The Storyteller: New clues lead me to the scene of Dartmoor’s most famous legend

As regular readers will know, when I’m not leading ghost walks, taking visitors on tours of the moors or furthering my research into Dartmoor folklore, you can find me there, engaging in my all-consuming pastime, letterboxing.

Imagine my excitement when I received the latest updates with the new boxes being released, finding clues to a set based around the story of Kitty Jay, the most famous Dartmoor legend of all.

Not only that, but it is also on a 2 mile route that passes through the area where her grave is located. I just had to go and find her at the first opportunity. I took a break from the task of distributing posters for my next events and, as the weather was fine, with the clues I had received just two days before, I set off for Hound Tor, the best starting point for the walk.

I pulled on my boots and left the car park, passing Swallerton Gate Cottage. Taking the right turn, I soon came to the gate leading to Hayne Down. There the first two boxes lay hidden within sight of Bowerman’s Nose, the rock pillar that is the fate of the huntsman who dared to anger the local witches who gathered at this spot among the Hayne Down Rocks. He was turned to stone as punishment, while his hounds made it to where Hound Tor now stands, for that was their fate too.

As I searched among the rocks, I felt a certain chill as I imagined the presence of the strange sisters from all those years ago… but who’s to say witches don’t still gather there today? After all, it’s part of my newly named Witches’ Triangle, made up of traces of spells I found on Jay’s grave, possibly as part of the worship of Hecate, the pagan goddess whose job it is to watch over the crossroads and the dead.

The Hayne Down Rocks form the other tip of the base, while the top is on Easdon Tor, the stomping ground of Granny Mann, the White Witch of North Bovey, who performed her rituals with the help of her ‘friend’, a human skull, now on display in the Boscastle Witchcraft Museum among the rocks at the foot of the hill under a rising full moon…

Finding the first box, I struggled with the second, but made an unexpected find in the process, which contained a beautiful depiction of Bowerman’s nose itself. My persistence had paid off, and it was time to bridge the gap between the two sections of the walk, from Hayne Down to Cripdon Down via a well-trodden path that led me to a stone wall.

A well-placed stepladder allowed me to hop across easily, as it also revealed the location of crate number three. The next two were to be found among the rocky outcrops on the northern edge of the Down, a location I had recently visited while searching for a crate from another set I had collected, which revolved around the Sacred Pools on Dartmoor.

I passed the pond in question and soon reached the rocky outcrops. There I was able to find boxes four and five quite easily. From this vantage point you can see some buildings in the landscape which are of particular interest to a folklorist such as myself.

Just below the Downs are the buildings of Canna Farm, where Kitty lived and worked and later hanged herself in despair at the predicament she found herself in.

Looking east you can see the tower of Manaton Church rising above the trees, a wonderful example of a moorland church which I have visited many times, with its barrel vaulted ceiling and rood screen with the vandalised depictions of saints which the Puritans under Oliver Cromwell so vehemently opposed.

After finishing my photo shoot, it was time to move on to box number six, which was located on another ledge on the south side of the Downs.

The clue contained a bearing to nearby Heatree House, a children’s leisure centre. Throughout my walk across the Down to the rocks I was accompanied by the sounds of children playing, presumably coming from the grounds of the house. As it is surrounded by trees I could see no one and as it was now evening I wondered if the sounds were actually coming from the living room… perhaps the germ of an idea for a Christmas ghost story…

After finding box six, it was time to head to the final two, both of which were located near the tomb itself. To get there, I figured the road would be the easiest way, so I began to head down from the ledge. As I ducked under some low hanging branches on the bank above said road, a deer stood in front of me, contently nibbling on the vegetation in the opposite wall. I froze so as not to spook it, and slowly reached for my phone to try and take a photo. It looked up, sniffed, and, sensing my scent, hopped gracefully back over the wall and disappeared into the trees beyond, unfortunately before I could get my photo.

In box seven was the guest book, and I suddenly felt like I was taking part in the TV series Race Across the World. Could I be the first to sign up? The newness of all the stamps made me excited, and indeed I was! So I stamped my personal stamps and left a little message in a brand new book.

When I found the last stamp within sight of the grave, my set was complete and with the bonus find, making a total of nine, I was satisfied with the day’s haul.

After paying my respects at the grave, I walked back to the car, content in the knowledge that I had found a new favorite walk that I would like to share with others.

If this article has inspired you to follow in my footsteps, my work here is done. Or if you want to find the stamps yourself, perhaps starting out in the letterboxing hobby for the first time, contact me via my email address ([email protected]) and I will be happy to pass your details on to the owner so he can send you the clues. As we say in the industry… Happy searching!