Castles, Gorges and Walks in Dartmoor National Park including pictures and videos

  • Post category:England
  • Post last modified:August 17, 2022
  • Reading time:3 mins read

Located in the heart of Devon in south west England, Dartmoor National Park sits in a unique landscape of open moorland, ancient woodland, river networks and patchwork farming fields.

There are about 170 granite tors dotting the horizon which were once giant mountains now eroded over at least the last 10 million years to leave behind dramatic rocky outcrops.

There is something for everyone at Dartmoor – walking routes for all abilities, intriguing buildings to visit, observing Dartmoor ponies on the moors, shopping for local produce in farm shops and markets and at the end of a busy day a traditional Devonshire cream tea to indulge in.

Dartmoor National Park Facts
Total area
– 950 sq. km or 368 sq. miles approx.
Year of designation – 1951
Population – 33,000 (2009)
Annual visitors – 2.4 million annually (Oct 2014)
Main settlements – Ashburton, Buckfastleigh, Chagford, Moretonhampstead
Scheduled ancients monuments – 1,058
Other Facts
England’s newest castle – Castle Drogo
Over 10,000 hectares of Bronse Age field systems
Famous Tors formed 280 million years ago

Castle-Drogo-Garden

Castle Drogo – The Last Castle Built in England

4 min read

Castle Drogo is an intriguing building where ‘nothing is normal’ according to the National Trust who now owns and manages…

River-Lyd-Lydford-Gorge

Lydford Gorge – The Deepest Gorge in South West of England

5 min read

Located in the Lyd valley, Dartmoor National Park, Lydford Gorge is the deepest gorge in the whole of the south…

working-machinery-at-finch-foundry

Finch Foundry – The last working water-powered forge in England

5 min read

A unique example of a village industry, Finch Foundry is the last surviving water-powered forge from a time before large-scale…

Leave a Reply