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| FARM JUST OUTSIDE OF OKEHAMPTON |
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| BY MELDON VIADUCT |
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| TURNING OFF THE GRANITE WAY AT SOURTON |
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| THE QUIRKY HIGHWAYMAN INN IN SOURTON |
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| SIDE VIEW OF HIGHWAYMAN INN |
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| SERVICE AT THE HIGHWAYMAN INN WAS DEAD SLOW |
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| TAVISTOCK'S PANNIER MARKET |
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| THE PLUME OF FEATHERS IN PRINCETOWN |
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| OUR MOORLAND HOTEL |
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| AHHHHH! |
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| LOOKING ALONG DART RIVER FROM DARTMOUTH CASTLE |
Alan, the landlord of the Fountain Inn, prepared us an excellent breakfast. We departed Okehampton, refreshed after our comfortable night, and proceeded in a south-westerly direction. Our first port-of-call was Meldon Viaduct, which we reached by leaving the official Dartmoor Way route and climbing through a wood beautifully carpeted with bluebells.
The intricate steel framework of Meldon Viaduct was impressive. We walked across it, effectively joining a cycling route called the Granite Way. We decided to stay on this easy-going tarmacked path for a couple of miles until we reached Sourton to rejoin the Dartmoor Way. At Sourton we came across this incredibly quirky pub called The Highwayman Inn. The front entrance was like a horse-drawn coach and the side of the building looked like a huge shoe. Indoors, one room was decorated like a wooden ship and the other rooms were stuffed with all manner of strange objects. The bars were made of driftwood with coins stuffed into the cracks. The only disappointment was that they charged a whopping £3 for a pint of lime and soda, three times what other pubs had charged us, and they didn't put enough lime in it either.
From Sourton we continued to Lydford where we had hoped to walk through the famous gorge. We hadn't realised that it was run by the National Trust though, and we weren't going to pay £9.80 each just to stroll through. We did get glimpses of what it was like from Lydford Bridge though.
Shortly after, we reached Gibbet Hill, just north of Mary Tavy, and after a brief search of the southern slopes found a suitable place to camp. The location was excellent but it was cold again and Rubi didn't get much sleep.
In the morning we picked up some supplies from the friendly people in Mary Tavy's Post Office and General Store, and continued south to Tavistock. Rubi was walking noticeably more slowly after, what was now, our seventh consecutive day of walking. Thus, on reaching Tavistock at around 1.00pm, we agreed that it was time for a break and we booked into The Queen's Head, the local Wetherspoon's pub, for the night. This meant that we could wander around pretty Tavistock in the afternoon without heavy rucksacks on our backs. We particularly liked the so called Pannier Market and Rubi, as usual, couldn't pass a charity shop without going in.
Our room in the Queen's Head was superb and we had one of our most comfortable and restful nights so far.
Next morning we made our way out of Tavistock via the cricket ground and golf course. We followed the Dartmoor Way through Sampford Spiney onto the moorland of Walkhampton Common beyond. By crossing open moorland and following the route of a dismantled railway, we eventually reached Princetown, home of the infamous Dartmoor Prison and the famous Dartmoor Brewery. Naturally, I felt it my duty to visit the Plume of Feathers Inn and partake of a pint of Dartmoor Brewery's Jail Ale.
To reach a suitable wildcamping site we needed to continue our walk eastwards for a couple more hours. After crossing the River Swanscombe we once again left the official Dartmoor Way to go 'off piste' again. With no path, we were forced to step over rough tussocks of grass as we climbed up Down Ridge. On the eastern flank we found a suitable site to place our tent by an old stone cross and a cairn. Apparently, these stone crosses are ancient navigational aids to help folk cross the bleak moor.
Yet another cold night was ahead of us, but at least this would be the last one on this trek. In the morning, I decided that to minimise climbing we should initially head south to Skir Hill before continuing east across the moor to meet with the Sandy Way track. This was really barren moorland, almost featureless, and walking across the rough pathless terrain was slow going. However my navigation was good and eventually we descended into the village of Michelcombe without incident or injury.
From there, we quickly regained the Dartmoor Way just south of Holne and repeated a section of the walk that we had previously shared with our Hampshire Walking Group pals. This took is all the way back to Buckfast Abbey. The car was still there.
Shedding our rucksacks, we had a last look around the Abbey and purchased a bottle of the famous Buckfast Tonic Wine before driving down to Dartmouth for a weekend of rest. This was particularly well-deserved in Rubi's case as she had never attempted a long distance walk like the Dartmoor Way before.She said that her feet were still aching when we visited Dartmouth Castle on the Saturday.
