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Welcome to Dartmoor Dartmeet Route Key Dartmeet Walk Points of InterestInterest Parking Toilets 0.5 0.3 © Crown copyright and database rights 2020 Ordnance Survey 100024842 Self guided walk exploring the Dartmeet area. The suggested walking route will help you experience some of the delights of the Dartmeet area. Please be aware of your own limitations and navigational ability before embarking on any of the routes described. Dartmeet Route WELCOME TO WELCOME TO DARTMOOR ROUTE INFORMATION If you’re really lucky you might catch a 3. Tin Mining on Dartmoor Parking - Dartmeet car park (charges glimpse of a Kingsher or try looking for apply) signs of otters, such as footprints in the sand At Brimpts Farm you can visit the Tin Mine Facilities - Toilets, Restaurant, Pixies Holt or spraint on the rocks. Continue walking Display, created by the Dartmoor Tin along the river, you will pick up another Working Research Group and learn more Distance - 5.5 km / 3.5 miles clear path, taking you back into another about Tin Mining in the area. Dartmoor has Time - 3 hours approx. wooded area. The route here becomes a rich history of tin exploitation dating back Terrain - Some rocky terrain, mostly follows rocky, pick your way over the boulders, over to at least the 12th Century and continuing a small stream and carry on up the river. well dened tracks with some gentle through to the 20th century. climbs. Includes stepping stones that 2. Medieval River Crossings Early miners extracted the tin ore they aren’t passable when river found in streams beds through a process levels are high. After a short while you will come to a called ‘tin streaming’ which has altered tributary that joins the East Dart. Follow the almost all of Dartmoor’s stream valleys. As tributary, keeping it on your left and you will these easily worked sources were This walks starts at Dartmeet where the East arrive at small clapper bridge. Go over the exhausted they began to mine from the and West Dart rivers meet, the two major bridge and walk down the stream, keeping ground using deep trenches and tributaries of the River Dart. You will explore it on your left, you will then arrive at a set of eventually underground workings. During the river valley of the East Dart, see ancient stepping stones. medieval times tin working became river crossings and have an opportunity to increasingly important and stannary towns learn more about mining on Dartmoor. Clapper bridges are an ancient form were established around the moor to of bridge, most commonly erected in oversee the industry for the Crown. Tin 1. The East Dart River medieval times to aid river crossings. Other mining went into decline in the post river crossings included fords and stepping medieval period, but with new Victorian From the main car park, follow the path at stones. The word clapper is thought to technologies many mines were the top of the car park to the right hand derive from the Anglo-Saxon word ‘cleaca’, reestablished and new mines exploiting side of the entrance to Badgers Holt. Follow meaning stepping stones or bridging the copper and iron were set up. the footpath through the woods, keeping stepping stones. the old wall on your left hand side. When Brimpts Farm dates to the medieval period you reach the end of the wall drop downhill Carefully cross the stepping stones and and is one of the ‘Ancient Tenements.’ The about 20 metres towards the river and take bear left, following the river downstream. occupants of these farms had special the well-dened path, keeping the river on At the end of the wooded area you will rights allowing them to farm within the your left. Make your way along the river, you come to a gateway. After the gateway Royal Forest of Dartmoor in return for will come to an obvious clearing. follow the bridleway as it swings uphill undertaking various duties, especially slightly to the next gateway and an old rounding up animals grazing on the moors. As you walk along the river look out for ruined cottage known locally as Dolly’s Continue along the track through the main all sorts of dragonies, damselies and Cott. After passing through the gateway by farm buildings and join the main farm lane. butteries, species you might see include the cottage, walk across the field to the Follow the lane uphill away from the farm. the Golden Ringed Dragony, Keeled next gateway and follow the track uphill At the top of the hill bear right off of the Dartmeet Route Skimmer and Small Pearl Bordered Fritillary. where you will reach Brimpts Farm. main lane onto a wide wooded track, WELCOME TO WELCOME TO DARTMOOR follow this track until you reach the road. 2 4. St Raphael’s Church At the brow of the hill continue downhill towards a wooded area, go through the When you reach the road turn right, at gate and onto the narrow track. Continue the T junction turn left signposted towards down the track, over the stile straight Hexworthy. Follow the road downhill until ahead to the end of the track. Bear left into you reach a second track on your left the field, through the gate and follow the opposite Huccaby Farm, bear left up the path to the bottom left hand corner of the track towards a gateway keeping the farm field by the house. Take the footpath to the buildings on your right. left of the house, with the house on your right. Upon meeting the road turn right over Before taking the track you can walk a little the bridge and back to the car park, further down the road and visit St Raphael’s stopping to have a look at the clapper Church. The Church was built in 1869 as a bridge on your left as you go. mission chapel to bring the gospel to those who lived too far from the parish church The modern road bridge at Dartmeet in Lyford, which to visi t, required a lengthy was constructed in 1792 as part of the toll passage across Dartmoor. The Chapel was road between Ashburton and Two Bridges. a place of worship on Sunday and acted Its predecessor was a clapper bridge as a school during the week, the scholar’s constructed of large slabs of granite which desks remain in place today and are used was partially washed away in 1820 and is as pews. still visible just upstream. This structure was part of the medieval network of packhorse 5. Views of the TToror routes across Dartmoor. Enter the eld and walk up the hill following the way marker posts. As you walk towards the brow of the hill take in the views across to Yartor Down. During the Middle Bronze Age (around 1,500 BC), like much of Dartmoor, Yartor Down was home to a thriving community. There are numerous hut circles and settlements and an extensive reave system. ‘Reave’ is a Dartmoor term for the remains @lovedartmoor of eld boundaries which formed extensive systems marking out elds and enclosed Dartmoor National Park settlements during the Bronze Age. @dartmoornpa Dartmeet Route WELCOME TO WELCOME TO DARTMOOR www.dartmoor.gov.uk 3.
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