Drizzlecombe
Megalithic complex
SX 592 671
Further to the NW are three cists, one of which is in very good condition and has a large capstone tilted upright.
The cist and capstone
To the north of the three cairns are two pounds (enclosures) with hut circles inside and around them. These enclosures are quite large indication fair numbers of inhabitants in the area. Finally heading back down there is the Giant’s Basin, a large cairn mound some 70ft across and 10ft high (21.6 x 3m) making it one of Dartmoor’s largest cairns. A pleasant place to sit and take in the scenery.
The row to the SE cairn circle
The rows run up the gentle SW slope beside the stream and all are in much the same direction. The terminal stones were re-erected in 1893 in hollows assumed to be their sockets.
The row to the central cairn circle
The stones in the rows are small, varying from the just visible to about 0.5m and appear to have been selected for their slab like shapes allowing them to be set with their long axes aligned along the row. These stones are probably all local but the tall standing stones were possibly carried from Higher Hartor Tor 1km to the NE.
View of Dartmoor
We arrived quite late in the day as the fog was too thick to drive all morning so we were too late to visit Yellowmead the same day from the same car park as we spent a long time at Drizzlecombe anyway. A lovely walk and beautiful scenery but there are some very wet places.
Oct
2001