We had a good day as it stayed dry, while we were out on the ramble. With the ground being so wet we had to modify our route, so did not complete the circular route planned. We had heavy rain on both journeys, to and from the Tamar Trails car park.

A FEW PHOTOS ON THE AVON DAM WALK

On Tuesday 23rd May we did a regular WAG’s reconnoitre, starting from Princetown to Foggintor and Sweltor Quarries. We were joined by a local company, who supply mobility equipment. They wanted to test 3 All Terrain Powerchairs, one failed within 0.5 miles, but the other 2 did very well. While we did not complete the whole route, we did manage to traverse a long flooded section of track near Foggintor Quarry. The water has been to deep for the mobility scooters in the past, but this time it was ok but had to be treated with care.

A FEW PHOTOS FROM WAGS LATEST RECONNOITRE

I wanted to check out a few details for the Level One ramble, I had arranged for 17th June. We had lunch at the Brookside cafe, before doing the Wray Trail as far as Lustleigh.

On the 17th June the weather was so hot we stayed on the track, managed by the National Trust Parke Estate. The trees provided plenty of shade, and not doing the lane too Lustleigh.

Swans Nest for Lunch then on to Powderham (10/6/22)

The Title says it all, we went to the Swans Nest for lunch. After lunch we headed to Powderham, were we stopped for a coffee. On the way home we were surprised to a helicopter in the garden of the Turf Hotel.

WAGs Reconnoitre of Wigford Down and Dewerstone (14/6/22)

This route across Wigford Down to the Dewerstone Rocks, turned out to be extremely difficult. We had a lovely clear sunny day, so the views over Plymouth Sound and the Tamar Valley were really good.

As always we stopped at the Twisted Oak on the way home, having another good meal.

Level one ramble Shipley Bridge to Avon Dam

This was my organised Level one walk for MAY. It was mostly overcast but not to cold.

Afternoon run to one of the ponds at RSPB Matford Marshes

Gill and I did the short trip to one of the ponds at Matford Marshes, with a flask and enjoying the sunshine.

Sunday Lunch trip to the Puffing Billy Exton.

We went down to Estuary by Exton Station after our lunch in the Puffing Billy.

Wags public ramble from Belstone.

We went into the Taw Valley today, starting from Belstone. This was a WAGs organised ramble, which due to water erosion was a lot rougher than when we did the route last year.

Digby Estate via Ludwell Valley

We go to the MS Centre on the Digby Estate, for a massage as part of our pain management. As it was a lovely day we decided to take a picnic lunch, which we enjoyed in a park on the Estate. We were serenaded by the Blackbird, perched at the top of a Birch tree for about 20 minutes while we had our picnic

While upto 90% of the route was good, the difficult bits were very difficult. We tried to find a route to the west of Pew Tor, but had to turn round and take the path to the east of Pew Tor. Although we managed to find a route, short sections were so difficult, it’s not suitable to be included in the walking festival.

All 5 of us on mobility scooters went up on 2 wheels, a few times today. But luckily no one tipped over.

Despite the cold wind when we got back to the car park, some of us enjoyed an ice cream from the van.

Gill and I as usual stopped off at the Twisted Oak, for our evening meal.

Gill was unable to come so I joined the others on my own, but Gill would have struggled as the tracks were very rough. Mainly caused by animal hoof prints made when wet, then drying very hard. The Moorland Guides take credit for most of todays photos, as I left my camera at home. Although we had a lovely clear sunny day, with excellent visibility, there was a bitterly cold east wind.

On the Bank Holiday Monday we met at Yelverton for a short walk to Grenofen Tunnel, to mark the official opening of the Dartmoor Way. Which is a 108 mile route around the outer edges of Dartmoor.

We did a circuit of Harrowbeer Airfield, with the moorland guide pointing out various points of interest. With the Airfield being so close to Dartmoor, it is prone to low cloud / mist. They would fire mortars above the cloud layer, so that pilots knew where the airfield was.

The weather was a typical bank holiday grey overcast day, with a few very light rain showers. But we did not let it spoil our day, it was nice and dry when we stopped for lunch.

A lovely show of Bluebells alongside Drakes Trail, which is now part of the new Dartmoor Way.

For those who are interested the mobility scooter in some of the photos, is based on the Segway principle. Lean forward to travel forwards and lean back to reverse.

For a change we had a meal in the slow cooker ready for us when we got home, which is a change from our normal routine. More details of the new route Dartmoor Way, can be found on the internet. There is a 108 mile walking route and a 95 mile cycle route.

Due to the uneven ground and lumps of granite, we had to zigzag our way up to Hound Tor.

It was quite a steep decent from the Tor down to the Settlement, but all the buggies coped well with the climb back up to Hound Tor.

Gill had to drop out of this reconnoitre, due to a mechanical problem with her buggy, which has been resolved.

As usual Gill and I stopped at the Twisted Oak, after a lovely but tiring day up on Dartmoor.

It was a lovely sunny day, and being in a steep sided valley, we were sheltered from the wind

The grassy areas are covered in yellow, with the Daffodils. Which will be replaced with the blue of the bluebells, and the white of the wild Garlic. After the Bluebells the Bracken  takes over, which is nowhere near as attractive.

After a lovely lunch stop we headed for the Viewpoint in Meadhaydown Wood, which involves a long steep climb. We had to stop a couple of times on the way up, to prevent the buggies from over heating.

When we had reached the top, one of the buggies cut out, and would not work at all. It was decided to free wheel the buggy back down the hill. One walker alongside the buggy, operating the brake, with two other walkers behind using a tow rope as additional braking on the steep path.

Once we were all safely down in the valley, the buggy was towed back to the road. We all had a lovely day out, despite the mechanical problems. The buggy that broke down is 25 years old, and did not like climb.

Gill and I did our usual thing after a day out, stopping for a meal at the Twisted Oak on the way home. As usual we enjoyed the meal, along with the friendly atmosphere.

Today we had a small group, four on mobility scooters and two walkers. It was an overcast day with a strong cold wind, but it was dry.

Although it was overcast the visibility was very good so we were able to enjoy the views.

As a result of the reconnoitre we have a couple of options for the walking festival depending how many turn up for the walk.

Where we can go around Swelltor Quarry is limited by the amount of rocks on some of the paths.

As usual Gill and I finished the day out with a meal at the Twisted Oak, before heading home.

After several minutes searching in the rain, we found the mortar tube, which is a circular metal tube less than a foot high, and about 8 inches in Diameter. As the area is prone to mist and low cloud, they would fire the mortars to let the pilots know where the airfield was.

We then moved to the area around the Bomb loading ramp, which was sheltered from the wind, so we stopped for lunch. The rain eased while we stopped for lunch, so the rest of the day was a lot drier.

The last hour of our exploration was done in bright sunshine, but showers were not too far away as the faint rainbow shows. Gill and I are now getting into pre covid routines, stopping at the Twisted Oak for a meal on the way home.