Things To Do near Heaven's Gate
Mardon Down Cairn Circle, Moretonhampstead, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 4 miles away)
There are many heavily weathered cairns on Mardon Down. In addition, there's a particularly fine cairn circle.
Mardon Down, Moretonhampstead, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 4 miles away)
There are a number of islands of open access moorland rising from surrounding farmland just south of the Teign Gorge and Fingle Woods in the north eastern section of Dartmoor National Park. The largest is Mardon Down. At Mardon Down, two domes of moor are connected by a thin strip of land in whic...
Mardon Down Headless Cross, Moretonhampstead, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 4 miles away)
The Dartmoor expert William Crossing writes: 'On Mardon are some antiquarian remains, but they have been despoiled. About 1/3 m. on the R. soon after entering on the down the visitor will find some vestiges of a cairn known as Giant's Grave, 1,170 feet, and a little to the north of this part of a...
Grey Wethers and Blue Jug, Widecombe in the Moor, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 4 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...
Hookney Down, Moretonhampstead, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 4 miles away)
This is an area of moorland between, roughly speaking, Hookney Tor and Hameldown Tor and King Tor on the edge of the high moor near English Heritage's Grimspound. It's particularly beautiful in late summer when the heather flowers. It runs into the vast whale's back of moorland that is Hamel Down...
The Uncle Tom Cobley Horse, Widecombe in the Moor, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 4 miles away)
When visiting Widecombe St Pancras Church, look out for The Uncle Tom Cobley Horse. Inspired by the Devon folk song Widecombe Fair, 'in the late 1950's a retired sailor from Drewsteignton made a mechanical model of Uncle Tom Cobley and the Grey Mare. The automation was exhibited at Widecombe Fair...
East Webburn River, Widecombe in the Moor, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 4 miles away)
The East Webburn River rises near Hameldown Tor and English Heritage's Grimspound on the vast back of Hamel Down. The headwaters are close to Hamel Down Cross and Broad Barrow. From its source, the river cuts deep into moorland and tumbles past Berry Pound before arcing through Natsworthy. It flo...
Widecombe St Pancras Church, Widecombe in the Moor, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 4 miles away)
The 'Cathedral of the Moor'. In East Dartmoor, and dominating the popular moorland village of Widecombe in the Moor, Widecombe St Pancras Church dates from the 1300s. Wallboards within the church tell a story of a fire-ball passing through the church and killing four people as a result of a light...
The Green, Widecombe in the Moor, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 4 miles away)
The Green is the focal point of Widecombe-in-the-Moor. Surrounded by shops, cafes, pub, church and its associated buildings, the village green is a great place to relax after a wander. A local information board provides a historical perspective. 'The Village Green was once known as 'butte pa...
1638 Thunderstorm, Widecombe in the Moor, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 4 miles away)
Inside Widecombe St Pancras Church, at the base of the tower, are four wallboards telling the story of the 1638 Thunderstorm. The following transcription was taken from photos. 'It is of the Lords mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. Lam.III.2.2. The merciful a...
Hamel Down, Widecombe in the Moor, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 4 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...
The Rugglestone Inn, Widecombe in the Moor, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 4 miles away)
Award-winning pub The Rugglestone Inn was voted one of the best UK country pubs in the BBC Countryfile Magazine Awards 2018. It's a great pub in a superb setting. Widecombe-in-the-Moor Situated on the edge of Widecombe in the Moor in the east section of Dartmoor, The Rugglestone I...
Wittaburrow, Widecombe in the Moor, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 4 miles away)
In his excellent 'The Field Archaeology of Dartmoor', Phil Newman notes that 'the term 'barrow' may be defined as a mound of earth or stone, usually covering one or more inhumations or cremations. On Dartmoor, where the majority of these monuments are constructed mostly from ston...
The Miniature Pony Centre, Moretonhampstead, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 4 miles away)
Family attraction A Dartmoor highlight for young children, The Miniature Pony Centre's just south west of Moretonhampstead on the B3212 which cuts across the National Park. As the name suggests, the Centre's home to miniature ponies. Some, especially the foals, are unbelievably cute. There's a...
Hameldown Beacon, Widecombe in the Moor, Dartmoor National Park (approx. 4 miles away)
The Oxford English Dictionary defines a beacon as 'a fire or light set up in a high or prominent position as a warning, signal, or celebration’. There is a chain of beacons on Dartmoor running from the edge of the north moor down to the edge of the south moor. Hameldown Beacon is, roughly spe...