Good Friday on Dartmoor
Friday 7th April 2023
A bit of an ordeal getting the train down to Okehampton amidst the Easter weekend madness but I made it there by not long after 2pm. I walked onto the moor from Okehampton via a different route to last time, following the road rather than the East Okement valley, and headed up onto Oke Tor and Steeperton Tor before heading across the moor to Buttern Hill, where I camped in the stone circle there.
Dartmoor April 2023
John's Pictures

09:27:14
Scenes on arrival at Paddington - people queuing out the door trying to get even a standing space on this train down to Devon I was originally intending to be on. I decided to take an alternative route, via Bristol, and thanks to that cunning bit of improvisation I had a seat the whole way to Okehampton!

10:54:46
Passing through Bath on my detour.

11:04:33
Somewhere between Bath and Bristol?

11:23:45
I changed at Bristol Temple Meads, and was pleased to see they still have a West Cornwall Pasty Co there (they mostly seem to have disappeared in London now) and better still a vegan version of the classic pasty.

11:27:29
Bristol Temple Meads.

11:29:48
This sign was a bit confusing.

12:08:22
A friend is from here so I took a photo as I was passing through to send to him.

14:47:02
Anyway, rail detours aside, I am finally on the moor now! This is on the (military?) road out of Okehampton, heading towwards Oke Tor. Lovely day for it!

14:49:37
Me on the moor.

15:05:48
Still on the road.

15:07:24

15:21:49
I think by this point the road was no longer accessible to cars, and turned into a track, so started to feel gratfiyingly more wild from here on.

15:21:56

15:22:07

15:58:58
The view from Oke Tor, looking towards Belstone Tor.

15:59:03
I think this may be looking across to High Willihays, but don't quote me on that.

15:59:08
More views from Oke Tor.

15:59:12

16:01:22

16:01:27

16:01:34

16:28:41
Now in Steeperton Gorge, where I tried out my Pocket Wellies to ford the river.

16:38:23
Heading up Steeperton Tor.

16:49:59

16:50:03

16:50:07

19:25:11
Much later on, after arriving at Buttern Hill and deciding to set up camp here. I had ridiculously brought along a blowtorch so I could brown the top of the lasagne I was going to attempt to cook (mostly) on a campstove.

19:25:13

19:25:26
The sun disappearing over a hill.

19:26:13
The finished lasagne, I think this wasn't a bad effort considering I had to do it all on a single camping gas stove plus the blowtorch.

19:29:59
The lasagne with a glass of Burgundy.

19:30:52

19:40:56
Still at least a bit of sunset interest remaining.

19:41:00

19:56:46
My tent, next to a couple of tthe stones of the (blink and you'd miss it) stone circle at Buttern Hill.

19:56:51

19:57:19

20:01:01

20:24:07
Getting a bit dark now.

20:24:46
Cosy tent in the gloaming on the moor.

20:25:21

20:26:19

20:26:36

20:50:54
It was a nice clear night so I did some night photography. Orion was very clearly visible.

20:52:03

20:56:48

21:00:36
It seems my phone now generates these short videos when I asked it to do a "Night Sight" photo.

21:01:59

21:04:56

21:09:05
It was lovely sitting here stargazing, I hope the photos give at least a bit of a sense of it.

21:13:12

21:17:56
So many stars visible now!

21:22:05

21:28:11

21:32:17

21:48:32
Really lovely.

21:52:39

23:09:00
A last couple of photos with my tent in before bedtime.

23:09:46
Goodnight from Dartmoor!