The children went back to school today. The house was eerily quiet without them running around, acting out their latest story. I missed them, but I am also invigorated to get back to work.
We squeezed in a few days away, before term started, in Mid Devon. We visited Exeter, where I went to university. I showed the children where I studied, where I lived…. and a few of the other places I frequented. They fained very little interest, so leaving educational inspiration for another day, we headed off to Dartmoor. I guess at 8, 5 and 3 years old, I was probably asking too much.
One interest we do share is the love of big open areas, especially if it involves climbing big rocks and walking through beautiful countryside. This Tor is a favourite of ours. It is called Hound Tor. Irresistible if you happen to have a dog, which is a deerhound, in the walking party.
There were lots of rocks to explore. There were times I wished I had the car keys in my pocket. We found our first letterboxing location. How appropriate that it was on Dartmoor, where it is reported to have started.
I love the shapes of the rocks. Some (of the rocks) seem to have beautiful weathered faces.
Some appear to be petrified dragons, ready to be brought back to life by the mere wish of a pair of imaginative maidens.
There was the remains of a saxon village to explore.
There were walks through heather cladded hillsides. The noise of the honey bees visiting the flowers was like a constant hum. Every August and September, commercial honey companies bring their hives out to the moors and they are usually easy to spot. We saw none, although the honey bees were around. Recent fears of hives being stolen, may mean that the hives are better hidden. I miss seeing them.
More stones. I must be hungry, but these ones now look like a stack of scotch pancakes. The children and dog would still be out there, walking and climbing. They all grew in confidence and even Gwinny the dog took to climbing the rocks, far higher than I would recommend.
So, now we have returned home. It was a very welcome break, but I feel enthused and ready to tackle life again. Yes, I do have a little bit of lucky heather in my pocket. Not that I’m superstitious. Just a lovely reminder of a beautiful place.
what a magical place to explore!!
It really was. The children enjoyed exploring it. Lots more to discover.
What a beautiful country!
We loved being away from it all.
Wonderful images. cheers Marie
Really is a beautiful place.
Excellent photos looks like you all had a great time..now I’ve got some great images for when I read Sherlock Holmes and Agatha Christie’s Sittaford Mystery (old favourites.
I had no idea the stones looked quite like that…love the Dragon, we saw one when we were Kayaking he was dipping his head into the Fjord …I wish I’d had the camera so I could show you what I meant ….I only have the picture in my head..actually he looked asleep..
I can just imagine Gwinny enjoying the moors :0)
I’ve been up there at dusk, and it would not have surprised me to hear the hounds baying. Wonderful place to see the stars. Bit worried about your sleeping dragon. I hope it didn’t have its head in the water as it slept.
Gwinny loved the moors. It was lovely to see her running though the bracken and heather. She looked quite at home.
btw general opinion of self and girls is they do look like drop scones…perhaps this means we need supper?
Most definitely!
Dartmoor has some magical places, can’t wait to go back there some time xx
Love your pictures, transformed me there for a while whilst I drank my morning coffee, thank you.
I can’t wait to go back. Eldest has suggested that we could go down for day trips. Maybe we will.
Looks remarkably like the moors round here, except we don’t have trees on ours. I hadn’t heard of letterboxing before, sounds a bit like orienteering but more genteel!
Letterboxing seems like a fun idea. I’m going to look out for more sites.
What incredible landscape you have. Letterboxing, too! How wonderful.
So lovely to be able to be out there and enjoying it all.
What a fantastic place to explore. Glad that you enjoyed your time away.
It was fun wandering around the moors. The break was perfect. Thanks.
Awesome – have a look at this post from another blog I totally love to follow – they were just on holiday there too!!! http://bagelsandcrawfish.blogspot.com/2010/08/letterboxing-in-dartmoor-with-kids.html
Just checked out the link. Wouldn’t it have been amazing if we were there at the same time, but it looks like they were earlier in the month. It is fun and not just for children.