Things To Do near Rattle Brook
Single Barrow, Widecombe in the Moor, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 10 miles away)
The Dartmoor expert William Crossing writes 'this tumulus was opened in 1873 by the late Mr. C. Spence Bate, and was found to consist of earth with the exception of a low hedge of stones which encircled it, and a low cairn in the centre. About six feet from the latter a small heap of burnt human...
Swincombe Reservoir, Hexworthy, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 10 miles away)
Most Dartmoor reservoirs are large, impressive and reasonably easily accessible. Swincombe Reservoir is small and fenced off from the public. The moorland around the reservoir is flat, boggy and tussocky. Whilst there's a metal bridge at the eastern end of the reservoir, it's closed to the public so...
Devonport Leat, Dartmoor, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 10 miles away)
Devonport Leat is arguably the most impressive leat on Dartmoor and the one you're most likely to walk along or cross if you're exploring the National Park in depth. The leat has multiple headweirs and winds its way from its most northerly point on Dartmoor's north moor to the south western border o...
Peek Hill, Yelverton, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 10 miles away)
Part of a circular walk that we recommend, the views from Peek Hill down to Burrator Reservoir and across to Sheeps Tor are exceptional. If you can make it on a sunny day in autumnal October then you're in for a treat.
Leather Tor, Princetown, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 10 miles away)
If you're familiar with the mountains of Snowdonia National Park, Leather Tor is a miniature version of the superb Tryfan. A fin of rock rising steeply from the surrounding moorland, Leather Tor is great for a scramble. It also offers immense views of Burrator Reservoir and Dartmoor's south moo...
Leather Tor Circular Walk, Princetown, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 10 miles away)
This is one of south Dartmoor's most beautiful walks. Start at the car park at the foot of Sharpitor (Princetown/West Dartmoor) on the B3212 Princetown to Yelverton road. Head up to the summit. From Sharpitor, head south west to Peek Hill. There are amazing views south across Burrator Reservoir t...
Newleycombe Cross, Princetown, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 10 miles away)
A lake on Dartmoor is a stream or brook. Newleycombe Lake is a stream running down to Burrator Reservoir. It cuts a valley that was also shaped by the tin mining industry. The valley is lined with prehistoric and medieval attractions including the extraordinary Down Tor Stone Row (Hingston Hill Sone...
Hamel Down, Widecombe in the Moor, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 10 miles away)
Drive along the A30 that skirts the northern boundary of Dartmoor National Park and you'll see the unmistakable dome of Cosdon Hill topped by Cosdon Beacon. Further south, towards the heart of the National Park is the equally vast Hamel Down topped by a tor, barrows and its own beacon. The views fro...
Two Barrows, Widecombe in the Moor, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 10 miles away)
There's a display cabinet in Postbridge National Park Visitor Centre which contains a replica of the Hameldon Dagger or Hamel Down Dagger. The display reads: 'Hameldon dagger. In 1872 the original dagger was found with a burial of burnt human bones in a cairn or barrow at Hameldon. It cons...
Hamel Down RAF Memorial, North Bovey, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 10 miles away)
At the northern end of Hamel Down, where the moor drops down to Natsworthy, is a memorial to a RAF bomber that crashed after a raid in March 1941 during the Second World War. The memorial is by the side of a path that cuts across the moors to/from English Heritage's ancient settlement Grimspound....
River Swincombe, Dartmoor, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 10 miles away)
By Dartmoor standards, this is a short river that rises on the edge of the National Park's south plateau and meets the West Dart River in Dartmoor's central bowl near Hexworthy. The river rises at Swincombe Head above what the Harvey British Mountain Map 'Dartmoor' map refers to as Suns...
Wheal Emma Leat (Dry Channel), Hexworthy, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 10 miles away)
A wheal is a mine. A leat is a man-made waterway used to channel water from, say, a river down to a mine, mill or town/city. Wheal Emma Leat is the now dry channel of a leat built in 1859 that once collected water from near the source of the River Swincombe as it flows past the eastern side of Foxto...
Swincombe Headweir Ford, Princetown, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 10 miles away)
The River Swincombe and Strane River (having been fed by Nun's Cross Brook) meet at the eastern end of Foxtor Mires near the beginning of the old Wheal Emma Leat (Dry Channel). Just before they meet, there are two fords spanning each waterway. After a spell of dry weather, the ford across th...
Berry Pound, Widecombe in the Moor, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 10 miles away)
'On the Widecombe side of the little stream, which runs through a hollow, is the enclosure known as Berry Pound ... The area covered is very much smaller than that occupied by Grim's Pound, and the vallum is low and not of great width'.
Foxtor Mires, Princetown, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 10 miles away)
There are some places on Dartmoor that are best avoided. Raybarrow Pool by Cosdon Hill on the north moor is a dangerous place. Down on the edge of the National Park's south plateau, Foxtor Mires is another. Said to have been the inspiration for Grimpen Mire in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's 'The Hound of...