Monday, 4th April 2011

Our week of letterboxing routes continued today with a brand new walk just released. Beginning at Holming Beam and looping the Cowsic Valley.

To begin, and avoiding the brisk wind, we headed upstream to Broad Hole before climbing to Lydford Tor on the East side of the river. As with Saturday, the views were spectacular thanks to our lofty position and the clear, well washed atmosphere.

Turning North towards Devils Tor. Once the un-named outcrop had passed by, Beardown Man came into view. At 3-and-a-half metres high, its not Dartmoor's tallest menhir, but it is in splendid isolation. Built in the Bronze Age - purpose unknown.

Human influence on the moor has been maintained for thousands of years. It continued today in fact, as after passing Conies Down Tor, and ascending towards Black Dunghill, we watched the assembly of a tent from afar. As the MOD quad bike sped away, we approached with caution and curiosity to see targets had been set up (as pictured).

The Merrivale Range is closed for both day and night live military firing now until the weekend, but it appears that the enemy, at least, are ready for action...

The day was a success for us. 9 miles covered and 27 boxes found.

Saturday, April 2nd 2011

When looking for a place to letterbox this weekend, the missing piece of our recent "Grey Links" walk was our priority. The recent good weather looked set to break any day, and there was still quite a route to complete. The walk was extended to Stenga Tor and off we went.

Having completed most of the early and late sections of this walk on our jaunt round here last month, we headed straight for Green Tor and Amicombe Hill. A decent Saturday's weather saw dozens of Ten Tors teams out training - their fluorescent yellow jacket wearing leaders unmissable.

Across the Rattlebrook and we joined the convoys of Ten Tor trainees filing towards Fur Tor. The scenic and yet barren wander below the ridge past Amicombe Hole and Lints Tor followed. The crowds melted away and we had the shelter from the wind and the whole scene to ourselves. Our target was Kitty Tor where we had plenty of boxes to search for.

We did our best to avoid the gaze of the crowds who rested at Kitty Tor's huts after their exhausting climb up from the West Okement. Meanwhile we descended to Stenga Tor for considerably less successful letterboxing. The suddenly bitter wind in our faces as we headed West to Gren Tor reminded us that the day was rapidly ending. We passed the newly erected tents of the Ten Torers at the River Lyd. Set for a breezy night out.

Back to the car with 12 more miles under our belts and 23 boxes found.

Dartmoor has been going up in flames in recent days...

...according to the DNPA website. I'm reasonably certain that no WITC blog readers are Dartmoor Commoners with the rights to swale the moorland. However, just in case, and for the benefit of everyone else, we dedicate this blog entry to the National Park Authority's Swaling Code of Conduct.

The Legal Requirements

The burning, not only of heather and grass, but also gorse, bracken and bilberry, is controlled by the Heather and Grass, etc (Burning) Regulations 1986.

Burning is only allowed between: 1 October - 15 April in upland areas. The National Park Authority recommends no burning after 31 March to prevent harm to nesting birds.

Outside these dates burning is allowed only under licence issued by the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA).

Permission of the owner must be gained.

At least 24 hours

but no more than 7 days notice of intent to burn must be given in writing to the owners and occupiers of the land concerned and persons in charge of adjacent land.

You must not start burning heather, grass, gorse, bracken or bilberry between sunset and sunrise.

You must ensure that sufficient people and equipment are on hand to control the burn.

You must take all reasonable precautions to prevent injury or damage.

You must not cause a nuisance through the creation of smoke. This is an offence under the Clean Air Act 1956.

You must contact English Nature if burning on a Site of Special Scientific Interest.

Under the Dartmoor Commoners' Council's Regulations, arising from the Dartmoor Commons Act 1985, no person or local Commoners' Association shall burn moorland where heather is present on the commons exceeding an area of 9000 square metre at intervals of less than 12 years, nor where the distance between burns in any one year is less than 150 metres. No Person or local Commoners' Association shall burn moorland where dead grass, bracken or gorse is present on any common land unit exceeding 50 acres (20 hectares) or 25% of the area of that common land unit which ever shall be the less and such burning shall take place at intervals of no less than 3 years.

Points to Remember

Planning

Burn in accordance with an approved long-term Fire Plan for your area, drawn up to meet agricultural and environmental objectives.

The Fire Plan should include a programme of essential burning on a sound rotation basis and include the creation of firebreaks where necessary.

Plan individual burns sensibly by relating size of area to manpower availability, safety requirements and forecasted weather predictions.

Plan to avoid burning at weekends or public holidays if possible.

Timing

Burn when there is a gentle breeze.

Make an early start.

Stop and re-assess if conditions change.

Place

Choose with care the best spot to start the fire, to ensure the fire doesn't spread too quickly.

Burn small areas at a time, paying particular attention to the optimum width of the burn.

Firebreaks

Use firebreaks, choosing natural boundaries for the burn wherever possible.

Control

Have sufficient manpower and equipment. Appoint one person to be in charge.

Landscape and Wildlife

Take account of wildlife habitats. Avoid spoiling the landscape and environment.

Neighbours

Keep them informed and take account of their property and interests.

Public Safety

Avoid creating hazards to road users and the public.

Prosecution

A breach of the Heather and Grass etc (Burning) Regulations 1986 may on conviction result in a fine of up to £1000.

Source: Dartmoor National Park Authority (http://www.dartmoor-npa.gov.uk/lookingafter/laf-landmanagement/laf-swaling/swaling-code-of-conduct)

The Forest

'Gaps in forest' and moor gates. LH and RH edges. Right up there with the TV mast is another vital man-made feature seemingly purpose built for bearings. Fernworthy Forest. It is a familiar part of the skyline for much of the northern and central moor. The dark shape and sweeping curves hugging the horizon.

On our most recent walk, whoisthechallenger found themselves up close and personal with the boundaries of the forest. Its not an area overwhelmed with letterboxes, but its a great area to explore - full of hidden corners.

Our route took us to the West and South of the forest above Teignhead Farm and across the South Teign River. Climbing to White Ridge and Assycombe Hill and descending to Hurston Ridge. To our right, the rolling, hazy landscape of moorland. To our left, a 40 foot high barrier of Spruce. On a day like today - with strong winds forecast - tall, dark green walls finally given texture, movement and noise.

Owned by the State funded Forestry Commission (for now at least...) The history of the Forestry Commision began some 16 miles away at Eggesford in North Devon where their first woodland was seeded in December 1919. Fernworthy was planted - as with many of the FC forests - shortly after World War 1. After the war, timber stocks were so depleted and demand so high that the commission was given a great deal of freedom to acquire and plant trees under the Forestry Act.

A wander around the coniferous forest at Fernworthy seems to support the idea that the Foresters and Foremen were determined and ruthless people. Ancient artifacts, farmsteads and River valleys were not going to stop them. They have always had their critics, but the recent discussions about selling off forests to the private sector has reminded a lot of people about how much we treasure these wooded areas.

Image source: http://www.richkni.co.uk/dartmoor/whitehorse.htm

Grey Links

On our most recent walk, WITC headed back out into familiar North West territory. Great Links Tor, Rattlebrook Hill and Bleak House were our primary objectives.

The weather itself seemed perfectly greyscale. The showers arrived late in the day, and brought a swift conclusion to proceedings. WITC's eternal, end-of-the-day mantra of' 'just one more box' was still repeated and duly ignored.

Our route passed South of Brat Tor and up to Rattlebrook Hill flagpole. WITC passed by here once before a long time ago en-route to a wild camp at Fur Tor.

Descending to the Rattle Brook and the ruins of Bleak House aka Dunnagoat Cottage, we were a bit surprised to see walls still standing! This after reading a few years back about significant collapses and 'days numbered' for Dartmoor's ruins.

The house was a home to the manager of the West of England Compressed Peat Company. A branch off the London and South West Railway from Bridestowe wound its way up here. It must have been an astonishing investment of labour and money, and for little reward. The industry was very short lived, and despite several attempts to restart operations, was doomed to fail. Only when the Rattlebrook tramline closed in 1931, and British Army destroyed the

dangerously unstable remains of the Works in the 1960s did Mother Nature firmly regain her grip.

It looked like our success was about to be cut short too. We had made it to Hunt Tor before the rains came, and we hastily retreated back to the car. A pleasing day though: 5 miles and 17 boxes found.

Image source: http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WM6TT8_Bleak_House_West_Dartmoor_Devon_UK

Save Castle Drogo

As Englands 'newest' castle, it is a fascinating place and an iconic and important location for Dartmoor. Castle Drogo even has a few letterboxes to its credit. However a new fundraising campaign has stated "Help or its game over".

With this in mind, WITC thought we should lend our support to the National Trust's campaign to save Castle Drogo in its latest battle for survival. If you have missed the news, Edwin Lutyen's building is in danger due to its flat roofed construction and poor state of repair. The windows, pointing and roof are leaking and it will require a super-human effort and a lot of fundraising to make it good again.

On Friday February 11th, a public appeal began with the intention of raising £1.5million as part of a larger sum required to make permanent repairs and save Castle Drogo forever. Please check out the support website:

http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/main/w-trust/w-support/w-donations/w-appeals_and_campaigns/w-donate-castledrogo.htm

The future of Dartmoor letterboxing

Welcome to the fortune teller! Come in, and gaze into the crystal ball... This is the future of letterboxing...

It will begin with a makeover - as most things do. Adopting initials like DLB (Dartmoor Letter Boxing) will make it seem fresh and inviting. The 100 club will go online. Your unique membership number will grant you access to online cluesheets and catalogue. Meets will be more frequent and more local. With more online communication, unmaintained boxes will be harder to forgive. With more local meets, the word of mouth clue scene will blossom. The younger generation will adopt letterboxing. Geocaching will be kept at bay again. 10 figure grid references will vanish so to banish the LBT (letterbox thief). Stamping up and posting on postcards make a comeback in honour of James Perrott and the pioneering days of letterboxing...

Is all this impossible? I don't think so. I've seen the future. Its LBNA (Letterboxing North America). Since our hobby transferred to the New World some 13 years ago, it might have experienced a few amendments and alterations (Not many bearings here!), but I think we can learn a lot from them. WITC has yet to try American letterboxing, but are due to visit the the USA and attempt it later this year!