dialect | Life in the English Cotswolds

A riverside path heading north from the village of Postbridge, famed for its ancient clapper bridge, leads into the heart of the moor. The bridge dates back at least to the fourteenth century and some of the slabs weigh over eight tons. The ‘modern’ bridge in the background was built as recently as 1780.

At the point where the river turns abruptly westwards are the remains of a beehive hut. These were used mostly for storage and, compared to many of Dartmoor’s archaeological features which date back millennia, are also of more recent origin and date from the 1500’s. They ‘disappear’ into the moorland features but are clearly visible once you know where to look.

Walking further onto the moor and leaving the river behind are the low grey shapes of the Grey Wethers double stone circle. Sitting close to Sittaford Tor, they are so named for their resemblance to sheep, ‘wether’ being the Old English name for a castrated male sheep. A tale, often repeated, is of a traveller stopping off at the remote Warren House Inn (where this walk started and will end) who complained of the poor quality sheep in the district. After a drink or two, he was led to the circles and in the mist mistook the stones for sheep and bought them, only to discover later that he had been fooled.

The two circles of Grey Wethers appear to the eye as one shaped as a figure of eight but an aerial view shows them to be quite separate to one another, sitting side by side. The circles are of similar size and lie on a north-south axis although whether this is of relevance is unknown. Numerous theories abound: perhaps the meeting place of two separate groups of people, or possibly they represent life and death. When excavations took place in 1909 a thick layer of ash was found to cover their centres but, again, the purpose of this is unknown.

From Grey Wethers the walk back to the Warren House Inn skirted the edge of Fernworthy Forest. Hidden behind the trees is Fernworthy reservoir, created by damming the South Teign River. When water levels are low the remains of an old farm can be seen, as can the remains of a small clapper bridge, drowned reminders of life on the moor in times past.

the remote Warren House Inn

Ask those that know Exmoor – England’s smallest National Park – to conjure up just one image of it and you would get a number of different answers. For some it is the wild ponies, others the rushing streams but mostly the answer would be the sea or the moorland. On Exmoor you are never very far from either.

At this time of year the moors are, perhaps, at their very best: awash with a purple haze of heather in bloom, speckled with the yellow flowers of furze – the local dialect word for gorse. During the cooler months, however, the heather looks very different, drab browns and greens giving no hint of the glory to come.

The heather is an important resource for animals whether it is food for the ponies, sheep or cattle that roam the open spaces or the deer. In the past – they died out in 1969 – black grouse fed here too, the record of their existence recorded in place names such as Heath Poult Cross, heath poult being the dialect word for the grouse. For other birds that nest close to the ground the heather protects them with its cover.

Although at a glance the heather all looks the same, there are three types, quite easily distingushable when in flower. Cross-leaved Heath (Erica tetralix) has paler flower clusters at the top of the stems; Bell Heather (Erica cinerea) is a rich crimson-purple in flower whereas the true Heather or Ling (Calluna vulgaris) is softer both in colouring and appearance. Together, they blend to create a colour mix of shadow and light.

To keep the heather moorland in good order, controlled burning is carried out once the plants have become old and woody, an ancient method called swaling. Only selected areas are burned, usually on a five to ten year cycle between October and early April.

The fires are watched carefully, not just to prevent their spreading to other areas but to ensure that the rootstock is not damaged from which the new, tender shoots soon grow. The burning of the moor is both exciting and interesting to watch for the smoke can be seen for many miles. It is difficult to imagine when the stems are blackened and charred that life will ever return. The photograph below shows the regrowth after four years.

Exmoor has the highest cliffs in England and these are made even more dramatic by the moorland which extends to their edge, the heather even clinging to the steep sides as they tumble to the sea, caring little for the salt-laden winds that continually buffet them. On a sunny day in August the combination of blue sea, purple heather, yellow gorse and blue sky, combined with Exmoor’s splendid views, is a sight rarely forgotten.