THE Dartmoor Pack Pony Team is taking on the challenge of walking 100 miles across Dartmoor.

Starting on October 16 and due to finish today, Dru Butterfield, of the Dartmoor Pony Heritage Trust, Paul Rendell, moorland guide and conservation officer for the trust, and Sam Goodwin, of Dartmoor Pony and Pack, with his ponies Billy and Jasmine, are following a route around the four Dartmoor stannary towns, where tin was mined on the moor.

The challenge will retrace the steps of the ponies’ as pack animals critical to the livelihood and survival of those who lived and worked on Dartmoor in centuries past.

The route started at Lukesland, near Ivybridge, heading north across the Moor towards Poundsgate, then dropping into Ashburton, back out to Widecombe-in-the-Moor and on to Chagford. The team will stop off at Tor Royal, near Princetown, before reaching Tavistock. The final leg will take the team to Plympton Castle. They will cover approximately 15 to 18 miles per day and finish with a big celebration at Dartmoor Zoo at Sparkwell, near Ivybridge.

The challenge is part of the trust’s celebrations of its tenth anniversary.

Ms Butterfield says: ‘The walk is intended to celebrate the role of the Dartmoor pony in our local history, to show people just what these tough, capable but gentle little ponies have achieved in the past, what their role is on the moor now, and how vital it is to keep them there for the future.

‘We need to help more people understand the challenges facing the Dartmoor pony in its natural habitat and raise awareness of the variety of work going on that will make a difference to their survival.’

Alongside raising awareness of the Dartmoor pony’s heritage, temperament and capability, the challenge aims to raise a target of £5,000 in aid of the trust’s recently announced Dartmoor Pony Conservation Grazing Research project, with Plymouth University and Dartmoor Zoo. This project hopes to ensure recognition of the ponies’ benefit to biodiversity, ultimately helping to secure their future on Dartmoor and across the UK.

The charity is looking for donations, practical involvement and sponsorship by schools, individuals and businesses throughout the 100-mile challenge area and beyond.