Outdoors & Nature in Dartmoor National Park
Shapley Tor, Moretonhampstead, Dartmoor National Park
Some Dartmoor tors are big and dramatic stacks of granite that command the surrounding landscape. Others are small and rather unassuming. Shapley Tor is among the latter. A scatter of granite towards the top of Shapley Common, it's one of those tors you tend to pass through on your way to another...
Birch Tor, Postbridge, Dartmoor National Park
There are a number of places on Dartmoor that attract lots of visitors. The Haytor Rocks area, for example, is packed in the holiday season. Burrator Reservoir can turn into a car park on sunny summer weekends. The Warren House Inn area is another busy spot. Southern England's highest pub, The...
Datuidoc's Stone, Lustleigh, Dartmoor National Park
Zoom in on Google's satellite imagery and you'll see that the graveyard surrounding Lustleigh St John the Baptist Church is an oval shape. According to experts, this suggests that the church was built on a much older pagan burial ground. Evidence for this can be found inside the church in the form o...
Ramsley Hill and Ramsley Common, South Zeal, Dartmoor National Park
Ramsley is a cluster of houses and a farm on the edge of the village South Zeal. Ramsley Hill and Ramsley Common overlook the village and provide stunning views south west to Cosdon Hill. There's parking on the eastern side of Ramsley Hill and Ramsley Common. It's also on the Taw-Teign Link...
Gutter Tor, Sheepstor, Dartmoor National Park
Gutter Tor is an easily accessible and very impressive collection of outcrops above Sheepstor Brook Ford and Scout Hut Copse east of Sheepstor village and the lower section of Burrator Reservoir. It provides super views of the Upper Plym Valley (English Heritage). We've positioned Gutter Tor on G...
River Plym, Dartmoor, Dartmoor National Park
The River Plym rises at Plym Head on Dartmoor's south moor. Plym Head is close to Ducks' Pool and the William Crossing Memorial Stone/Monument on Crane Hill. The moorland forming Crane Hill is surprisingly easy to walk given the number of mires and headwaters in the general area. From Plym Head,...
Piles Valley Weir, Harford, Dartmoor National Park
We include Piles Valley Weir as a point of reference. It's at the northern end of a track/road that runs up the wetsern side of the River Erme in Piles Valley. The track/road provides decent walking access to Dartmoor's south moor and is one of the routes you can take to see the longest stone row on...
Cut Hill, Postbridge, Dartmoor National Park
A visit to Cut Hill and nearby Fur Tor is a must for anyone with a passion for Dartmoor. This is the most remote area in southern England and it's a joy to visit so we'd very much recommend a day trip to the summit. Cut Hill, as the name suggests, is a dome of rough cut moorland in the heart...
Cut Hill Stone Row, Postbridge, Dartmoor National Park
Many of Dartmoor's stone rows are difficult to miss. Huge blocks of granite rise from moorland creating impressive patterns in the landscape. Other stone rows are very difficult to find. Small granite teeth are covered by grass and lumpy moorland. The stone row on Cut Hill is something very differen...
Great Gnats Head, Sheepstor, Dartmoor National Park
This is one for the Dartmoor enthusiast. On the edge of Dartmoor's south plateau, there's not much else around the cairn. We've positioned Great Gnats Head on Google maps so zoom in on the 'Satellite' setting to see its location. To visit, we'd recommend following the footpath marked Abbo...
Yealm Steps Waterfall, Cornwood, Dartmoor National Park
A beautiful waterfall on remote, high moor roughly a kilometre south of Yealm Head, Yealm Steps Waterfall is in the upper section of Hawns and Dendles Gorge. The waterfall is reasonably close to Dendles Wood National Nature Reserve. Stall Moor, with its extraordinary stone rows, is to the east. The...
The Belstone Ring Cross, Belstone, Dartmoor National Park
'Holiday in Dartmoor' is part of a network of UK travel sites. Whilst gathering content for these sites, we've been photographing and researching South West England for over a decade. During this time, we've seen a large number of ancient crosses in, or near, churches. The Belstone Ring Cross is a f...
Dart Valley Nature Reserve, Dartmeet, Dartmoor National Park
The Dart Valley Nature Reserve is located in the Dart Gorge. In our opinion, the Dart Gorge is one of the most beautiful places in Dartmoor National Park. Whilst we've positioned the Dart Valley Nature Reserve on Google maps, we'd recommend studying the Ordnance Survey Explorer OL28 'Dartmoor' map f...
Hawns and Dendles Gorge, Cornwood, Dartmoor National Park
The River Yealm rises at Yealm Head on Dartmoor's south moor. It flows to Yealm Steps Waterfall where is cascades into Hawns and Dendles Gorge as marked on the Harvey British Mountain Map 'Dartmoor' map. Zoom in on the accompanying Google map to see its location.
Sharp Tor (Dartmeet/East Dartmoor), Dartmoor, Dartmoor National Park
Many of Dartmoor's classic views are provided by tors overlooking steep-sided wooded valleys and gorges. There's Sharp Tor in the Teign Gorge, Ger Tor above Tavy Cleave and the Dewerstone above the Dewerstone Valley. Perhaps the best of the lot is the view from Sharp Tor above Dart Gorge. If you can...