What I thought was going to be a simple walk today when planned in bright sunshine turned into a 'proper' Dartmoor with visibility down to 50m and less at times meaning no handy navigational points for our navigationally challenged leader - me!
Starting in driving rain from the RV at Cox Tor car park we set towards the base of Little Staple then upward topping Middle and Great Staple towards Roos Tor with the rain and limited visibility our constant companions.
Now came the tricky bit after our hot drink stop on Roos, finding the right path to our next landmark, the standing stone within sight of White Tor. On my sunny planning walk, no problem, the path was as clear as day. Not today though! However, it did allow us to explore the bog hinterland of the upper reaches of the River Walkham, there wasn't a dry foot in sight by the time we followed the range marker posts to reach the standing stone thanks to some outstanding eyesight within our group -, not me, one of whom even spotted a departing mouse from our footsteps! Also spotted was a large hare, that disappeared into the mist in the blink of an eye.
From the stone, we headed up to the top of White Tor for our picnic, thankfully eaten without rain, but still no view due to the ever-present mist.
Picnic over, down to Stephen's Grave, and onward to the three small stream crossings at Wedlake. Safely across and past Wedlake we were now flagging a bit so it was decided to skirt around Cox Tor instead of going over the top. This change of route was to prove very beneficial for one of our group - I'll leave you wondering on that point for another day!
Back to the cars with no rain and improving views, we all felt we had had a proper walk today!
Charlie