Frequently Asked Questions

	How does the Dartmoor Explorer work?
	Where is Dartmoor?
	How big are the Moors?
	Are the moors dangerous?
	The 'Stannary' parliament?
	Who is the author?
	Future developments.

How does the Dartmoor Explorer work?

The Dartmoor Explorer gives you a virtual tour of Dartmoor.

• Click on the 'Home' symbol on the top right of any page to restart.
• From the home page click on the quadrant of the moor you wish to 'Explore'.
• A more detailed map of that quadrant is shown with 'hotspots' indicated in light green. Clicking on any of the 'hotspots' will take you to a page with a photograph of that place, its Grid Reference and bearing.
• On most of the photographs are small red triangles, these are further clickable 'hotspots'.
• Triangles that point to the borders of the photograph will generally give you another view from the same spot, (an alternate bearing).
• Triangles that point to something in the photograph will allow you to click through to that point, to see the view from there.
• Now you are on your very own virtual tour; that you control.

Where is Dartmoor?

The Dartmoor National Park, which came into existence in 1951, is in the south west of Devon.
Devon is a county in the south west of England.

How big are the Moors?

360 square miles approximately, with granite Tors to 2000ft.
It is the last great wilderness of England.
Mining, farming and the weather have each left their scars on the landscape.

Are the moors dangerous?

The short answer is yes, both natural and man made.
The moors are famous for their bogs, and these run very deep.
Briefly there are four types

• Blanket
• Raised
• Valley
• Feather bed

The 'Stannary' Parliament?

This very local parliament sat, at Crocken Tor, 700 years ago from the 14th to the 17th centuries. There are still four Stannary towns:

• Tavistock
• Chagford
• Ashburton
• Plympton

The parliament met to make and enforce the laws. They enforced them with particular relish and many a misdemeanour resulted in a short stay at the Stannary gaol in Lydford, followed by execution.

Who is the Author.

Fred Mayne. A former Business systems analyst, I now teach IT. I downshifted from Essex to southwest Devon in the mid 80's, and have walked the moors regularly since the late 80's. Photo July 2006

The great joy of Dartmoor is that you can go for a walk on a glorious August bank holiday and there is virtually not a soul about. This is possibly due to Arthur Conan Doyle and the Prison. When I tell people that I live in the Dartmoor National Park you can guarantee that the conversation will turn to convicts, the Baskervilles, and mist. I tend not to disabuse them of their prejudices and encourage them to drive directly to Cornwall. This leaves Dartmoor as a place where you can still enjoy solitude out of doors; and nowadays that is a rare privilege.

Why have I created this web site?
Firstly it gives a purpose and structure to the walks for the next few years. Secondly: it's a useful and I believe an appropriate project for the Web.
I hope you find them interesting and informative. It has been a pleasure creating these pages.

Acknowledgements.
To my wife Diane who is very understanding about my other great love..... Dartmoor.

To my good friend Tony Claridge who introduced me to the moors. I am grateful for his companionship ever since we first met; both aged 5. Photo July 2006

Future Developments.

This site will never be complete.
The first priority is to put more information about the northeast of the moor. Then there are a whole range of themes that can be added:

• Antiquities: Stone rows, Standing stones, Circles, cairns, crosses
• Industry: Mining, railways
• Tourism: Guided walks, DNPA, Cycle paths, the major tourist spots

All of these themes are interconnected, and this is the medium to illustrate that, but it takes time to build.