Fox Tor
Encyclopedia
Fox Tor is a relatively minor tor
on Dartmoor
in the United Kingdom
. It is probably best known for the swampy land that lies beneath it, Fox Tor Mires. This is said to have been the inspiration for the fictional Grimpen Mire in the novel The Hound of the Baskervilles
by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. This wide expanse of peat
bog continues to be dangerous to walkers, especially after heavy rain.
On the flank of Fox Tor stands Childe's Tomb
- according to local legend, the last resting place of Childe the Hunter, an unfortunate traveller who died there during a blizzard.
Tor (geography)
A tor is a large, free-standing residual mass that rises abruptly from the surrounding smooth and gentle slopes of a rounded hill summit or ridge crest...
on Dartmoor
Dartmoor
Dartmoor is an area of moorland in south Devon, England. Protected by National Park status, it covers .The granite upland dates from the Carboniferous period of geological history. The moorland is capped with many exposed granite hilltops known as tors, providing habitats for Dartmoor wildlife. The...
in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. It is probably best known for the swampy land that lies beneath it, Fox Tor Mires. This is said to have been the inspiration for the fictional Grimpen Mire in the novel The Hound of the Baskervilles
The Hound of the Baskervilles
The Hound of the Baskervilles is the third of four crime novels by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle featuring the detective Sherlock Holmes. Originally serialised in The Strand Magazine from August 1901 to April 1902, it is set largely on Dartmoor in Devon in England's West Country and tells the story of an...
by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. This wide expanse of peat
Peat
Peat is an accumulation of partially decayed vegetation matter or histosol. Peat forms in wetland bogs, moors, muskegs, pocosins, mires, and peat swamp forests. Peat is harvested as an important source of fuel in certain parts of the world...
bog continues to be dangerous to walkers, especially after heavy rain.
On the flank of Fox Tor stands Childe's Tomb
Childe's Tomb
Childe's Tomb is a granite cross on Dartmoor, Devon, England. Although not in its original form, it is more elaborate than most of the crosses on Dartmoor, being raised upon a constructed base, and it is known that a kistvaen is underneath....
- according to local legend, the last resting place of Childe the Hunter, an unfortunate traveller who died there during a blizzard.