Next monthly walk - Sunday 6th October, Merrivale.

The next monthly walk will begin at Merrivale, west of Princetown at 10am next Sunday, the 6th October.

 

Park in the small quarry car park just east of Merrivale Bridge at SX553750.

 

The walk will last three to four hours and will take in woodland, moorland and river habitats in the beautiful Walkham valley, including Vixen Tor and Sampford Spiney.  We will be looking out for newly arrived winter visitors and checking on autumn’s progress.

 

Please book by emailing dartdays@gmail.com - price £10 per person.

Lobhill Farmhouse B&B, Lewtrenchard

Many thanks to Jane Colwill at Lobhill Farmhouse Bed & Breakfast for a mention on her lovely website.  Have a look at www.lobhillbedandbreakfast.co.uk for more details.

Lewtrenchard is ideally placed for exploring western Dartmoor and would be a great base for a Dart Days walk.  Lobhill is a fantastic upmarket B&B. Why not give it a try!

Next monthly walk: Sunday 8th September - Scorhill and Gidleigh Common

The next in our series of regular monthly walks will begin at Scorhill, near Gidleigh on the north east side of the moor at 9 am on Sunday 8th September.  This walk directly replaces last month's postponed walk.  Park in the car park by Scorhill Farm at SX662877.  The walk will be circular and will last approximately 3 hours.  The route will include the River Teign, tors, woods, moorland and Bronze Age antiquities.  Please bring appropriate clothing and footwear, water and sun protection if appropriate.

Please email dartdays@gmail.com to book a place; price £10 per person.

I look forward to seeing you there.

Walk with the Youell party

I was lucky enough to lead a walk from Prince Hall on Saturday in ferocious heat with a lovely group celebrating Tessa Youell's birthday at the hotel.  Here are some photos from the walk, which began at Prince Hall and ended in the Plume Of Feathers at Princetown, traversing the desert-like moorland of Crock Of Gold and Tor Royal along the way.  The shade and cold drinks at the pub were most welcome afterwards.  Many thanks to Tessa and family for being such good company.

Large Skipper butterfly on thistle flowers.

A slightly out of focus (heat-hazed?) Bog Asphodel with Prince Hall in the background.

Heatwave!

I think we can now relax and call this a heatwave, as it doesn't seem to be going anywhere soon.  Here are some Dartmoor photos that give a flavour of what it's like to be here at this amazing time.

Joe and Grace at sports day, Widecombe

The sun rises over Waterworks Hill

Hay cutting time, Huccaby

Honeysuckle on Hawthorn

More flora...

Cross-leaved Heath, Swincombe valley



Cotton Grass, Swincombe valley

Sundew and Sphagnum

Heath Spotted Orchid



Water Forget-Me-Not

Foxglove with Bellever Tor in the background.

Bird's Foot Trefoil

New business cards

I'm really pleased with my new business cards - have a look:

Many thanks to my brother Adrian for printing these lovely cards for me.  Adrian works for Rose Mills Printers Ltd [ www.rosemills.com ] , an independent traditional letterpress printing company in Ilminster, Somerset, that combines vintage machinery with modern know-how to produce printed items of fantastic quality.

These cards were a real family affair - I designed the logo and Adrian prepared it for print and produced the cards.

Next monthly walk: Sunday 4th August, Scorhill and Gidleigh Common

Hello!  The next of our regular monthly walks will begin at Scorhill, near Gidleigh on the north east side of the moor at 9 am on Sunday 4th August.  Park in the car park by Scorhill Farm at SX662877.  The walk will be circular and will last approximately 3 hours.  The route will include the River Teign, tors, woods, moorland and Bronze Age antiquities.  Please bring appropriate clothing and footwear, water and sun protection if appropriate.

Please email dartdays@gmail.com to book a place; price £10 per person.

I look forward to seeing you there.

Monthly walk at Whiddon Deer Park

Watching a family of Spotted Flycatchers by the River Teign.

A good turnout on a blazing Sunday morning to explore Dogmarsh Bridge, the River Teign and Whiddon Deer Park, just north of Chagford.  A great day for plants and insects, with a few birds braving the heat, including Spotted Flycatcher, Green Woodpecker, Redstart, Treecreeper and Tree Pipit.  Thank you to everyone who came along - hope to see you at the next one!

 



Meadow Brown butterfly



A snack stop at the top of Whiddon Deer Park.

It's a great summer for Foxgloves...

Sculpture by Peter Randall-Page

Crab apples coming into fruit

The Teign below Castle Drogo

Recent sightings

Two Nightjars flew over our drive last week, and a Peregrine over the house this morning, upsetting the local Swallows.  Saw a Red Kite over the A38 on my commute back from Plymouth last month, and a Hobby in the Swincombe valley this morning.  I've had a good run of Redstarts, too, with at least three pairs breeding at Prince Hall, and the most recent at Whiddon Deer Pak on Sunday and in the Swincombe valley this morning.

And the heatwave continues - all of a sudden the plants, insects and birds are loving it.

Plants in the rain

 

 

 

Before the current heatwave, some hedgerow plants enjoying some misty rain.

 

Vetch

 

 

Raspberry

Foxglove

Oak

I love the purple of new elder leaves.

Foxglove time

Lonnie and Dot at the top of Sharpitor

Foxtor Mire from Whiteworks

Foxgloves, Buckland in the Moor.

Evening walk with Sally and Alan

 

A dusk walk from Prince Hall with Sally and Alan, visitors from Exeter.  A beautiful evening, with trout rising in the West Dart, Mayflies on the wing, and a number of birds including Spotted Flycatcher, Treecreeper and Grey Heron.  We looked for Otters as darkness fell, but were not quite lucky enough.  As you can see, it was a real treat being out by the river on this summer evening.  I took my bat detector along; Pipistrelle bats were extremely active by the bridge after dark (as were the midges).

 

 

 

Sally looking at some Mallard ducklings.

Sally and Alan with Prince Hall Hotel in the background.

A mackerel sky above Ten Acre Trees.

The dot on the far right of the sky section is a Cormorant!

Enjoying a packed dinner on 'Daly Tor.'

By the Cherry Brook looking for Otters as darkness fell.

Walk with the Winters

In between the two walks with the Caseys I took Mr and Mrs Winters, who are from Texas, on an afternoon walk tucked down by the East Dart in Bellever Forest.  They were near the end of their trip and were pleased to get a taste of Dartmoor out of the wind.

A magnificent sea of Cotton Grass near Two Bridges.

Broom and Foxglove by the East Dart, Bellever.

Mr and Mrs Winters

Gouge marks made by a male Roe Deer.

Looking down the East Dart valley towards Yar Tor.

Walks with the Caseys from Prince Hall

Mr and Mrs Casey booked two walks in one day from Prince Hall.  We had to put it back by a day because of the terrible weather, but managed two successful walks on the Sunday.  The Caseys are quite new to birding and very keen, coming to me with a wish list of species to look for - Whinchat, Redstart, Dipper and Ring Ouzel.  We managed all four during the day, with plenty of others such as Cuckoo, Tree Pipit, Treecreeper and Spotted Flycatcher.

Broom blossom by the West Dart.

Stonecrop on a rock in the river, Prince Hall.

Red cap lichen

We had excellent views of a Redstart, Dippers and a family of Treecreepers here.

New Bilberry leaves

A full moon coming up over Hamel Down.

The Caseys on Birch Tor, 10pm.

We were still out on the moor at 10 pm, with a Ring Ouzel singing and Cuckoos and Whinchats still calling.  An atmospheric end to a fantastic day.