The Ruin at the End of the Road
June Showers at Okehampton Castle
The approach to Okehampton Castle is strangely 20th Century. A brown tourist sign leads through a housing estate into a patch of waste ground, doubling as a car park, from which the romantic ruin of a derelict fortification can just be glimpsed through the trees. This was a defensive site that was never defended in anger - an imposing building, in a strategic location, that never made it to more than a footnote in the history books.
Yet this venue has a lot to offer the dowser. Free of the anguish and suffering of most medieval military monuments, the underlying energies that caused it to be built can easily be detected.
Founded on a pre-existing rock outcrop - and raised by some 30ft - the castle knoll is intersected by a number of ley lines. The keep itself is a microcosm of earth energy analysis - a massive line sweeps through the remains of the building, majestically enclosing the whole of one room in its path.
Larry found a whole network of water lines in the living areas. He and the Johns tried to separate the various strands of water energy - with some success. Meanwhile Jen sensed a number of entities. While this site may never have staged a serious conflict, there were still distant human energies to be aware of - one of which appeared to have fallen to her fate down the still-precipitous defensive bank.
The chapel was a maze of earth and water energy lines. Carol found some intricate patterns and John a double spiral. The energy lines leading from the chapel made exaggerated doglegs and serpentine sweeps. It was difficult to discover whether these were natural or man-made -perhaps a mixture of both.
Despite its apparent medieval structural remains, this site dowsed to having been in use since the Bronze Age - its elevated position and underlying energy pattern making it an obvious choice for both habitation and ritual.
Some visitors from Germany took an interest in our activities and my schoolboy "Ich kenne nur ein wenig Deutsch (I know only a little German)" came in really useful. No one mentioned Euro 2004.
There was little negativity present and a wide variety of positive energy imprints.
Many thanks to Annie for suggesting the site, organising the group discount (a real steal at £2.15 a head!) and for producing a most informative handout and map.
Unlike many of our more adventurous excursions, this was easy to find and fun to visit. Even seeking shelter from the odd shower in a roofless ruin did nothing to dampen our enthusiasm! I am sure we will come here again.
Nigel Twinn
Tamar Dowsers
June 2004