Great Staple Tor
| Great Staple Tor | |||
| Devon | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Great Staple Tor | |||
| Range: | Dartmoor | ||
| Summit: | 1,493 feet SX542760 50°33’57"N, 4°3’34"W | ||
Great Staple Tor is a prominent hill on Dartmoor in Devon, rising to 1,493 feet, and the name more specifically of the large granite outcrop marking its summit. It is also known as Staple Tors.
The hill is on the open moorland, the high moor, on its western side, four miles east of Tavistock. The climb to the summit is a popular walk, as the hill is immediately north of two car parks on the B3357, at the Whitchurch Down viewpoint and Merrivale.
The neighbouring hill to the west is Cox Tor (1,450 feet), and to the east, across the infant River Walkham, is Great Mis Tor. A the foot of the southern slope of the hill, above the Walkham, is the old quarry at Merrivale, where vast boulders lie tumbled and abandoned above the road, as if ready to drop onto the pub at the foot of the quarry slope.
Middle Staple Tor and Little Staple Tor
Middle Staple Tor is a large granite outcrop 500 yards south-south-west of the summit (at 1,414 feet), while Little Staple Tor is a smaller outcrop almost as far again south-south-west.
Ascent
The usual place to start a climb of Great Staple Tor is the large car park at the viewing point on the B3357 at Whitchurch Down, from the straight walk up is to Cox Tor, but a turn to the north-east leads to Great Staple.
The next car parks, a few hundred yards east, are more directly under the gaze of Great Staple Tor, or there is a bridleway leading over the hill from the quarry over to (or from) Higher Godsworthy above Peter Tavy.
Another footpath from the road leads up over Little and Middle Staple Tors to Great Staple and on to the next outcrop at Roos Tor, then on to a prehistoric complex t the north, with hut circles and a stone circle: this complex though is in the army firing range and so not accessible during exercises.