The Colors of Dartmoor

Captured in: Dartmoor National Park.
Devon, England.

Late summer in Dartmoor brings a wide array of color to this beautiful part of the En...
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Captured in: Dartmoor National Park.
Devon, England.

Late summer in Dartmoor brings a wide array of color to this beautiful part of the English countryside. You can find patchwork quilt like green landscapes, wildflowers, free ranging animals, and gorgeous sunsets throughout this National Park. This particular scene was captured from the top of a hill near a stone formation known locally as Bowerman's Nose...

Bowerman's Nose is said to be part of a spooky Dartmoor legend that goes back over a thousand years. The story includes another rock formation known as Hound Tor, which was also recently featured in my photostream.

Legend has it that a huntsman (named Bowerman) was out hunting rabbit on the moors when he and his pack of hunting dogs accidentally ran into a coven of witches... This encounter disrupted a ceremony the witches were performing, as Bowerman's dogs happened to overturn their cauldron. The witches became incensed at the intrusion, and would look to punish him the next time he went out hunting.

So they watched and waited for Bowerman, stalked their prey just like this hunter would a rabbit. When they saw him leave on his next outing, one of the witches turned herself into a hare for his dogs to chase after...

The transformed witch managed to lure Bowerman and his hounds into a mire, trapping him and his dogs in the mud. That's when the witches pounced... Before he could get loose, they turned both Bowerman and his dogs to stone, forever to be locked in granite amid the Dartmoor landscape.

The dogs are now said to be found among the jagged chain of rocks atop Hound Tor, while the huntsman himself became the rock formation known as Bowerman's Nose.

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"The Colors of Dartmoor" is an HDR image that was processed using a combination of Aurora HDR, ACR, Photoshop and various Topaz Labs Plugins (Adjust, AI Clear, Denoise, Glow, and Impression).
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