Things To Do near Avon Dam Reservoir
Hamel Down Cross, Widecombe in the Moor, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 9 miles away)
In his 'Guide to Dartmoor', William Crossing notes that 'Hameldon Cross consists of a granite slab rather over four feet in height and about two feet in width, rudely fashioned into the form of the sacred symbol, and probably has never served any other purpose than that of a boundary sto...
Lydford Tor, Princetown, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 9 miles away)
The Lichway/Lych Way runs, roughly speaking, between Bellever Forest in the heart of Dartmoor to Lydford on the western border of the National Park. For centuries, people working the moors had to carry their dead across the moors to bury them at Lydford Church. Lydford Tor is situated by the Lichway...
Golden Dagger Tin Mine (Disused), Postbridge, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 9 miles away)
The area south of the B3212 near The Warren House Inn was heavily mined in past centuries. The local landscape is shaped, in part, by the Birch Tor and Vitifer Mine, the Headland Tin Mine, Bushdown Mine and the Golden Dagger Tin Mine. The wonderfully named Golden Dagger Tin Mine is the furthest sout...
Smallacombe Rocks, Haytor Vale, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 9 miles away)
Haytor Rocks is arguably Dartmoor's most famous and visited tor. It's located on Haytor Down which is home to a large number of other rocky outcrops. Saddle Tor is close to the B3387 and its car parking areas and always seems to have people wandering over and around it. Holwell Tor is frequently vis...
Bowerman's Nose, Hound Tor and Medieval Village Circular Walk, Manaton, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 9 miles away)
Park at Manaton near the church. Head back across the main road and down a narrow lane. A path cuts right over a field towards Hayne Down. Continue up onto open moorland. Bowerman's Nose is to the right near the end of the ridge. Head back to the path that crosses the ridge and follow it down to...
Hound Tor Abandoned Medieval Settlement (English Heritage), Manaton, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 9 miles away)
Explore Dartmoor and you'll encounter a high number of abandoned sites dating from the medieval period. The most famous is English Heritage's Hound Tor Abandoned Medieval Settlement. A hamlet, Hound Tor Abandoned Medieval Settlement consists of eleven buildings including longhou...
The Rock Inn, Haytor Vale, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 9 miles away)
Haytor Rocks beauty spot Haytor Rocks is Dartmoor's most popular tor. It's also the National Park's most popular beauty spot. Situated on the east flank of the moor, Haytor Rocks overlooks stunning South Devon countryside and coast. The Rock Inn is located in the village below this famous to...
Hound Tor (East Dartmoor), Manaton, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 9 miles away)
One of Dartmoor's most impressive and popular tors One of Dartmoor's most impressive and popular tors, Hound Tor is a collection of rocky outcrops in the eastern section of the national park close to both Haytor Rocks and the village Widecombe-in-the-Moor. Note that there is another Hound...
Crow Tor, Two Bridges, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 9 miles away)
Head up the valley from Two Bridges to Wistman's Wood and you'll see a distinctive lump of granite on a spur of land to the north. This is Crow Tor. The spur of land is cut by the West Dart River to the east and south and by a small moorland stream to the west. North, the moorland rises from Crow To...
Walkham Valley, Merrivale, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 9 miles away)
[Main picture: the Walkham Valley seen from the moorland road near Withill. View up to Vixen Tor and the Staple Tors] Spectacular wooded valley between Merrivale and Horrabridge Many of Dartmoor’s most famous rivers rise on the north moor. The rivers Tavy, Taw, Teign and Dart have...
Quirky Dartmoor, Dartmoor, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 9 miles away)
Once, there was a giant chair but, sadly, they took it down. You'll still find plenty of other quirky sights and names across the moors. There are exquisite sculptures dotted around the landscape and in the towns and plenty of weird rock structures. Many of the ponies are remarkably small, some o...
Ilsington St Michael's Church Lych Gate, Ilsington, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 9 miles away)
Just west of Ilsington St Michael's Church is Ilsington St Michael's Church Lych Gate. A local information board reads: 'The first building on this site that we know of was likely to have been of medieval origin, for in the year 1639 it was being used as a schoolroom for about 30 b...
Challacombe Valley and Farm, Postbridge, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 9 miles away)
This beautiful valley sits between Hamel Down to the east and Challacombe Down to the west. At the top of the valley are Headland Warren Farm, Hookney Tor and English Heritage's Grimspound. At the bottom of the valley, by Challacombe, the land flattens out into an area of farmland leading down t...
Grey Wethers and Blue Jug, Widecombe in the Moor, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 9 miles away)
'The stream on the eastern side of the hill forms the boundary between the common lands of Manaton and Widecombe, and this is drawn from its head to Hameldon Cross, the space between the two being marked by a couple of bondstones, the lower one being called Blue Jug, and the other the Grey Wethe...
Ilsington St Michael's Church, Ilsington, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 9 miles away)
Another Dartmoor church rebuilt in the 15th century, Ilsington St Michael's Church is thought to have been first constructed during the 11th century. Look out for the ruins of Ilsington Manor House in the north eastern corner of the churchyard. There's also an alarming story associated with&...