An interesting village, an ancient legend and some of the best views on the moor. This is a moderate walk but can be extended for a longer and harder route.
DISTANCE: 4.2 miles (moderate walking due to the amount of clitter on the plateau)
NEAREST REFRESHMENTS: Belstone village or Okehampton
CAR PARKING: At the road side at SX616934
Some of this walk is in the Dartmoor Firing Range so check firing times before heading out.
Belstone is a pretty village in north Dartmoor. Park at SX616934 on the western side of the village and then walk up the road and through the gate.
With Watchet Hill on your left, follow the track along until you come to a fork. This first bit of track forms part of the Tarka Trail.
For now take the left fork onto Belstone Common, but keep reasonably parallel to the track. There are a few paths here so it’s a good idea to take a map bearing or keep your eyes peeled to spot the Nine Maidens stone circle (SX612928).
Nine Maidens, or Nine Stones as it’s marked on some maps, is a circle of 16 stones around an old Bronze Age burial chamber. It’s in a dramatic location for photos with Belstone Tor one way and East Mill Tor in the distance the other.
The legend behind the Nine Maidens is that a group of maidens danced on a Sunday and were turned to stone. As punishment they must dance every day at noon for the rest of eternity. Another version is that it was seventeen brothers who were turned to stone.
Once you have taken your fill then head up to Tors End Tor which is the first of a chain of tors that sit above Belstone Common. I went around it on the left hand side. There are lots of tracks here so take your pick of going around or over them! The views from here and all along the plateau are stunning.
From there you can see a path wend away to the horizon by East Mill Tor, plus Belstone village and cleave, opposite to Ladybrook Tor and also onwards to the south into a wilder Dartmoor past Oke Tor and Wild Tor.
Keep going towards Belstone Tor. It’s like once big chain of granite outcrops so there’s lots of clitter about - keep one eye on your feet and the other on those glorious views!
After Belstone Tor you will see Irishman’s Wall just before you reach Higher Tor. The remains of the wall run for about 0.8 miles from the flank of the tor to Cullever Steps.
There are different theories behind how the wall came to be there and the most favoured one seems to be that it was part of a newtake meant to enclose Belstone Common. A newtake was a piece of land enclosed by early Dartmoor farmers. Two Irishmen were building the wall to enclose this vast area of land and the locals of Belstone and Okehampton disapproved so knocked it down and drove them away.
Just the other side of the wall is a large logan stone (SX614919). This is formed when a joint is eroded away by the weather until one stone ‘balances’ on top of another.
Higher Tor (SX612917) is an impressive set of granite stacks. The other side of it the path starts to descend and you will also spot some stones on the left hand side of the path which are old boundary stones.
If you wish to extend the walk then keep going to Oke Tor (add two miles); or Steeperton Tor and back via Taw Marsh (add five miles) then head back up the valley and link onto the path next to the river.
Go down a little further and you’ll come to a path going from right to left, cross this one as there is another just past this and go left along this. It will take you down into the valley. This is the place where the descent is the least steep.
Once you're down on the valley floor admire the views towards Oke Tor and Taw Marsh, then go left towards Belstone. The river Taw will be on your right and you’ll pass the Irishman’s Wall once again on this wide track.
Even though you are by the river you don’t really see it so I hopped onto a path by the weir to take a look. You can continue on the original track which will lead to a road, coming out a little further on from the path I took.
After a brief respite by the river I followed a small path and walked alongside it - very pretty - until I came to some houses. The path goes past these through a gate and eventually brings you to a road. Well, more like a country lane and a pretty walk along (keep right at the turning) which brings you out to the southern part of Belstone before you enter the village centre.
There is also car parking along this bit of road should you wish to return another day to walk Belstone Cleave on your right.
As you walk through the village there is a pub, The Tors, for some refreshment, and if you head right at the green you’ll see a memorial stone and past this the well-known stocks SX621936.
The memorial stone bears inscriptions for two monarchs - King George V and Queen Elizabeth II. The stocks are a Grade II listed monument and were restored in 1953 and the granite seat, which is an upturned trough, added. More work was done in subsequent years.
Walk back up the past the green and the old telegraph office which has a stone dating it 1841.
This last bit is uphill I’m afraid, but in hardly any time at all you’ll be back at your car.
View a Google map of the walk here
For information on where to stay, eat and visit on Dartmoor, please see www.visitdartmoor.co.uk
To view my Dartmoor walks ebook click here, and my Dartmoor colouring book click here