From June to November 2022 a series of walks from St Petroc’s Church, Harford, took place on the fourth Sunday of each month. The aim of the Harford Special Spaces series was to:
Explore this beautiful Dartmoor parish, reflecting on its history and environment, guided by local people who know it well.
Link in with the invitation from Exeter Diocese to ‘take a journey of the heart’ – http://www.devonpilgrim.org.uk
Gather at the end of each walk for a bring and share meal in the church.
Express our responses to these special spaces through art, music and poetry in a workshop day and final service in the church in November.
The first walk on 26th June was to the bronze age hut circles at Harford Moor Gate, where we reflected on the connections of Harford with the ancient past.
The second walk on 24th July was to Kingswood, planted by Harford resident Ken Watkins, founder of the Woodland Trust. We reflected on Ken’s environmental vision and the beauty of his planting.
The third walk on 25th September was through woodland on the banks of the River Erme, which flows through Harford. We enjoyed glorious weather and a sense of oneness with creation.
The fourth walk was around the graveyard of St Petroc’s, hearing fascinating stories about some of the people buried there:
The fifth walk was around the interior of the church ( the clocks having gone back, it was now dark by 5pm). Rosmemary Howell, churchwarden of St Petroc’s, who has lived in the parish for almost 50 years, was our very knowledgeable guide.
The final weekend of the series was a creative workshop at Lukesland, where people expressed their response to Harford’s Special Spaces in words, music, photography and art.
These elements were then brought together in a final celebratory service on the Sunday evening. This is the Special Spaces wreath that was made at the workshop to hang in the church:
As we start 2023 we look forward to another series of Harford Special Spaces, on the fourth Sunday of each month from April to November. This time the focus will be on the Higher Moor and particularly on the efforts being made to preserve this very special landscape, such as peat rewetting. Again, there will be a focus on the spiritual dimension of this landscape and an opportunity to react to this creatively. Further details of this series will be put on this page and also on facebook.com/stpetrocsharford
Harford Moor 