Trowlesworthy Warren

Also known as:
The Pulpit and Trowlesworthy Warren East cairn circle
Nearest town:
Plympton (8km SSW)
OS reference:
SX5764463986
OS sheet:
202
Latitude:
50° 27' 28.5 N
Longitude:
4° 0' 17.8 W
Added to TMA by

Images

Image of Trowlesworthy Warren (Cairn circle) by thesweetcheat

Looking westish. The distant hills on the far skyline are across the Tamar in Cornwall.

Image credit: A. Brookes (26.6.2024)
thesweetcheat
thesweetcheat Jul 10, 2025
Image of Trowlesworthy Warren (Cairn circle) by thesweetcheat

What a great cairn circle this is.

Image credit: Trowlesworthy East cairn circle 6 (26.6.2024).jpg
thesweetcheat
thesweetcheat Jul 10, 2025
Image of Trowlesworthy Warren (Cairn circle) by postman

It was so misty when we started I wasn’t keen on our chances of finding this site, but the voodoo goddess did her thing and miracles happened.

Image credit: Chris Bickerton
postman
postman May 27, 2019
Image of Trowlesworthy Warren (Cairn circle) by postman

Zooming over the stones towards the “zone of utter devastation” that is the china clay works, which has grown in size since my map was printed. Eric said this of the quarry, awesome yet terrifying, imagine what the world would be like if we were actually trying to break it.

Image credit: Chris Bickerton
postman
postman May 27, 2019
Image of Trowlesworthy Warren (Cairn circle) by postman

Great Trowlesworthy Tor fades in and out of reality, but the stone circle remains steadfastly in our dimension.

Image credit: Chris Bickerton
postman
postman May 27, 2019
Image of Trowlesworthy Warren (Cairn circle) by GLADMAN

A crack in the clouds.... the Trowlesworthy Tors grace the skyline.

Image credit: Robert Gladstone
GLADMAN
GLADMAN Apr 14, 2012
Image of Trowlesworthy Warren (Cairn circle) by GLADMAN

The ‘circle in its landscape... the stone row can be seen advancing from the left.

Image credit: Robert Gladstone
GLADMAN
GLADMAN Apr 14, 2012
Image of Trowlesworthy Warren (Cairn circle) by GLADMAN

Sorry, just caught the Gladman rucksack far left.... not another stone.

Image credit: Robert Gladstone
GLADMAN
GLADMAN Apr 14, 2012
Image of Trowlesworthy Warren (Cairn circle) by GLADMAN

Surely the ‘bite’ taken from the stone wasn’t part of the original plan? Souvenir hunters, perhaps? Or very tough Dartmoor ponies. Aren’t they just?

Image credit: Robert Gladstone
GLADMAN
GLADMAN Apr 14, 2012
Image of Trowlesworthy Warren (Cairn circle) by GLADMAN

From the south, showing the iconic leaning/bent/twisted orthostat...

Image credit: Robert Gladstone
GLADMAN
GLADMAN Apr 14, 2012
Image of Trowlesworthy Warren (Cairn circle) by GLADMAN

The backdrop of China Clay workings isn’t the best.... but this is nonetheless a lovely cairn circle and row. Viewed from approx north.

Image credit: Robert Gladstone
GLADMAN
GLADMAN Apr 14, 2012
Image of Trowlesworthy Warren (Cairn circle) by Lubin

The cairn circle at the end of the row.

Image credit: Peter Castle ©
Lubin
Lubin Sep 29, 2007
Image of Trowlesworthy Warren (Cairn circle) by Meic

Trowlesworthy 12th July 2004

Image credit: Michael Mitchell
Meic
Meic May 6, 2007

Articles

Trowlesworthy Warren

ironstone
ironstone May 13, 2026

I take my hat off to Postman for finding this ring and its row in misty conditions. With my habitual haplessness in reading maps I declined the OS suggested route of going via the Big Pond and set off across the landscape instead on a relatively cloudless sunny afternoon trusting in my binoculars to pick out what I was looking for in the distance. This haphazard approach required me to detour round a couple of large depressions – presumably old quarry workings – after jumping the stream near the carpark and just as I was beginning to wonder if I was heading in the wrong direction I spotted the stones of the eastern row directly ahead leading up to The Pulpit. It’s actually a fair old trek though I made it shorter and more direct on the return route by taking a sighting on a very visible yellow van which had parked next to my car. It was all well worth it, another Dartmoor site added to an ever-expanding list. Nice also to encounter a large group of ponies with their foals.

Trowlesworthy Warren

postman
postman Jun 2, 2019

I cant believe we found it, quite easily too despite no compass, despite the fog, or prior knowledge of what to look for. Eight stones remain of this stone circle, also known as the Pulpit. The circle stone that is closest to the circle is the tallest, and most leany, Burl say it is four foot two, but if you stand in the dip where sheep fidget it’s almost five foot five. It also has a gnarled and twisted form, and a big streak of raptor poo on one side.
We pick a stone and sit for a while, the mist is, I think, beginning to clear, revealing a lot more stone work to the north and the west, I regard the map and see that there are settlements almost all around, and blow me down another stone row and a possible stone circle. We’ll have to have a longer look round.
Time for some elevation, I attach the camera to the tripod and extend it all the way and hoik it up into the air with camera on ten second countdown, trying again and again to get the right angle, this is the first time Eric’s seen this, he laughed at me. How rude.
It is a great little stone circle, but to make the long drive down well and truly worth it, we’ll have to go and see a couple more stone circles elsewhere, right after I’ve had a look at that other stone row.

Trowlesworthy Warren

S
stewartb May 8, 2003

This site is part of a complex that includes the circle itself and an eastern and western stone row.

The circle has 8 stones and is about 7m in diameter.

The attached eastern row runs away to the SE.



The alignment of the row and circle is up the hill towards the hut circles on Trowlesworthy Tors

Sites within 20km of Trowlesworthy Warren