Bodmin Moor is a site of great archaeolological interest, with its Bronze Age stone circles and less ancient reminders of tin mining. Wherever you look, you can see remains of the engine houses that once provided great wealth for the area.
Friday, September 21, 2012
Another country walk
We are lucky to live within easy reach of three moors: Exmoor, Bodmin moor and Dartmoor. Each moor has its distinctive landscape and character and literary associations. I can't walk on Dartmoor without conjuring images of Sherlock Holmes and The Hound of the Baskervilles; Exmoor evokes memories of my ten year old self being gripped yet terrified by Lorna Doone and Bodmin takes me back to fourth form at school and Daphne du Maurier's Jamaica Inn. There are less disturbing literary associations but these are the ones that linger in my mind, along with tales of escaped prisoners and thick, bewildering fog.
Having recovered from our trek along the St Clether nature trail, we intrepid walkers headed next day for Bodmin Moor where, I'm pleased to say, we spent a morning uninterrupeted by smugglers and beasts. The only living creatures we met, apart from a few other walkers, were ponies and cattle.
and a magnificent flash of of horses and riders galloping crossing the horizon.
Bodmin Moor is a site of great archaeolological interest, with its Bronze Age stone circles and less ancient reminders of tin mining. Wherever you look, you can see remains of the engine houses that once provided great wealth for the area.
We headed for The Hurlers, one of the Bronze Age stone circles on the moor.
Their origin and purpose may be lost in the mysteries of time but Millie and Ben found them very useful for a game of hide and seek.
Every intrepid walker should be sure to have a guide. Ours was armed with a compass and a whistle to be blown loudly and frequently when one of us strayed from the path!
Bodmin Moor is a site of great archaeolological interest, with its Bronze Age stone circles and less ancient reminders of tin mining. Wherever you look, you can see remains of the engine houses that once provided great wealth for the area.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Is there quicksand on these moors? Are there areas you must avoid, and are they marked?
ReplyDeleteThere isn't any quicksand, Nan, but there are some very boggy areas so you have to watch where you step or you could get very wet and muddy. there are clearly marked paths and tracks. Of course we were lucky enough to have our guide with us, complete with very loud whistle!
Delete