About this walk

The recent and overdue induction of former poet laureate, Ted Hughes’, into Westminster Abbey’s Poet’s Corner, was my inspiration for a classic walk into northern Dartmoor’s brooding centre.

High upon Dartmoor’s rough bounds lies a simple granite rock which from a distance appears as a natural feature on the landscape. However, closer inspection reveals the stone’s secret. Inscribed are the words:
Ted Hughes OM….1930-1998.

For the stereotypical dour north countyman who became one of the nation’s greatest poets, it was the rolling expanses of Devon in ‘the soft south’ which became his spiritual home.

Distances

14.5km (9miles)

Time

5-6 hours

Start/Finish

Scorhill Car Park (SX661878)

Suitable For

Fit and Experienced hikers (see ‘alternatives’)

Map

OS Explorer OL28

Public Transport

None to Scorhill. The nearest hub accessible by public transport is Chagford, 4km away, served by the four-times daily 173 service from Exeter (note no Sunday service).
Literature: Get in the mood with Hughes’ Moortown Diary or The Hawk in the Rain.