r/dartmoor

from my early morning hike in June 2021. Must revisit! Think i’m starting to like Reddit 😄

Another evening, another camping fail. 😔
Given I was pushing it for time last weekend, I thought I'd make it more challenging this weekend and arrived an hour later, with surprisingly, the same result!

Despite that 'twas a lovely evening and with the sun going down earlier (and me poking about), watching night slip across South Hams as the stars brightened was spectacular.

Parked in Avonwick, walked through the lanes out to Wrangaton > poked about on the southern tip for a bit > Wrangaton > Avonwick.

20km walk. +/- 550mtr gain. ~20℃ sunny, very gentle breeze to start with - dropping to ~15℃ and (measured) 15-18kmh / 28kmh gusts on the top, back to ~18℃ and very gentle breeze back in the Avon valley.

Nobody else on the hill, but I was hyper-sensitive about pitch location and hyper-sensitive to the wind last night - so despite much faffing around looking for a spot to either pitch up or to just bivvy, I gave up (again) and walked back down to Avonwick.

So we've taken my daughter camping a few times starting when she was one, but now at the grand old age of 3, I took her on her first wild camping trip to Dartmoor. I also took my brother in law and his partner with us, which was also their first time.

Daughter was absolutely buzzing the entire hike, super excited by the sheep, loved jumping from rock to rock along the path, and when we stopped at the top she was halfway up the actual tor before I'd even put my bag down.

Then once camp was set, she treated us all (including any other campers close enough to hear, it was a popular spot last night) to about 30 minutes of nursery rhymes before falling asleep!

The only thing I would do differently next time would be to bring more layers for her, and arrive a lot earlier.

Another approach to a north east Dartmoor Tor. 📷mine from late September ‘25.
I have wrongly identified this as Hound, but unable to edit title. I’m now sure it is the approach to Higher Tor heading north with Belstone beyond. It’s a wonderful hike.

It's been way to hot for getting up on the moors in recent weeks, but my timing worked out for an overnighter last night (not that I got one, but that was on me) ...

Straight-forward out 15km out and back from Wrangaton > Three Barrows > Wrangaton.

+/- 380mtr gain. ~23℃ strong sun, gentle breeze to start with, ~20℃ and very stiff easterly breeze at the top (which wasn't forecast) ... dropping to ~15℃ and fairly still back in Wrangaton.

Route: Wrangaton > Spurrells Cross > up the trackway past Piles Hill (1) > on up to Three Barrows (2, 3). This was option 1 for sleeping out, but a). Black Phillip was up there with his caprid coven, and b). as the sun dropped in the sky the easterly really picked up - so I noped out and came back down. Through Sharp Tor (4,5) then down to Piles Hill (6) unsuccessfully looking for a spot, finally going across towards Ugborough Beacon (7,8) - which was much less windy - but given the time of day, already had at least three tents on it ... so I binned the whole thing off and went home, which added a bit of extra adventure getting and then failing to get the last bus of the day.

So, the key take-away here is not to leave pitching-up until you are out of options.

Still, 'twas nice to be back on the moor - plus it was a useful packing / rucking practice - and with walk 'tween bus stops - a bonus 24km walk overall.

Beltane eve from April last year, near Belstone, with the Lanshan. North east Dartmoor, looking west at sundown.