This page describes a walk from the car park in Postbridge down the East Dart River valley, following tracks across farm land to Bellever, passing the old clapper bridge, then into the forest to Bellever Tor and back to Postbridge, passing ancient monuments along the way and meeting two young ladies auf der Weise, aus Münster - Hallo, Mädchen! This walk was based on the Footloose walk entitled "Postbridge"
Walk details below - Information about the route etc.
This walk: 2007-7-24 - Postbridge, clapper bridge, Lydgate House, East Dart valley, farm land, by Pizwell, Dury Farm, 2nd clapper bridge, Bellever, through the forest, Bellever Tor, Lych Way, cairn and cist (well preserved), stone row (short), Kraps Ring settlement
The clapper bridge at Postbridge, with the road bridge behind (SX 6482 7892)
The clapper bridge viewed from downstream (East Dart)
Looking back along the track past Lydgate House Hotel (SX 6520 7870) towards Postbridge
Path signs look in need of renovation
Looking back along flooded track at SX 66350 78233 - actually had to detour (carefully!)
Sign for Permitted Path at SX 66420 77846 towards Dury Farm
Another slightly flooded path - this was the period of floods in Tewkesbury, Gloucester etc
Looking back from the entrance into Dury Farm (SX 66225 77845)
Clapper bridge at Bellever (SX 65850 77336)
Bellever clapper bridge with modern bridge behind
Sign at entrance to Bellever forest car park (SX 65643 77333)
View along the forest track (close to SX 65113 76958)
Buttercup (five petals) growing at the above place
Daisy, with insects, as above
View en route up steep track to Bellever Tor (from approx SX 64740 76460)
Bellever Tor at SX 64450 76435
View from Bellever Tor towards Powdermills (at SX 62780 76900)
View north from Bellever Tor towards Fernworthy Forest
View westwards along the Lychway at SX 64600 77280. This track was a trans-moor footpath along which the dead were carried to Lydford church for burial. This ceased, in theory, in 1260 when the dead were allowed to be buried at Widdicombe, although some still chose to be buried at Lydford.
View from above photo back at Bellever Tor
Cairn circle and cist at SX 64370 77460
Stone circle adjacent at SX 64370 77460
Cairn circle and cist at SX 64370 77460
Cairn circle and cist at SX 64370 77460
Stone row at SX 64390 77646
Circle - possibly at at SX 64345 77760 or en route to that circle, there was one not on the map?
Circle - possibly at at SX 64345 77760 or en route to that circle, there was one not on the map? Seen en route to Kraps Ring at SX 64435 78080 (Kraps Ring was not very photogenic, being a little overgrown)
Parking was at the main car park in Postbridge, where the Dartmoor Information Centre is located. This is at the top of the map below. The walk was mostly on easy tracks, firstly through farm land to Bellever although in one place in particular a detour had to be made - just before Pizwell, by a spring ('Spr' on the map). After the hamlet of Bellever , you enter the forest and later turn west up a steep and rough track to Bellever Tor. After that, it is easy walking except for the end of the walk after Kraps Ring where you end up making your way across a felled area where the 'brashings' (trimmings) cover the ground. The map is not up-to-date as far as forestry coverage is concerned. At one point, after entering the forest, the GPS unit lost satellite signal and shows a straight-line track that departed from the route, which was a forest track.
MAP: Blue = planned route, Red = GPS track of the actual walk
Reproduced from Dartmoor OS Explorer map 1:25 000 scale by
permission of Ordnance Survey
on behalf of The Controller of Her Majesty's
Stationery Office.
© Crown copyright. All rights reserved. Licence number 100047373.
Also, Copyright © 2005, Memory-Map Europe, with permission
Notes
Start 10.09 am, end 2.25 pm, time = 4 hours 16 mins
Distance tracked = 9.66 km/6.0 miles
All photographs on this web site are copyright ©2007-2016 Keith Ryan.
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