the map section ‘Limsboro Cairn - Great Mis Tor.
Sandy Ford - Lynch Tor & Limsboro Cairn map.
Sandy Ford - Lynch Tor & Limsboro Cairn route.
This is the penultimate section of the walk. Once you reach Great Mis Tor it’s downhill all the way (well nearly all).
Leave Limsboro Cairn and walk due south over Wapsworthy Common to reach White Barrow. This is one of the many burial mounds on Dartmoor, probably dating back to the Bronze Age.
The path that you now stand on (or have already crossed), is the Lych Way, an old burial path from medieval times. Here the dead were carried from tenements of the Forest of Dartmoor to Lydford Church for burial. Lydford Church being the parish church for the Forest.
Now carry on walking due south down Cocks Hill towards Great Mis Tor, which you have now had in view for a considerable time. As you progress towards the valley below, you will pass by Dead Lake, a spring, which as its name suggests is at times dormant.
When you arrive at the River Walkham, which you must cross, it may be necessary to move further upstream to accomplish this. Dependant on the state of the river, it’s possible that you may have to walk eastwards to the point where it flows down from its head that lies to the northwest of Lynch Tor. At this point it is usually possible to cross without having to wade!
Crossing accomplished, the next task is to reach Great Mis Tor.
The secret is to keep on Greena Ball and avoid Mistor Marsh, although the latter is often negotiable with comparative ease. There now commences the ascent to the tor, which is probably best carried out by a combination of contour walking and climbing, bearing in mind that whichever route is chosen a rock field exists all the way to the top. If you do decide on the climbing option, go for the north facing side, as the rock field is considerably less dense than it is further round to the west.
Limboro Cairn - Great Mis Tor route.
Limsboro Cairn - Great Mis Tpr map.
Great Mis Tor - Princetown map.
The final stage is very easy walking, so first walk round to the back of the tor and find the flagstaff where the red danger flag flies if live firing is taking place.
Now look down the hill and you will see a track leading down to the corner of a large enclosure. Take this track and when you reach the enclosure corner, carry on walking down following the enclosure wall on your left hand. Pass through the Rundlestone area of buildings to emerge onto the B.3357 Tavistock road.
Cross the road and climb the ladder stile to pass through private land on the public footpath which emerges onto moorland by Rundlestone Tor. Carry on walking uphill and cross the service road just before you reach the transmitter buildings. You now reach North Hessary Tor on your left. If you feel so inclined, spare a few moments to climb on it and look at the magnificent views over the north moor.
From here just walk down the path, following it into Princetown and the end of this walk. You have walked a total of 15 miles (24 kilometres).
There are some good pubs in Princetown, so may I make the suggestion that at least you have a pint of Dartmoor Ale, if not a meal, before you start the final leg of 14 miles to Ivybridge!
Approaching the camp from Okehampton centre/
To check range firing times –
Great Mis Tor - Princetown route.
Safety Notice: The majority of the walk takes place within the confines of the north moor firing ranges. For this reason ensure that you check if firing is to take place on the day you intend to walk. This applies both to the Okehampton Range and the Merrivale Range. If firing is not taking place the ranges are perfectly safe to walk on, providing you take these simple precautions. Do not pick up, kick, or step on anything that looks remotely like military ordnance. Provided you look where you are walking, the firing ranges are perfectly safe places to walk through. The link below takes you to the range firing times.
Thank you for reading this page. If you try this walk I hope that you enjoy it
Mireman.
