TORS OF DARTMOOR
a database of both lesser- & well-known rocks and outcrops
Lizwell Rock A short way above and to the south-west of Lizwell Meet on the steepening slopes of Blackadon Down is this large split outcrop that commands attention. The visitor will most likely reach the outcrop by descending from Blackadon Tor via Blackadon Lower North Tor, but from above the only discernible feature is a grassy ledge. You have to carefully perambulate the Rock in order to gain the best vantage point.  In essence this is a magnificent small tor whose position must have been all the more striking prior to afforestation. It would have once had breathtaking views of Lizwell Meet and the valley of the East Webburn looking upstream, a scene that is now sadly cloaked within a dense canopy of trees.  Lizwell Meet is a treasured spot and noted for its raw beauty. It was for this very reason included as one of William Crossing's 'Gems in a Granite Setting' (1905) and the author sets the tone of the confluence: "The meeting place of these two rivers of Widecombe is in one of those charming nooks that contrive to hide themselves from the gaze of the passerby, and give scarcely a hint of their existence. A wealth of foliage is seen, it is true, but not only at this particular spot, and but for the rocks of Blackadon Tor there would be nothing to draw attention to it." The writer continues: "Nature has here been bountiful, yet, in the bestowal of her gifts, heedless whether the rock and the stream, the shading tree, and the plants that carpet the earth, should form a paradise only for the birds of the air or meet the eye of man."  Crossing's evocative account perfectly describes the valley here as it is a charming place, and Lizwell Rock only adds to its splendour, but there is strangely no mention of the outcrop from the author. It is thanks to Paul Buck, who spotted the Rock in October 2017, that it has now received a name for itself and on account of its position and surroundings it seems most appropriate. If the rambler wishes to visit this spot, they must be extremely careful as the ground can be unforgiving as it is notoriously steep and damp, as well as obscuring traps and obstacles such as holes and jagged rocks beneath the vegetation.
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