Maiden Down

Here I am in Willand at Great Grandma's again with various opportunities to explore new venues. Perusing my OS 1:25k mapping in Orux I saw "Maiden Down" at top right and made it my objective, via my favourite Uffculme water meadows.

My track, 13 miles, bare foot of course

Maiden Down is a "Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI)" but I could not find out its origin, although here are some historical maps of the area.

There are no rights of way marked on my OS map, but using this site and checking the box "Access Land & Dartmoor Commons" you get the interactive map below which shows "Footpath No. 10" in magenta and Maiden Down as common land. It's amazing the detail you can find on the internet for the UK. Much less in Ireland but it is improving with time.

Without the filter

With the commons filter

Footpath No. 10 was my way of entering Maiden Down. The tail end pointing due east was apparently added recently and has no signage. It led me into rough woodland and I had to plow through long grass. I disturbed some fallow deer before reaching the lake and the track which I followed to exit the area. I climbed over a gate to the public road - looking back it was marked "Private Property Keep Out" which was rather strange having done my homework on common land.

Most generally a "field" is a bounded region of influence. Thus the electric field due to a point charge has infinite bounds. Maiden Down can be regarded as a field with bounds indicated in pale orange in the above map. Given that one starts outside the field, to pass through it one must both enter and exit. If indeed it is Private, surely one ought to be impeded by a fence or notice, etc., both on entry and exit. But this was not the case, indeed is rarely the case in my experience, grounds I use for assuaging any conscience I might have for possibly trespassing.

In my various homework I found this reference to Maiden Down, suggesting that the number and type of livestock that can be freely grazed on this common land is severely limited and does not include myself, but then I did not stop to graze.

Here are my pictures, in reverse chronological order and click-able to view as usual:

Typical Devon lane

The lake in the centre of Maiden Down

Culmstock Beacon visible on horizon by leaf on left

A footpath across farmland that I followed

Chickens too

Another view of Culmstock Beacon

Uffculme water meadows

Closer to Willand