Hennock and Shaptor Rock

This is an area I hadn’t been to for perhaps 5 years now, long before I started this website. I did part of this walk ( in the opposite direction), heading up the lane from Five Lanes, then down towards the reservoirs before looping back through the woods and past Great Rock. I thoroughly enjoyed the area and decided to return and lengthen the walk to include a few more rocks in Shaptor Woods. This walk doesn’t give much in the way of views or wide open spaces, but in return the woodlands have a certain charm, and on a grey day make a great alternative.

Start – Hennock village

Route – Great Rock – Trenchford Reservoir – Poolmill Cross – Gladstone Rock – Shaptor Woods – Shaptor Rock – John Canns Rocks – Bottor Rock – Five Lanes – Hennock

Distance – 7 miles Start time – 11.00am Time taken – 4hrs 20mins Highest Point – 255m Nr Trenchford Reservoir

Weather – Grey sky with some spots of rain

At the start of the walk I walk past the lovely Hennock church

Inside the church

Even on a dull day the views are good

Heading through the woodland to Great Rock

Great Rock

Now along the lane towards Trenchford reservoir

Between the trees you can see Trenchford reservoir

Heading along Bell Lane you get this lovely view across the fields

Bell Lane, I’m turning left in a moment

Gladstone Rock

You drop down from Gladstone Rock, then head around some houses and pop out into a clearing within woodland. Heading uphill a bit you come to this stile which is the entrance to Shaptor Wood

Shaptor Rock is a lofty perch above the trees. On a clearer day you get very good views to Dartmoor and its tors

The base of Shaptor Rock, my rucksack is by the tree to give some scale

You walk past 2 or 3 more rocky areas which could also be given names, but I can’t find anything online. This is the exit from Shaptor Woods onto a Byway which leads down to John Canns Rocks