By: Blonde Two

You won’t need a grid reference for Fox Tor Cafe, just follow the trails of mud spattered cyclists and rucksack clad walkers.  Alternatively, you could look for the most misted up windows in town.  Some places creep into your psyche without you realising it is happening;  Fox Tor (not the lump of granite SX626698) is one of them.  For the Two Blondes, Fox Tor Cafe is the hub of all our adventures.

Our first navigation exercise on every expedition is to the sofa by the fire.  There are many reasons for this;  it is comfy, it is warm, it offers an eye level view of lycra clad bottoms but most importantly, it is the Position of Power.  I don’t know if you have considered the Position of Power theory before but all rooms have one;  they often face the door or have the best view of the tv.  From the sofa at Fox Tor you can keep an eagle eye on all arrivals and departures including the lycra, but most importantly, you will never risk missing the arrival of your breakfast.  Purists will argue with me and offer porridge or organically coaxed muesli as the correct breakfast for a middle aged hiker.  They are wrong and the most important advice I will ever give to you is this so listen carefully;  By far the best breakfast option for any day on Dartmoor is Fox Tor’s white breakfast bap with bacon, egg and mushroom.  Nothing else will cut it quite as well when you are out in the cold and mist, trust me, when it comes to breakfast, I am an expert.

Route planning usually happens, however, over the second cup of coffee.  Breakfast time is reserved for moaning about work (you will have to guess what that is), pointing out how misted the windows are and surveying the scenery.  I am not sure if we are there a long time or if other people arrive and depart quickly but there is plenty of people watching to be done and sooner or later the whole world turns up at Fox Tor. When my knees finally give way and I can’t walk anymore, my favourite hobby is going to be people watching.

So your Sunday challenge this week is an easy one.  Get yourself up to the Fox Tor Cafe in Princetown, eat breakfast, cake and cheesy chips (maybe not all three at once), try out the sofa (its ok, we don’t need it today) feel the power and see if you can find the loo.  Don’t forget your compass!