Good Friday on Dartmoor

As part of my training for The Big Walk I set out with friends on Good Friday to walk from Belstone on the edge of Dartmoor, in a 8 mile circular loop across Cosdon beacon on northern part of Dartmoor. After eating hot cross buns and coffee we set out from the Tors pub along the moss enchanted valley of the river Taw before reaching the edge  of Dartmoor. Small streams hung with icicles and the bitter wind was soon howling in our ears as we climbed ever higher to the 1,800 ft of Cosdon beacon. On the way up we stopped for our picnic lunch and I struggled to eat in the freezing wind in the lea of a stone wall.Just below the Beacon is a stoneage avenue and at the top a trig point and stone cairn.It is a bleak and wind swept place. As we headed down the Beacon we saw Dartmoor ponies feeding on the rough pasture and watched as the billows of smoke arose from the controlled Gorse fires. Hopping over streams we eventually arrived again at our starting point at the Tors pub. Time to head back home.

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A day of Reflection

After hiding by the fire from this weeks icy winds and snow it was good to be out on the road again for a bright frosty walk. It is only about five weeks until I set out on my "Long Walk" from Helston to Crediton. Training is therefore required to get my feet toughened up again. Today's training route heads through woodlands and eventually picks up the coastal path just after the Donkey sanctuary before descending to sunny Sidmouth. In the shady woods the ferns are 50 shades of green and I pass a dead badger who had a sinister smile on his face as he lays in the ditch at the side of the road.Heading out of Beer I pass Pecorama a place where model railways abound and take the footpath to Branscombe. The woods above Branscombe are magical with wild garlic and bluebells just starting to emerge. I take the path through the Donkey Sanctuary and my eyes are drawn to the trees with small plaques placed next to them. The messages on them tell stories about people and animals who were loved and are now dead,and departed to the "Saints Everlasting Rest". My eyes by now have tears in them and I have to endure a half a mile or so of this torture of those departed.
The coastal path is now reached and the footpath winds down into Sidmouth. I find somewhere for some soup and a coffee and catch the roller coaster bus home, weaving through narrow lanes and eventually arriving at Seaton. I feel somewhat travel sick but perhaps on reflection I should not have had that large ice cream!

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Walking in the Devon Mists

I am back in training again for my "Big Walk" from Helston to Crediton  (110 miles) which is part of my walk 1200 mile walk from Lands End to John O Groats. My training route involved a hilly walk from Seaton to Sidbury through the rolling hills of Devon. It is easy to forget how remote some of the Devon countryside is and  you see very few people when you get out into the wilder areas. The day was grey, misty and foggy, towards the sea and over the hills. After weeks of rain the cold easterly wind had eventually dried out the muddy paths and walking was pleasant but distinctly chilly .I met a stoat running down the road and he jumped into the hedge just as he reached me. Two Buzzards took off from hedges close to me as I headed down through the woods and lanes to Sidbury. After four hours of walking it was time for a well deserved lunch at the Blue Ball pub. If you would like to sponsor me in aid of Prostate Cancer UK  please click on the following link http://www.justgiving.com/Ian-Harris11