Last week I set off from Princetown, following the course of the old Princetown Railway. On my bike I had my tent, and two full panniers, as I was planning on camping overnight.
As the route isn’t particularly long, I set off fairly late in the day. It was a Monday, and I finished work early (but then, I tend to start work at 06:00 on Mondays). I picked a Monday specifically because I know I was unlikely to encounter many people.
Under mostly clear, blue skies, with just a handful of puffy clouds in the sky, I set off, with a smile on my face.
Downhill
From Princetown, the old railway is a steady downhill, with a very mild gradient. For much of the ride along the old railway I didn’t have to do much pedalling, despite the fairly rough surface. I diverted a little, to visit the siding that used to serve Swelltor Quarry.
Next to the old railway, there are 12 granite corbels. They’re nearly complete, and were carved well over 100 years ago, to widen London Bridge. Yes, the very London Bridge the nursery rhyme is about. The bridge itself was built from granite quarried at Haytor, over to the east of Dartmoor. The history of the bridge is very interesting (the first bridge was built by the Romans!)
Burrator
Once I made it to near Burrato reservoir, the easy riding was behind me. I headed up the rough track (called the Widowmaker by many) that leads towards Nun’s Cross.
That track is very rough! In places, there are loose rocks the size of bowling balls. The surface is mostly sandy, with plenty of loose rocks. While I’ve cycled it before, on a mountain bike, I was on my touring bike, with panniers, and I had to get off and push my bike several times.
Crazywell Pool
Of course, my destination wasn’t Princetown, but rather Crazywell Pool. The pool is thought to be man-made, and a left-over from the days of tin-mining on Dartmoor, though nobody can say so for certain.
It is, however, the source of plenty of wild stories. Some people claim the water level rises and falls with the tides in the English Channel, which is obviously nonsense. Others claim it’s bottomless, which again is clearly false.
My favourite legend about Crazywell Pool claims that, if you looked into the waters of the pool at midnight, on midsummer’s eve, you will see reflected the face of the next member of the local parish to die. I tested that out several years ago, and cycled out there, at midnight, on midsummer’s eve, but it was raining so heavily I couldn’t seen any reflection of any sort!
As it was very windy, I pitched my tent in a gully, brewed some coffee, and cooked my meal. Afterwards, with not a soul around, I went for a delicious skinny dip.
A disturbed night
Remember I said I picked a Monday, cos I expected there’d be nobody around? I woke to voices at around 01:30. I heard two men talking, and it sounded like they were just above the gully where my tent was. After a while, I could hear them wandering off.
Then, at around 03:30, I woke to the voices of at least two women, and by then it was light enough to I could just make out their shapes, as they walked along the rough track, towards Burrator.
That surprised me, as I genuinely didn’t expect anyone there. Crazywell Pool is easy to reach, and is therefore a favourite wild-swimming spot. Over summer weekends, it’s quite common to see a number of people camping there. That’s exactly why I picked a Monday – to avoid the crowds!
Crazywell Pool lies outside the part of Dartmoor where camping is legal, but I won’t tell if you don’t!
Rough Stuff
The track up to Nun’s Cross Trail was rough, and I did more pushing than actual riding. Once I got to the crossroads, I could turn right and descend to Nun’s Cross itself, go straight, then follow a tarred laned to Princetown, or turn left.
I turned left, and cycled the rest of the way to Princetown.
Unfortunately, I must’ve done something wrong, as my camera didn’t record the first day’s riding at all, and annoyingly, my camera fogged up. That meant the second day’s riding was caught on camera, but of poor quality. That simply means I’ll have to go do it all over again!
You
Time spent in wild places is so good for you, so you should really try and go wild camping!