A Dam Fine Afternoon

Ok, so Neil and our blogs will have a somewhat similar theme for a few days. With Neil 'on holiday' and ourselves emigrating, we are trying to get to see the best bits of our local area before we go our separate ways.

Any of you who read Neil's blog regularly may have already seen his pics of our afternoon out today. We decided on Avon Dam mainly because Tesco was on the way home and that the path is tarmac and would be dry (for the most part). We haven't been for a few years so it was nice to re-acquaint ourselves with this hidden Dartmoor gem.

We also didn't remember the walk being as long as it was either! However, this was the first day of summer weather for quite some time (although shorts were not quite the order of the day), and the walk was worth it. The river was crashing with intent down the wooded valley as we walked up the meandering path towards the dam. When we approached the dam, the noise of the river was somewhat drowned out by the sound of a full reservoir overspilling down a giant concrete staircase. As you passed the dam the noise disappeared and you were left with a tranquil view of the lake itself, and the barren yellow-green Dartmoor slopes behind.



We wandered on to the brook halfway along the east side and sat in the warm sunshine, watching the fluffy clouds pass overhead and listen to the gentle trickle of the brook. Aaaaah Devon. It did resemble a little of a few Alpine walks in places too, with the open moor and streams, which was a nice reminder of our new life to come!