Failed Camp at Cox Tor and the Importance of Coffee when Wild Camping

This camping excursion did not start well. The weather on this particular Sunday afternoon was pretty bleak, wet and windy. Having checked the forecast I knew I wanted to arrive on Dartmoor late in the day to avoid the worst of the weather so Dave and I left home hoping to arrive on the moors around 4pm, which should have given us enough time to climb Cox Tor, visit the trig point, take some photo's and video and get pitched up before sunset.

During the drive up I started to get a bit of a headache, but I wasn't too worried as I knew that once my tent was up I could just chill out for the rest of the night. Once I had the car parked near Cox Tor I got my kit strapped to my back and Dave and I set off. It was then that I realised the headache was far worse, with pain behind my eyes and in the back of my neck, I was concerned I might be getting a migraine, my first in over 2 years.

Onwards we trudged and the headache continued to worsen so I decided to make a coffee stop and this is when I realised that I'd forgotten to pack coffee. At this point I also realised I'd forgotten to bring cider too! We continued to Cox Tor, deciding that we'd managed to still enjoy the night, but upon arrival something else gave me concern... PILLOW MOUNDS EVERYWHERE.

Pillow mounds around the tors look lovely, the undulating ground looks fun, even comfortable. I have camped amongst pillow mounds before when I pitched up below Sheepstor, but this were widely space mounds with large areas between them to pitch the OEX Phoxx II v2 tent I was using at the time.  The pillow mounds at cox tor are small and closely spaced making it impossible to find a pitch. At this point I knew that I could not camp here and that I'd have to either move on or go home.

Sitting down amongst the pillow mounds I started to boil some water with which to make a pot noodle up, giving me time to work out where to go next. The air was damp, the sky gray and I was feeling worse. My headache was certainly showing all the signs of becoming a migraine, I was even starting to feel a bit sick and the though of eating pot noodle was turning my stomach.

Looking around me I could see Roos Tor, Great and Middle Staple Tors but they all seemed so far away. Looking at my watch I realised I'd have to trek fast to reach any of these locations, and while Middle Staple Tor was my preference as I'd already previously camped at the other two, it is the furthest from Cox Tor and I was already beginning to lose some light.

After packing away my coolest I decided that I was defeated. I need coffee while camping, especially in the morning. It's part of my routine and to break that routine would take away so much enjoyment from the camping experience that I really did not fancy even trying it. Migraine, no coffee, no cider and nowhere to pitch before it got dark...we headed back to the car.

Homeward bound my head was feeling worse and worse, I was so glad to get home safely. I'd started seeing spots in my vision while driving and a couple times I had to pull the car in and stop to rest. I was exhausted and in pain.

The next two days I spent at home, in the dark, listening to quiet movies and podcasts falling in and out of sleep.

So here are my takeaways from this failed camp:

1. Coffee, while not the most important thing in the world, is essential to me when camping. Being able to sit with a hot drink in my hands while watching the emptiness of Dartmoor disappear into the night, or to watch life resume on the moor as the Sun rises is an important part of the whole Dartmoor Wild Camping experience to me.
2. I need to spend more time researching the area I wish to pitch up, or at least have a secondary location in mind. There are many reason I may not be able to camp at a particular location, pillow mounds being only one of them. Others might include super wet or otherwise unsuitable ground, other campers in really popular locations (Belstone for example), temporary restrictions etc. It's good to have a backup plan just in case.
3. Don't leave it so late when camping in a new location. As described above (2) I might need to move on and camp somewhere else, so I'll need more time to get there.
4. Don't even entertain the idea of camping if I'm feeling unwell. I will not enjoy it no matter how much I try to convince myself otherwise. Sure I can lay in the tent and hopefully sleep it off, but really and truly there is no better place to be when I feel unwell than my own bed.