Harford/Ugborough Parish Boundstones

This is believed to be the longest line of parish boundstones on Dartmoor stretching from the foot of Western Beacon in the south up to Red Lake in the north. The stones are seldom visited, and this is partly because many of them, especially in the north, are hard to find since they are short and concealed by reeds. Some stones are not marked on OS Maps, but the majority are on either old or modern maps and those between Western Beacon and a point near Sharp Tor are beside a south-north path that passes over Butterdon and Piles Hills. With thanks to Mark Fenlon and Mike Brown's knowledge, as well as using those old maps, Max Piper with Paul Rendell in 2020 were able to successfully locate all of the stones barring one (at Hook Lake) which hadn't been found anyway. Almost all of these boundstones are blank, some even recumbent and many clearly neglected in the far north on Brown Heath where you must look out for the clump of reeds to see a small stone nestled within them! A couple of the stones at Left Lake are uncertain locations and may have been destroyed during the clay work operations, but there are small stones that are candidates. The southernmost stone, and No.01, is the only natural boundary point, and three are cairns (all on Butterdon). Of those stones inscribed, there is usually a 'U' and a 'H' denoting each parish. If you decide to visit these stones, it is not easy, and a GPS will be required to locate those smaller stones where a 10-figure NGR is necessary. The ground in the north is tussock and tough going, especially between Hook Lake and Brown Heath; it could be potentially dangerous for the ankles! The easiest stones to visit and view are in the south around Black Pool.

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