After the last Courtenay owner fell foul of Henry VIII in 1539, the castle declined into a ruin. To get there, take the B3260 south west from x.type = 'password'; point Wild Camping on Dartmoor - Always take a compass Your email address will not be published. stony and bends round to the right. We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. Hampster Tor (disputed location) | Dartefacts: Dartmoor Artefacts google_ad_slot = "2715819971"; Once I had found the correct road to Meldon Reservoir the route was very straightforward. Trending; . Fernworthy is a great place to Discover the Dartmoor Story. Does anyone know if this car park is accessible by motorhome (2.8m high, 2.3m wide) A look on google street view shows the road passes under a bridge which we are not sure our motorhome can get under. compass bearing is 101 magnetic (unadjusted for magnetic variation) to the Either distracted by food, weather or the MOD firing guns! All in all we had a very pleasant day and everyone agreed that it had been really enjoyable despite the rainy weather. High Willhays is the highest point in Dartmoor National Park and and the highest point in the county of Devon. Yes Tor, which for many years was thought to be the highest point, and has an O/S pillar to prove it, was recently demoted in favour of the less spectacular High Willhays. Begun soon after the Norman Conquest as a motte and bailey castle with a stone keep, it was converted into a sumptuous residence in the 14th century by Hugh Courtenay, Earl of Devon, much of whose work survives. They each have a certain attraction and charm, perhaps thats the engineer in me looking at things. From High Willhays we descended south to the West Okemont River and found our wild camping spot for the night nestled below Lints Tor. x.type = 'text'; Address: Meldon Reservoir, Okehampton, Devon. Store. hand outcrop which is Black Tor. Half-Day Surf Experience in Newquay (1 x 2 hour lesson) - All Abilities Welcome. All Rights Reserved. Dartmoor is bleak, unforgiving, stunningly beautiful and at the same time a cruel vicious landscape. High Willhays (/wliz, wlhez/ WIL-eez, WIL-hayz), or according to some authorities High Willes,[3] is the highest point on Dartmoor, Devon, at 621 metres (2,039 feet) above sea level,[1][2] and the highest point in Southern England. As mentioned in all the walking guides, Yes Tor is not actually as high as High Willhays but the view is much better, and the top is more, erm, interesting shall we say. Meldon Reservoir and Black Tor Moderate 4.5 (183) Dartmoor National Park Photos (380) Directions Print/PDF map Length 7.6 kmElevation gain 272 mRoute type Circular Experience this 7.6-km circular trail near Okehampton, Devon. 1:25,000 scale OS Explorer Map(the ones with orange/yellow covers): 1:50,000 scale OS Landranger Map(the ones with pink/magenta covers): Some Photos and Pictures from Walk de177 Yes Tor and High Willhays from Meldon Reservoir, West Mill Tor from Yes Tor with Okehampton and North Devon in background, High Willhays from the trig point on Yes Tor, The bridge at the southern end of Meldon Reservoir, . Hi everyone!!! PDF John Skinner had planned a route from Meldon Reservoir going upto the Overview riverbank and turn right to follow the path along the right hand riverbank. We were now surrounded by clouds giving us the perfect opportunity to teach our eldest (who is hoping to achieve her Bronze Duke Of Edinburgh award) some highly important lessons in using a compass. Ansum! When was Meldon reservoir built? Head for these and you will soon catch go4awalk.com and go4awalk.co.uk are registered trademarks of TMDH Limited. Yes Tor is also known as an English Nuttall (237th highest in England, 412th highest in England & Wales). Take the turn off to Meldon and follow the signs for the route through the boulder field becomes clear. go4mailvariable=('walk_pics' + '@' + go4mailvariable) Meldon Reservoir, or Meldon, is a local Dartmoor beauty spot in the north west section of the National Park. The National Trust's Lydford Gorge, Devon, is the deepest gorge in the South West and has a spectacular 30m waterfall. RF P6219K - Evening light on Dartmoor, with views towards Meldon reservoir and over an old quarry site. Yes Tor and High Willhays - Dartmoor High Walks The trail is primarily used for hiking, walking, nature trips, and bird watching. Meldon Dam is now owned and operated by South West Water. 15 Best Things to Do in Okehampton (Devon, England) Arriving at the car park next to the stunning Meldon Reservoir at around 11am we sorted out our various bits of kit for the day's walk and headed off across the dam wall at the head of the reservoir. Littered with UXBs and danger! I have never before, in my long and eclectic career, been gifted with such an abundance of natural beauty as I experienced filming War Horse on Dartmoor.Steven Spielberg. This National Nature Reserve of 170ha mainly consists of a model example of the upland heathland and has a wealth of moorland birds. the PDF logo above to give a printable version of this walk without the DICE Dental International Congress and Exhibition. Nestled in a valley beneath High Willhays, the 'roof of Devon' and the highest point on Dartmoor, lies a mystical ancient oak woodland packed full of wild beauty. } 420 m. Just below Meldon Reservoir, the west Okement River flows down into Old Meldon Pond (also known as Meldon Pool), a glorious wild swimming spot secluded under the Meldon Viaduct. Meldon Dam blocks the West Okement River, creating a large reservoir to its south west (upstream) side. For help see Help. Can you walk around meldon reservoir? Explained by Sharing Culture The approach to Yes Tor from the west is deceptive, you cannot see the trig point and radio aerial at all. Nothing too fancy, just a flat rock with a view. Branch off to the left (SX 570905). Hisnose sniffed the calm air and his eyes scanned the distant valley slopes. The sharpness of the fractured rocks, the twists and turns of every footstep, water running from every crevice. Sent to us by Andrew Ross, a viewer, this walk was a great day on Dartmoor. As an Amazon Associate I Ordnance } Out and About on Dartmoor - Higher Kellacott Available for both RF and RM licensing. 1:25,000 scale OS Explorer Map(the ones with orange/yellow covers): 1:50,000 scale OS Landranger Map(the ones with pink/magenta covers): Some Photos and Pictures from Walk de139 Yes Tor, High Willhays and Black Tor from Meldon Reservoir, The bridge at the southern end of Meldon Reservoir, West Mill Tor from Yes Tor with Okehampton and North Devon in background, Ascending Longstone Hill from Meldon Reservoir with Sourton Tors on the horizon, . It's a flat, boggy landmass that's relatively difficult to walk across. As I walked across the dam, water and machinery could be heard rumbling away deep beneaththe concrete superstructure. It didn't dampen anyone's spirits, indeed the children seemed to be happier in the rain than they had been on the warmer days out in the summer. It's 621 metres or 2,039 feet above sea level. The lichens and mosses that drape the trees are nationally important and grow here in this unique clean air woodland. "From Meldon reservoir car park, climbed 400m peak directly south then headed on to climb Black Tor. It really was that easy. Always useful. [5], High Willhays is near the northwestern edge of Dartmoor, about .mw-parser-output .frac{white-space:nowrap}.mw-parser-output .frac .num,.mw-parser-output .frac .den{font-size:80%;line-height:0;vertical-align:super}.mw-parser-output .frac .den{vertical-align:sub}.mw-parser-output .sr-only{border:0;clip:rect(0,0,0,0);height:1px;margin:-1px;overflow:hidden;padding:0;position:absolute;width:1px}2.5km (1+12 miles) south east of Meldon Reservoir and about 5km (3 miles) south of the town of Okehampton. Our Journey back to the car from here was fairly easy, we followed the river and the right hand side of the reservoir all the way back to the carpark. Red-a-ven Brook and Yes Tor. High Willhays is near the northwestern edge of Dartmoor, about 2.5 km ( 112 miles) south east of Meldon Reservoir and about 5 km (3 miles) south of the town of Okehampton. Where2Walk 2023 - Walking in Yorkshire and the Lake District. to the water (SX 562913).Take the left fork. The odd shaped lumps of rock strewn across so many of the South West's tors are collectively known as 'clitter'. however. Before Ordnance Survey measured accurately the heights of High Willhays and Yes Tor many people believed Yes Tor was the higher of the two, and it was only the local farmers and moormen that believed the contrary. Copyright | Terms & Conditions | Privacy Statement, Find New Walking Friends & Walking Groups, Questions & Answers about Walking & Hiking, load all 29 walk photos from Walk de139 Yes Tor, High Willhays and Black Tor from Meldon Reservoir. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it. Our 10% chance of rain soon became 100% and the wet weather walking gear was vital. } else { The waterfall trail is a moderate circular walk of about an hour on a mostly one-way route. Black-A-Tor Copse is one of the best examples of high altitude oak woodland in Britain. //--> Meldon Reservoir This was a pretty 7 mile circular trail which began at Meldon Reservoir and included a climb to the summit of High Willhays before descending to the West Okement River. The best Hikes and Walks in Dartmoor | Outdooractive and we shall do our best to publish them. It generates some 9kW of hydroelectricity, which is used for instrumentation functions inside the dam. per adult. . Undaunted, 16 ramblers gathered at the start point Anyone been there? Can you swim in Meldon Reservoir?