Devon


<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="1250" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/devon/wp-content/uploads/sites/14/2025/03/RockIdols-cover-HR4.jpg" alt="Rock Idols by Sophie Pierce and Alex Murdin " class="wp-image-74608" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/devon/wp-content/uploads/sites/14/2025/03/RockIdols-cover-HR4.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/devon/wp-content/uploads/sites/14/2025/03/RockIdols-cover-HR4-640x800.jpg 640w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/devon/wp-content/uploads/sites/14/2025/03/RockIdols-cover-HR4-800x1000.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/devon/wp-content/uploads/sites/14/2025/03/RockIdols-cover-HR4-768x960.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p>Former BBC Devon journo and photographer, <a href="http://www.sophiepierce.co.uk" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Sophie Pierce</a>, known for her wonderful wild swimming books, has a brilliant new book out this spring. This time she&#8217;s turned her attention inland to Dartmoor, and specifically the 250 million year-old granite outcrops which stud our National Park. </p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="667" height="1000" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/devon/wp-content/uploads/sites/14/2025/03/Sophie-Pierce-and-Alex-Murdin-CREDIT-EMMA-STONER-Medium-size--667x1000.jpg" alt="Sophie Pierce and Alex Murdin credit Emma Stoner " class="wp-image-74611" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/devon/wp-content/uploads/sites/14/2025/03/Sophie-Pierce-and-Alex-Murdin-CREDIT-EMMA-STONER-Medium-size--667x1000.jpg 667w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/devon/wp-content/uploads/sites/14/2025/03/Sophie-Pierce-and-Alex-Murdin-CREDIT-EMMA-STONER-Medium-size--533x800.jpg 533w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/devon/wp-content/uploads/sites/14/2025/03/Sophie-Pierce-and-Alex-Murdin-CREDIT-EMMA-STONER-Medium-size--768x1152.jpg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/devon/wp-content/uploads/sites/14/2025/03/Sophie-Pierce-and-Alex-Murdin-CREDIT-EMMA-STONER-Medium-size-.jpg 1000w" sizes="(max-width: 667px) 100vw, 667px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Sophie Pierce and Alex Murdin/Credit Emma Stoner</figcaption></figure>



<p><em><a href="https://wildthingspublishing.com/product/rock-idols-dartmoor/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Rock Idols: A Guide to Dartmoor in 28 Tors</a></em> (Wild Things Publishing, 1 April 2025, £14.99) is a collab between Sophie and her artist husband, <a href="https://lithicality.space" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Alex Murdin</a>, who has created the atmospheric illustrations to accompany the words.</p>



<p>As you&#8217;d expect from someone who has brought the joy of Devon and Dorset&#8217;s best wild swimming spots to so many, the guide is filled with personal insights from the pair&#8217;s first-hand exploration. There&#8217;s loads of detail on what you&#8217;ll find there and the features around it, along with background on the folklore and history. Usefully, they have also included photos and maps to help you find them, and where to park nearby &#8211; always a boon. Plus, they advise on good times of the year to visit, for example, at bluebell time. </p>



<p>Over to Sophie to tell us more.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-hi-sophie-congrats-on-the-new-book-we-re-loving-the-title">Hi Sophie, congrats on the new book &#8211; we&#8217;re loving the title!</h2>



<p>In one of the first guidebooks to Dartmoor, <em>A Perambulation of the Ancient and Royal Forest of Dartmoor</em> (1848), the author Samuel Rowe described the tors as &#8216;rock idols&#8217;, noting that people believed them to be worshipped by the Druids. They radiate poetry and power &#8211; the tors are compelling!</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-there-are-hundreds-of-tors-how-did-you-decide-which-to-write-about">There are hundreds of tors &#8211; how did you decide which to write about ?</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="1415" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/devon/wp-content/uploads/sites/14/2025/03/luckey-tor.jpeg" alt="Luckey Tor by Alex Murdin " class="wp-image-74627" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/devon/wp-content/uploads/sites/14/2025/03/luckey-tor.jpeg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/devon/wp-content/uploads/sites/14/2025/03/luckey-tor-565x800.jpeg 565w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/devon/wp-content/uploads/sites/14/2025/03/luckey-tor-707x1000.jpeg 707w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/devon/wp-content/uploads/sites/14/2025/03/luckey-tor-768x1087.jpeg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Luckey Tor/Alex Murdin</figcaption></figure>



<p>We started with some of our favourites, for example Luckey Tor, which is a very unusual one, because it’s down on the banks of the River Dart, sequestered in the trees &#8211; rather like Sleeping Beauty’s castle. We chose Great Mis Tor because of its awesome views. Then we wanted to have a good geographical spread; showing the amazingly different range of the Dartmoor landscape. Some of them were irresistible because of their names, for example Devil’s Tor, and others were chosen because of their extraordinary appearance, for example Watern Tor, or fabulous mythology or history, for example Crockern Tor. &nbsp;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-is-it-about-the-tors-that-inspires-alex">What is it about the tors that inspires Alex?</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1500" height="951" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/devon/wp-content/uploads/sites/14/2025/03/sharpitor2.jpg" alt="spread from Rock idols by Sophie Pierce and Alex Murdin " class="wp-image-74616" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/devon/wp-content/uploads/sites/14/2025/03/sharpitor2.jpg 1500w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/devon/wp-content/uploads/sites/14/2025/03/sharpitor2-800x507.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/devon/wp-content/uploads/sites/14/2025/03/sharpitor2-1000x634.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/devon/wp-content/uploads/sites/14/2025/03/sharpitor2-768x487.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px" /></figure>



<p>For him, it&#8217;s partly about just&nbsp;enjoying the&nbsp;wonderful colours and textures of the stone and lichen, and the dramatic shapes that they make against the skyline, sinuous, powerful and bold. But also the tors fire the imagination, when you look at them for long enough the&nbsp;rocks start to become faces and figures, inspiration for lots of the myth and folklore about Dartmoor we talk about in the book. A good example&nbsp;is Vixen Tor which some say is shaped like a fox, others say it looks like the Sphinx of Eygpt.&nbsp;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-any-particular-tor-folklore-that-stands-for-you">Any particular tor folklore that stands for you?</h2>



<p>The Dewerstone, which is the most enormous tor, has inspired the legend of the Dewer – or Devil – who rides his black stallion at night, accompanied by his pack of vicious wisht hounds; together they drive hapless humans off the top of the Dewerstone to their deaths below.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tips-for-tor-hunters">Tips for tor hunters?</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="634" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/devon/wp-content/uploads/sites/14/2025/03/map-1000x634.jpg" alt="spread from Rock Idols by Sophie Pierce and Alex Murdin " class="wp-image-74617" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/devon/wp-content/uploads/sites/14/2025/03/map-1000x634.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/devon/wp-content/uploads/sites/14/2025/03/map-800x507.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/devon/wp-content/uploads/sites/14/2025/03/map-768x487.jpg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/devon/wp-content/uploads/sites/14/2025/03/map.jpg 1500w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p>Well, we can recommend a very good guide!&nbsp; Probably the best way to appreciate the tors is to take your time and really look.&nbsp;They really are the most extraordinary natural monoliths, and perhaps many of us don’t realise how spectacular they are.&nbsp;It&#8217;s fun to look for their special features too; things like rock basins on the top of tors, which are naturally formed pools through erosion.&nbsp; The rock basins too have been the source of lurid legends over the years, including that the Druids used them to hold blood from human sacrifices…&nbsp;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-any-advice-for-working-with-your-other-half">Any advice for working with your other half?</h2>



<p>I find selective hearing comes in very handy… No seriously, it was a wonderful experience working with Alex on the book. We researched it between January and September 2024, doing numerous field trips out onto the remotest parts of Dartmoor, which was a really fun thing to do together.&nbsp;We became very adept at making delicious packed lunches. Obviously there was the occasional artistic difference/tantrum which is only to be expected with two creatives, so nothing out of the ordinary there!&nbsp;We would certainly do it again, there are certainly enough tors left for <em>Rock Idols 2</em>.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-until-then-what-s-next-for-you">Until then&#8230;what’s next for you?</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="1415" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/devon/wp-content/uploads/sites/14/2025/03/crockern-tor.jpeg" alt="Crockern Tor or by  Alex Murdin " class="wp-image-74628" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/devon/wp-content/uploads/sites/14/2025/03/crockern-tor.jpeg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/devon/wp-content/uploads/sites/14/2025/03/crockern-tor-565x800.jpeg 565w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/devon/wp-content/uploads/sites/14/2025/03/crockern-tor-707x1000.jpeg 707w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/devon/wp-content/uploads/sites/14/2025/03/crockern-tor-768x1087.jpeg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Crockern Tor/Alex Murdin </figcaption></figure>



<p>I have plans for another book which I can’t reveal as yet.&nbsp;Alex is working on a long term project, called&nbsp;<em><a href="https://www.greatbritishlife.co.uk/magazines/devon/24111116.devon-artist-alex-murdins-one-thousand-stones-project/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">One Thousand Stones</a>,</em>&nbsp;to draw the longest stone row on Dartmoor.&nbsp;We have also created a new festival, the&nbsp;<a href="https://dartmoortorsfestival.co.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Dartmoor Tors Festival</a>, which will take place this year on the late May bank holiday weekend of 23-25 May, and into the following week which is half term. We have brought artists, musicians, writers, archaeologists and historians together to celebrate Dartmoor and explore our human, emotional connection with this extraordinary place. There are talks, workshops, performances and walks; do come and join us!</p>



<p><strong><em>Want more, more tors? Sophie and Alex will be &#8216;on tor&#8217; with Rock Idols around the county. For dates and times, <a href="http://www.sophiepierce.co.uk/news/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">check here</a>.</em></strong> <strong><em>You can also catch at the <a href="https://www.dartmoor.gov.uk/enjoy-dartmoor/events/events-list/exhibitions/rock-idols-secret-lives-of-the-tors" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">exhibition of Alex&#8217;s drawings</a> launching at the Dartmoor National Park Visitor Centre in Princetown.</em></strong></p>


Tor de force! Muddy meets Rock Idols author, Sophie Pierce

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