Hembury Castle and the High Brown Fritillary

/ 02/06/2024

Back to Dartmoor after our mammoth coastal walk last time out and an area on the eastern side of the moor, not too far from Widecombe. The walk would pick up a number of Dartmoor 365 squares and was walk number 56 on my second round, this one grabs squares Q16, L14, L16, M14, M15 and M16 , also a couple of tors, hamlets and bridges. First up however is a visit to the Dartmoor 365 square in Hembury Castle, an Iron Age hillfort, followed by a Norman motte and bailey castle. This is an important site, not just for the history but for a butterfly. It is one of a few places in the UK that the High Brown Fritillary lives (others include north Devon and Morecambe Bay area). So we headed there in early June to see if we could spot it, bobbing along the paths through the bracken which criss-cross the hillfort area. We saw quite a few of the High Brown’s and also Common Blue’s, spending a good 30 mins looking around the site. We then moved on for our walk proper, parking up below Wind Tor before setting off towards Higher Dunstone and then looping around and up to Wind Tor. We then followed some lanes to firstly Jordan and then onwards to Little Cator, crossing a couple of bridges in the process. Finally we climbed the short distance to Rowden Tor, with both Rowden Tor and Wind Tor giving very good views to much higher places and along the valleys. All that was left was the short walk back to the car, enjoying the sun as we finished off. The weather throughout had been good, showing the turn in weather we saw in June at times, and we enjoyed getting out in plenty of blue skies.

Start – Hembury Castle

Route – Hembury Castle – (then the walk) Widecombe Parking – Southcombe Cross – Dunstone Cross – Higher Dunstone – Wind Tor – Jordan – Drywell Cross – East Shallowford – West Webburn Bridge – Lower Cator Bridge – Rowden Tor – Widecombe Parking

Distance – 7 miles  Start time – 12.15pm  Time taken – 4hrs  Highest Point – Wind Tor 372 metres

Weather – Lots of sunshine and quite warm

© Crown copyright 2024 Ordnance Survey FL 2024 SF
Sign showing the Hill Fort, the real star is the butterfly bottom left of the sign
Bracken getting high even in early June, the mound behind is part of the original motte from the Norman castle
Even though the area is part of Hembury Woods there are still views to be had
Not my best photo, but this is a High Brown Fritillary. We saw probably 5 or 6 of these in this visit
Common Blue butterflies were also very abundant
On to the walk, this is the car park, cloudless skies above and that’s Hameldown stretching away beyond the cars
Chinkwell Tor and Honeybag Tor are in view to the west
And the other way is Corndon Tor with Ryders Hill at the back
This stone marks the Two Crosses in the Turf, a place marking the boundaries of Jordan, Blackslade, Dunstone and Widecombe. Previously the two crosses shown on the stone would have been cut into the turf by lengthsmen, however in 2008 this stone was placed in the same location.
Lovely framed view of Chinkwell Tor and Honeybag Tor
Southcombe Cross the first of the Dartmoor squares on this main walk, we would turn right here and follow the lane to Higher Dunstone
In the village here, with the Dun Stone and the cross either side of Linda. The Dun Stone was used by the land owner for tenants to leave their rent money in a hole in the stone, the hole would be filled with vinegar to clean the coins of any diseases.
Dun Stone and the cross, in the distance are the tors of Tunhill Rocks and Pil Tor
Higher Dunstone church
As we climb to Wind Tor the views open up again to Chinkwell Tor with Hameldown on the left
Part of Wind Tor and the main bulk of Hameldown behind
Corndon Tor from Wind Tor, Ryders Hill at the back, we would next be heading down to the left to the lanes to Jordan
One last look at Wind Tor
Speckled Wood
Squirrel on a nearby tree in the hamlet of Jordan
Corndon Tor as we walk the lane in and out of Jordan
The dog did indeed come running towards us and the command does indeed work
Drywell Cross
East Shallowford Farm, another Dartmoor square
A Beautiful Demoiselle
West Webburn Bridge, the Shallowford version
We took at right at this sign to leave the lanes briefly and follow a gravel path
It was however overgrown a bit and full of flies
Next we went downhill along this lane towards Little Cator, we were now heading back in a westerly direction so Hameldown became the backdrop again.
Lower Cator Bridge, this is the old clapper bridge, behind me is the road bridge. This is a D365 square
Silver Ground Carpet Moth
Looking into Challacombe, Hameldown on the right
Rowden Tor looking across to Corndon Tor
Covered in lots of gorse its a bit of fun getting to this one, following the narrow tracks
Wind Tor on the left and beyond that is Buckland Beacon
Last photo looking into the centre of Dartmoor. A lovely walk in some fantastic weather but the real treat of the day was the High Brown Fritillary and good to read recently that they are doing well in North Devon so maybe an excuse to visit the coastal path in that area and have a visit.

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13 thoughts on “Hembury Castle and the High Brown Fritillary”

    • The butterflies are worth spending an hour up there to see them, especially on a sunny day, I tend to hate bracken normally but its a joy to be scooting along the narrow grassy paths between the plants to see these butterflies

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    • I have been before in June and seen the High Brown then, but having the Common Blue there as well was lovely. I hadn’t seen lots of butterflies until this walk in early June so this was nice to finally see a larger group of them

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