A WELCOME addition to the library of those in West Devon who love to get out into the great outdoors has just been published by Halsgrove — the latest in the 'A Boot Up' series by John Earle.

Dartmoor's Sites of Magic and Mystery includes ten leisure walks of discovery on the moors, ranging from just under a mile to five miles, all of them based around folklore connected with the locality in which they are situated. Packed with full colour photographs, they are not only a great way to explore the sights and sounds of Dartmoor, they are an interesting read and crammed with facts — and a few fables.

For example, the very first walk in the book — a four-and-a-half mile round trek across moorland and fields on one of the highest parts of Dartmoor — is entitled 'The Body in the Chest'.

This tale concerns the Warren House Inn and a traveller who stopped for shelter during terrible snowstorms. Having been shown to his room, the poor man spent a sleepless night after discovering a body hidden in a chest — only to be told next morning it was 'Grand fer' — who had died a few weeks before, 'salted down' like the bacon because the ground was too hard to bury him!

Then there is the story of the phantom Roman soldiers said to haunt the high ground above Lustleigh Cleave. Only seen on bright, moonlit nights, they are reputed to march in close formation across the granite summit in full military dress, standards flying, battle calls floating out from the rocks. It's a sight not likely to be seen by walkers exploring the three-and-a-half mile trek unless they decide to do it at night — what they will be guaranteed are some of the most superb views from this eastern side of the moor.

All the walks in the book are given a 'boot up' grading of one to three depending on their degree of difficulty, though none in this particular edition are very challenging.

There is also a brief description of the terrain the walker will encounter, map references for parking and details of the nearest pit-stop for refreshments. Most of the walks are circular, which is handy — as is the size of the book, which will happily fit into a back pocket or small bumbag.

Dartmoor's Sites of Magic and Mystery is available from bookshops priced £4.99, ISBN 978-0-85710-038-2

Jane Honey