Mainly Mountains - Dartmoor

Dartmoor is an upland area of Southwest England, containing the highest point in Southern England - High Willhays. Although it is not as spectacular as the Scottish Highlands or the Lake District, it is relatively wild and unspoilt, and easy to get to. Dartmoor rises to around 600 metres, and at this height it is usually noticeably colder and more windy than at sea level. Navigation on the moor can be challenging, as it has a limited number of obvious landmarks, and is subject to fog and low cloud. Dartmoor is also famous for mires and bogs, which were colourfully depicted in Arthur Conan Doyle's The Hound of the Baskerviiles. In reality they are less threatening, but are sometimes quite deep and are best avoided. The moor is popular with walkers, and it is possible (but not easy) to do a north-south crossing in one day. Many of the hills are topped with rock outcrops, which are used for climbing and scrambling. Here are some pictures of the area of southern Dartmoor around Ivybridge. This area is particularly accessible, as Ivybridge railway station is a 5 minute walk from the edge of the moor.
	Looking west from Butterdon Hill (SX654586), at an altitude of 364 metres. That's only 8489 metres below the summit of Everest.
	Looking south from Butterdon Hill (SX654586). You can see the sea on a clear day.
	Looking south from Three Barrows (SX653626, 464 metres).
The following are some photographs of the area of northern Dartmoor around Yes Tor and High Willhays, the two highest points on Dartmoor. Both of these peaks are within a Ministry of Defence firing range, but the public may enter the range when it is not in use. The Dartmoor National Park website contains useful general information about Dartmoor. This website gives detailed information about when the 3 Ministry of Defence firing ranges on Dartmoor will be in use over the next few weeks.
	Meldon Reservoir on Boxing Day 2001.
	Meldon Reservoir again.
	Looking south, with High Willhays on the left. Much of this area is criss-crossed by vehicle tracks, as the area is used for Army training.
	Looking north towards Yes Tor (619 metres) from High Willhays (621 metres). Altitude sickness is unlikely to be a problem.
	Looking north from Yes Tor.
	Looking towards High Willhays from Yes Tor.
	Moon setting over southern Dartmoor.
	Looking west from southern Dartmoor at sunrise.
	Stony Bottom (SX640651).
	The top of Yes Tor on 27 December 2003 - no White Christmas this year.

Mainly mountains - Dartmoor