So it was time for our first walk in 2025 and the weather was playing ball. Clear blue skies and cold, perfect winter walking weather. This walk was done before the snows hit most of Britain, with even Dartmoor getting a fair bit, closing the road where we parked on this walk, for a few days. This is a nice variation of tors, mining history, woodland and a good pub to finish, the Warren House Inn. This walk is number 66 on our Dartmoor squares collection, picking up I13, I14, J13, J14 and K13 and we started out by parking just down the road from the pub in a small pull off car park, and walked past the pub towards Bennet’s Cross. A path heads off from there towards Birch Tor, passing the first of our Dartmoor 365 squares, Four Aces. These are 4 strangely shaped low walled fields on the slopes of Birch Tor, we sat on one wall for a coffee to enjoy the views towards Princetown. Next was Birch Tor itself, always a superb outcrop and giving lovely views along Challacombe. We then dropped to Chaw Gully passing across the top of the gully and climbing Challacombe Down and its triple stone row. This is only one of two triple stone rows on Dartmoor, and not as easy to see as the one on Cosdon Beacon, due to the vegetation. Before long we hit the top of Challacombe Down and sat for another coffee by the wall. This wall would be visited again later, but it wasn’t planned. We descended back to Chaw Gully, admiring its deep cut into the side of the hillside, a result of the heavy tin mining in this area. Next we headed towards Golden Dagger Mine, along some very soggy paths. Thankfully the running water and boggy ground didn’t last long, and soon we reached the mine buildings of Dinah’s House and the Engine House.

Stopping here for lunch as it was in the sunshine, we explored the buildings, leat and Engine House. Fed and watered we started off again up the path towards Challacombe and Soussons Farm, a gentleman was walking towards us and he stopped and put his bag down, alongside his camera. CAMERA!! I’d left it at the top of Challacombe Down where we sat by the wall!! I was off steeply uphill, to get the camera, 130 metres above me and back to Linda in around 30 mins. Luckily its a very quiet spot and it was still in situ and I was able to visit the two rocky outcrops on Challacombe Down during the return back. The detour had meant we were behind on our walk so we sped off to Soussons Farm and Ephraim’s Pinch, before entering the forest plantation. The sun was getting low as we walked through the dark fir trees before emerging from the forest by the trenches of Vitifer Mines. A quick walk had us at the pub and a much needed pint to regain our strength. It was pretty much dark as we walked the hundred metres to the car, and as we drove the moon and Venus shone brightly above us, we stopped to look and took a photo of the closed Dartmoor prison. Closed due to high levels of radon, which naturally exists in granite and always has. Clowns in charge of the asylum (or prison!).

Start – Bennet’s Cross parking

Route – Bennet’s Cross – Four Aces – Birch Tor – Chaw Gully – Challacombe Stone Row – Challacombe Down – Chaw Gully – Vitifer Mine – Golden Dagger Mine – Soussons Down – Ephraim’s Pinch – Soussons Cairn Circle – Soussons Forest – Vitifer Mine – Warren House Inn

Distance – 8.5 miles  Start time – 11.40am  Time taken – 4hrs 40mins  Highest Point – Birch Tor 487 metres

Weather – Just glorious sunshine