How it all began

History was made on April 21st 1991, when whoisthechallenger took their first steps letterboxing. We had walked on Dartmoor once before, with a damp stroll near Avon Dam.

It was seen as a means of getting out as a family, with exercise and good value day out in mind that drew us to Dartmoor. A work colleague was a keen letterboxer and recommended it to us.

It was this colleague who provided us with a charity walk cluesheet, and, with folding mirror compass in hand and none of WITC dressed correctly, we set out over Barn Hill (as most people do when they start). It was embarrassment all round when another boxer told us to move when we had sat down for lunch in the hollow unexpectectly also containing one of the charity walk.

During the day, we found 5 unregistered boxes, which we didn't count since we thought it could not be counted towards our 100 club membership. One of WITC worked at the Treby Arms in Sparkwell, now closed, and this topped our day's total up to 11.

Laughable today - a walk around Heckwood and Pew Tors and only finding 11 boxes...

In the absence of a photocopier to put a copy of the map in our album, we hand drew a map - a method which lasted about a year. Registered numbers were written on the stamps, which we maintained until we found more word of mouth boxes than catalogue boxes. Arrows indicated where on the walk we found them, a method which survived about a month!

It was a simpler time, and its certain that there are more boxes on the moor now than then.