The Dartmoor Way

Dartmoor Way

Ivybridge to Ivybridge

Graham Slater

3 September 2024

Born in Plymouth and raised in England, but having spent most of my adult life in the USA, walking the Dartmoor Way was something of a pilgrimage for me. It was a life changing experience, not just because of the family memories and the stunning scenery, but also for the chance to shut off from technology and "the world" for eight days.

Some of my favorite things:
- The incredible variety of trails, paths, roads, fields, woods, river trails, and other paths.
- The occasional views of the sea, from high up on the moor.
- Meeting and chatting with other walkers.
- The superb organization and planning from Encounter Walking Holidays, and from the company that moved my bags each day.
- Silence, birdsong, the breeze in the leaves, the babbling brooks.

Some of my least favorite things:
- Coming face to face with a bull (twice) ... not something I'm used to.
- Walking across muddy farm fields in pouring rain.

My biggest recommendation: download the OS map and use that as a back-up if you ever feel you've missed a turn. There were a few times where Dartmoor Way way markers were not present for a brief stretch, and it was incredible helpful to have the app.

A brilliant experience. I am already planning my next walk, with Encounter.

Dartmoor Way

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Alex

28 June 2024

The best day was the walk over the high moors in the rain from Tavistock to Princetown (though we skipped the first few miles and started at the edge of the moor. It was beautiful, wide-open, and so lovely. The other high moor days were also delightful (and sunny). I highly recommend that route. We retraced our steps from last year's walk from Gidleigh Park (near Chagford) to Lydford over two days and were amazed how different things look on a different day. Still gorgeous walking, though. We highly recommend the Tradesman's Arms Inn at Scorriton. Delicious food and great hosts. And as always, your team was great in the planning and execution. Thank you for another great trip.

Dartmoor Way

Buckfastleigh

Bonnie Wood

2 June 2024

We love walking English moors, and the Dartmoor Way had several wonderful pieces of Dartmoor to walk, in addition to farms, Devon towns, and along tumbling rivers. Accommodations were all comfortable. Our favorites (and the most luxurious) were The Northgate Hotel in Buckfast and The Moorland Hotel in Haytor Vale. Aaah. Communication with Encounters and the materials we received from you prior to the walk were top-notch.
We always bring portable boot driers with us from the US when we are walking in Engliand; we never had to use them this trip!
The only miserable piece of the walk was at the beginning, just after leaving Buckfast. When the directions took us off the road onto an overgrown footpath, it was, as Encounters termed it, "barely passable." I would tell the poor hiker that one needs a machete to pass through there. Better, stay on the road to Ashford, as trafficked as it is.

Dartmoor Way

Lydford to Lydford

Janine

20 April 2024

Everything was perfect. Organisation, maps, accommodations. Even the weather was absolutely amazing and allowed me to walk all of the high moor sections. Very highly recommended!

Dartmoor Way

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Ann and Bernie

10 September 2023

Excellent, unfortunately we had to make changes to our booking , but everything was dealt with in an efficient and caring manner. All information needed is available on the comprehensive website! We did the section from Haytor to Princetown, taking shorter distances per day, from 6 to 11 miles. Great scenery and varied walking through woods, along rivers and minor roads. It's worth taking some of the diversions - we visited Castle Drogo and Brentor - both very interesting. Very enjoyable and scenic walk

Dartmoor Way

Two Moors Way

Catherine, John and Badger the dog

4 September 2023

We spent 5 walking days doing the northern half of the Dartmoor Way with a high moor section. The countryside was a mix of lanes, woodland, farmland and open moor. Every day was varied and beautiful with a few strenuos sections, but well worth it. The itinery notes were very helpful. It would be useful to have the guide book route section highlighted for each day's walk on the itinery (some were, some weren't). The guide books are very handy and detailed. We did one day's walk in reverse to the guide which was slightly confusing. Our first day was further than the expected 14 miles (16.4) which was a bit dispiriting towards the end of the day! All the accommodation was good. The Inns were varied in quality but perfectly fine for our needs and budget. Everyone we met was very welcoming. Evening meals were good pub grub and breakfasts hearty. We thoroughly enjoyed our walking holiday with our dog. Dartmoor is a spectacular part of Devon to explore. We recommend booking through Encounter to tailor the holiday to your needs and make the trip run smoothly. Thank you. We hope to book another trip again next summer!

Dartmoor Way

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Alex McLeod

3 September 2023

First visit to this area and pleasantly surprised. More undulating, although in a good way, than expected. Good variety and different encounters each day. Only sorry unable to accommodate high Moor link.

Dartmoor Way

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Alex Borns-Weil

1 July 2023

Outstanding service and communication as always! This was a beautiful and uncrowded area to walk. We only encountered a few other people except at Haytor and in villages. Exceptionally beautiful to walk on the Moors. We saw lots of ponies, too. Give yourself time to walk the Gorge in Lydford. And we really enjoyed exploring Totnes on our first day. Worth stopping there if it's one of your waypoints. If you have a chance, book dinner at the Gathering. The maps were excellent, both in the guidebook and the large OS map. In a few places, the walking directions in the guidebook were confusing. In some places, meters seemed to be mixed up with feet (200m instead of 200ft), but we were able to figure it out. We stayed at Gidleigh Park just outside Chagford, which wasn't on the Encounter list. Highly recommended if you want to treat yourself. Dinners and breakfasts are truly gourmet. The Castle Inn at Lydford was also wonderful. I want to go back. We really fell in love with Dartmoor.

Dartmoor Way

High Moor Route

Peter Janes

17 April 2023

The people in the office were always helpful. The first day (Tavistock to Princetown) is short and easy. The second day (Princetown to Buckfastleigh) is much longer. We (a pair of old codgers) had good weather so did not have a problem but in bad weather be prepared for a challenge. With one exception, your guide to the walk was easy to follow. Between Dartmeet and Holne your route seems to depart from that marked on the OS map and the notes proved tricky to follow. Grid references would clarify things and would also be helpful when working out the route in advance. Very enjoyable

Dartmoor Way

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Joan Cardiff

16 September 2022

This was our third time working with Encounter Walking. We are already planning our fourth - a testimony to their excellent quality knowledge and support.

South West Coast Path

Dartmoor Way

Joan Cardiff

16 September 2022

This was our third time working with Encounter Walking. We are already planning our fourth - a testimony to their excellent quality knowledge and support.

Dartmoor Way

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Andrew Newsham

30 August 2021

My wife and I spent nine wonderful days walking The Dartmoor Way. We started in Buckfastleigh and wound our way anticlockwise around the national park, with a rest day in Lydford to visit the magnificent Lydford Gorge. The final two days were an often breathtaking hike east from Tavistock across the wild high moor. But what sticks in our memories is the incredible variety this route offers. Yes, the moor is a highlight, but it's complemented by stretches of woodland through which cheerful streams burble, the peaceful tranquility of Devon's familiar rural landscape, famous tourist destinations such as Castle Drogo and the county's picturesque towns and villages which punctuate the trail. And its pubs. Oh yes, it's pubs! And I cannot recommend Encounter Walking Holidays too highly. The service is faultless: Explaining what was possible and necessary during the coronavirus crisis; planning and arranging the details of our holiday; the general support before, during and after our visit to Devon. Very impressive and we will book with Encounter Walking again without hesitation.

Dartmoor Way

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Mark Breuer

16 September 2019

Overall walk is fabulous. Spectacular views, good pubs, friendly people. Will definitely go back for both longer walks and day trips.

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Joe & Sue

6 September 2018

My wife and I walked 10 days of the Southwest Coast Path and then transferred to Bovey Tracey for 4 days on the Dartmoor Way -- from Bovey Tracey to Okehampton. We are both experienced long distance walkers in our mid-60's. We couldn't have been more pleased with the pre-trip service provided by the Encounter team. I appreciated their ability to listen to our needs, to provide advice and alternative route options to consider, to offer accommodations at a variety of price points/comfort levels, and to do so promptly and efficiently. We were especially grateful for their suggestion that we reconsider the Two Moors walk, given our limited experience with navigating in low visibility conditions, and for suggesting this walk as an alternative. We will use them again and will recommend them to friends. While a beautiful walk in many places, this segment of the Dartmoor Way is not a moors walk, and we were somewhat disappointed by not having more time on the moor. The High Tors Walk day gave us some flavor of the moors, but due to weather conditions, we were unable to take the higher walk option above Okehampton. So most of our walking was through rolling farmland, woods paths, trust property, etc. Some highlights...The Southern High Tors Walk out of Bovey Tracey...a beautiful introduction to the moor, with great views, interesting tors and flora, and the amazing granite railway that was used to transport the quarried rock to the canal and then to the coast. The notes provided by Encounter and the OS map made navigation relatively easy...but care is still required. The wonderful little village of North Bovey and the warm and welcoming Ring of Bells Inn. Great food and drink...and we were upgraded to a huge room above the dining area. The Inn at Fingle Bridge for lunch...sitting at a table along the river with a beer watching the river flow past was perfection. The river walk after Fingle Bridge to the intersection with the Two Moors Way was one of the most delightful walks of the trip. Easy, but always under trees with the river close by on your right. A not to be missed lunch stop at the Oxenham Arms pub in Zeal...a monastery before becoming an inn, this is where Dickens wrote much of his Pickwick Papers. We stopped in sopping wet after walking 3 hours in a downpour and were welcomed warmly. The coal fire dried us out, and we enjoyed the best pub lunch of the trip there. Comments/Suggestions Unlike the coast path, where you practically could walk on auto-pilot most times, the Dartmoor Way requires ongoing attention to the trail notes and following the route carefully on the OS map. The Dartmoor Way is not a signed route...it is a route cobbled together from existing permissive paths, conservation trust lands, etc. The 1:50,000 map included in the Dartmoor Way guide is pretty much useless for on the ground navigation. Our routine each night before the next day's walk was to look at the 1:50,000 map to get a general sense of the route, read through the Dartmoor Way Guide trail description and any supplementary notes provided by Encounter, and then mark up the 1:25,000 AZ Dartmoor map using a highlighter pen. This helped us familiarize ourselves with the place names and route before we set off and made navigating on the ground much quicker and easier...particularly in the wet conditions we encountered at the end of the trip. It also reduced the number of arguments between us while on the trail. :) Take the waymarks that are mentioned in the Dartmoor Way guide with a grain of salt...I don't know when the guide was last updated, but stiles were often gates, gates were often stiles, fingerpost signs were missing, etc. The distances cited in the descriptions are also often incorrect. Here again, following along with the OS map was invaluable, even to paying attention to the field boundary walls and hedge markings to help determine position. Several times, we used our compass to help us determine the general direction of travel. For some reason, cardinal directions (N, S, E,W) are never used in either the guides or Encounter's notes...it would be helpful at times if they were. There is a trail deviation on the High Tors walk that is worth mentioning. On the Templer Way, just before Lower Down (AZ Dartmoor Map, p. 50 B1), the trail no longer continues east before bearing south to the road; instead the trail now follows the green bridleway bearing southwest and then intersects the road. This means a longer road walk...extreme care should be exercised here, as the road is narrow with encroaching hedgerows and the speed of the traffic is fast. Walk single file facing traffic and be prepared for speeding vehicles. Leaving Haytor, the Templer Way soon is no longer recognizable by the granite rails as it devolves into an overgrown, unmarked footpath in places. Shortly after Haytor village, we erroneously took a wide path to the left too soon and needed to backtrack down toward the road, where we followed a much narrower path that turned out to be the correct one. Our advice is to stay on the paths closest to the road, ignoring any path to the left...after the quarry (disused) the Templer Way signs will soon reappear, along with remnants of the granite rails. The only place we ever had great difficulty was a segment of the Water to Moretonhamstead section just beyond Horsham (AZ Dartmoor map, p. 37, D3). After the cottages mentioned in the guidebook, p.6 first paragraph, we followed the concrete track uphill but could not find where we were to bear right "over the waymarked stile" or where to "follow the fence to another stile into woodland." After conferring with the map and then encountering a local woman who provided us excellent advice, we were able to get back on track. My advice for this section is: "Continue uphill on the concrete track until you reach a cattle grid. To your right, hidden among the trees, you will see a weathered sign reading "Path" and pointing diagonally across the field to your right and heading downhill. Follow that path across the field, pass through a gate and after about 20 meters, pass through another gate. Continue downhill and then through another gate into the woods, bearing downhill the entire way." Soon you will see the fingerpost sign "Lane to Foxworthy." This route is very clear on the AZ OS map, and we should have trusted it rather than the guide description. Our greatest disappointment with the Bovey Tracey to Okehampton section of the Dartmoor Way was the amount of road walking involved in places. While the paved lanes were often quiet and restful, the hard surfaces were tough on the feet. But still...a great walk!