Holwell Tor

It's been a real treat to have a lovely day today. I had jobs I needed to get done this morning but when they were done I wanted to get out. I thought I'd go up on the moor but wasn't sure where. When I was having my lunch I was flicking through the new N-Photo mag that dropped through my door this morning. It's good to see some new articles being published rather than the rehashes that they've been having to publish for the last few months. There's an article with Ross Hoddinott taking an 'apprentice' out on Dartmoor and I thought he'd taken him to my tree on Emsworthy Rocks (he'd be quite entitled because I'm pretty sure it was Ross that took me up there for the first time on a similar article in a different magazine 8 or 9 years ago). As I read on it seemed it wasn't my hawthorn tree but a similar one at Holwell Tor and I realised I'd never been there. So that was my destination today.

I walked along the Granite Tramway behind Hay Tor and as usual there was someone on the top shouting, imagining they're the master of Dartmoor. If he survives and gets to know the area he'll realise that is just the bit we sell to the tourists so we can keep all the other bits for ourselves. Holwell Tor is farther than I've walked along there before so it was good to see a bit more. I was quite taken by how similar it is to Emsworthy Rocks which is just half a mile away. As well as the windblown tree amidst the rocks, you can see in the extra that there are wonderful views taking in Bonehill Rocks, Hound Tor, Greator Rocks and Smallacombe. Wonderful!