Consisting of two small piles and a scattered sparse clitter Castle Tor sits just on the left hand side of the 17th fairway of Bovey Castle Golf Course. The hole itself is named Castle Tor but was also once known as Manor Tor when the venue was known as the Manor House Hotel.
Regarding the history of the location the following report appeared in the Devon and Exeter Gazette from April 1929: "The Great Western Railway Directors have decided to establish an hotel on the edge of Dartmoor, with the object of further assisting the development of South Devon as a tourist resort. They have purchased North Bovey Manor, the beautiful residence of the late Lord Hambleden, together with 200 acres of park and pasture lands, and it is hoped that the hotel will be opened in the near future."
Bought for £15,000, the hotel did indeed open in the following year, complete with an 18 hole golf course designed by the renowned golf architect of the time John Frederick Abercromby, and it was built by Frank Harris Brothers Ltd. The account continues: "Approached by a drive intersecting the estate for three quarters of a mile, with a lodge at either end, the house stands on the higher part of the estate" and, as a result of its position, "It thus enjoys a maximum amount of sunshine. In every direction are beautiful views across pleasure grounds and rock gardens falling gently to a lake and to the River Bovey which flows through the property."
The tor is set on private land but there is a footpath crossing the course from which some of these rocks can be seen from afar. However, straying on to the golf course is strictly forbidden.
Peter de Savary transformed the hotel and golf course c2004 and it is all owned now by Sir Peter Rigby. It is an exclusive place both in terms of hotel accommodation and golf membership. This and its neighbour Little Castle Tor are normally out of bounds to the general public and can only really be properly viewed when playing golf.
Castle Tor
The map above is not a navigation tool and we recommend that the grid reference shown below is used in conjunction with an Ordnance Survey map and that training in its use with a compass is advised.
Grid Ref:
SX 7302 8470
Height:
250m
Parish:
North Bovey
Tor Classification:
Emergent
Access:
Private (but a fee to visit)
Rock Type:
Granite
Credit:
Tim Jenkinson
Reference / Further Reading:
Bovey Castle Scorecard Devon and Exeter Gazette (1929): North Bovey Manor - Its Utilisation as an Hotel, GWR Enterprise, 9th April
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