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Dartmoor is infamous for it’s quaking bogs and impenetrable mists and fogs but not that long ago there was another peril – dust – or to use the Devonshire vernacular ‘pillum’. This was the scourge of many a town and village street, especially during the hot and windy summertime. The …

Although this report, written by an officer attending the military camp on Whitchurch Down in 1909, is rather rambling and very much tongue in cheek it does give some good insights into camp life. There are several references to ‘myrrh and borax’ which at the time was an ingredient for …

“On reaching the main road that leads from Ashburton to Tavistock, we turned in the direction of Two Bridges. The rain still continued to pour down in torrents, and we were not sorry to seek the shelter of the inn there – The Saracen’s Head, but as the rain showed …

An old lady sat in her old arm-chair With wrinkled visage and dishevelled hair And hunger-worn features; For a few days and for weeks her only fare, As she sat there in her old arm-chair, Had been potatoes. But now they were gone; of bad and good Not one was …

The story of Great Week Consols Tin Mine is one of intrigue and may well be a case of “All that glitters is not gold.” According to the Cultural Heritage Desk Based Assessment of Chagford the first mine may well date back to medieval times? In relation to medieval tinning …

I was reading an article published by the famous Dartmoor folklorist Theo Brown some 47 years ago which I think typifies the beliefs and resources available to moor folk in days long gone by. It concerns medical treatment for both humans and animals administered by so-called ‘White’ or ‘Hedge Witches’ …

 Please note access to the mine and its surrounds are by prior appointment only as the land is privately owned. The chosen route for our first full day’s walk during the Easter break was from Trenchaford Reservoir, down past Bullaton Farm and then onto the Kelly Mine via the steep …

Imagine going for a family walk on Dartmoor, the skies are clear, the birds singing and all is well with the world. In the distance you spot what seems to be a herd of ponies which all appear to be lying down. You decide to investigate and on  approaching not …

Here is a perfect example of how NOT to plan a trip onto the moor with a few tips of what to check beforehand. Let me set the scene, I am currently researching the Lych Way for my forthcoming MA dissertation and need to do some fieldwork which basically involves …

‘Lonely there, betwixt moor and sky, Where great grey clouds go drifting by, And the peewit utters her plaintive cry, The Windy Post stands silently.’ To the north west of Feather Tor stands an ancient and rugged granite cross known as either the Beckamoor Cross or more romantically the Windy …