Healthy Ermington Walks
No. 3 – A Winter Warmer - by Chris Wood.
This walk was originally written for a Christmas Parish magazine but can be walked anytime, with options depending on how wet it is underfoot.
Start out from The Square and head up Chapel Street to the top of the village. Take the right fork and carry on uphill to the masts. This is 15mins or so uphill and you feel you have deserved the summit by the time you get there. In the spring the bottom part of the lane is green and white with ransoms (wild garlic) and the top a riot of wild flowers. Even in mid-November a few hardy red campion were still to be seen.
At the top of the hill you can pause to enjoy the views or even return to the village if you feel you’ve done enough. I usually carry on at least as far at Worthele Cross from which there is a great view of Ivybridge and the southern Dartmoor. At this point you can turn left to make a circular walk but the stretch of road towards West Worthele Farm is often flooded after rain despite being so high up. The stretch from the masts to here is a good one of buzzard spotting. They are often wheeling above you, sometimes being harried by crows, but they also perch on high posts and in the top of trees.
If it is dry enough to take the left turn, walk along till you meet the Westlake road and turn left past Tod Moor and through Westlake. This stretch of road has a fair amount of traffic for its size so be careful. After Westlake it is uphill for a bit (keeps you warm) and then down again to Whipple’s Cross. You can turn left down the lane to Ermington (though the sign is missing) but if it is dry enough it is more interesting to carry on another 150 yards down the hill and turn left into an unmade track. This bit can be mucky after rain. The lane is all downhill and the lower part is a sunken lane with the bottom and some of the sides of worn rock (can be slippery). It comes out on the Plymouth road and you turn left and left again up Town Hill to return to The Square.
Distance: 1 to 3 miles
Time: 30mins to 50 mins
Terrain: mostly quiet lanes, some parts can be wet after rain.
Difficulty: A strenuous walk up to the masts but after that it is mostly downhill. No gates or stiles. One stretch is rough underfoot.
