As we drove to Bovey Tracey the trees were bright with the autumn leaves. We decided to stop at Parke so we could walk through the woodland at the side of the river. The colours were spectacular.
After a lunch at the Fox and Hounds we walked up the track at the side of this pub to Rattlebrook Railway. There were great views in the distance and below we could see the river wind along the valley. The heather was just coming out and this made the path even prettier. We noticed some metal remains from the railway sticking out of the ground. We continued walking for about 40 minutes gradually walking up the stony path. We did not reach the the points where it changed direction but decided to turn around as it was rather a boring walk and there were dark clouds looming.
The weather has been so wet, with rain and snow, that Dartmoor is sodden and we thought we had best walk on defined paths. We parked just outside Hexworthy and walked down the road that led to Swincombe Reservoir. The path was fine but we could not venture off the path as the ground was so wet and marshy. As we walked down we missed the entrance to Gobbett Mine, although we saw it on the way back. We could also see the ruins of mine buildings, but we did not see the various stones as it was too wet to go exploring off the path. We walked on to the bridge the led to John Bishop's house. We were able to follow a path to the bridge but the other side was to boggy to be able to get close to ruins. Referring to "An hours stroll on Dartmoor" by John Hayward we learnt that this bridge is called Fairy Bridge. There was so much water in the river that we could not see the ford or stepping stone. On our way back we walked up the bridleway to Doll...
Reading through "Dartmoor 365" by John Hayward I was surprised there is no entry for square T6. There is certainly plenty to see here. The river Plym flows through this part of Dartmoor. At Cadover Bridge it is wide and shallow making it a popular, safe place for children to play. You can walk along the bank of the river and very quickly it looks all together different. The river runs faster as it tumbles over granite rocks, roaring as it goes.
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