Parking
Free car park at the Devil's Cauldron entrance; two accessible spaces, limited room for long vehicles and no overnight parking.
Overview
About Devil's Cauldron Trail
Why go
- The River Lyd, bridges and ferny walls make a short walk feel like a real gorge outing.
- The optional Cauldron platform brings you close to the rushing water.
- Free parking, toilets and a tea room are at the entrance.
Heads up
- Narrow rocky paths are steep and can be slick even when dry.
- The seven unbarriered steps to the platform feel exposed, though you can skip them.
- This section closes each winter and admission may apply.
The loop rises over rock steps to a fork. A short side path drops through a gate to the Devil's Cauldron, a large river-worn pothole boxed in by dark rock walls, with fast water churning below the viewing platform. The attraction is the confined rush of water and deep, ferny gorge, not a tall waterfall. The platform is optional: getting down means seven narrow rock-hewn steps with a handrail but no barrier, and a metal-grate floor; skip it if those do not feel comfortable. Keep dogs out of the river and away from the platform. For a photo, keep the water near the bottom of the frame and leave enough of the walls in view to show the depth.
Parkwolf’s verdictThe Cauldron is the payoffMap & elevation
The route
Loading the Dartmoor map
Full mapElevation192–202 m
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
2 active Dartmoor alerts
- CautionDartmoor military firing restricts accessDo not cross the Okehampton, Willsworthy or Merrivale training-range boundaries when warning signals are displayed.Official details
- CautionAccess restriction at Huccaby FarmAccess to CROW Access Land at Huccaby Farm in the West Dart River Valley is subject to a current restriction notice.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Dartmoor Tour Guide
Your drive to Devil's Cauldron Trail, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Dartmoor National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
Recorded for this trailhead
Lydford Gorge: Devil's Cauldron0:00 / 0:38
“You're approaching the Devil's Cauldron entrance to Lydford Gorge. Here the River Lyd churns through a dark, narrow rock channel, and a short but steep loop takes you to a platform above the water.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Dartmoor Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- The Watchmaker's Words
- The River’s Old Cauldrons
- Whitelady Waterfall from the Waterfall Entrance
- Lydford Before the Castle
- 298 audio storiesacross Dartmoor’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Western Roe Deer, Red Fox, European Rabbit, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 54 trails, 59 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Trail guide
Hiking Devil's Cauldron Trail
Take the loop, then look downDevil's Cauldron Trail is a 0.8-mile (1.
Devil's Cauldron Trail is a 0.8-mile (1.28 km) loop that starts and finishes at the Devil's Cauldron entrance; allow about 40 minutes on the walking line. It is a proper gorge walk in miniature, not a level nature path. Leave the visitor welcome on the gravel path, pass the tea room and drop through a gate into trees. The route zigzags down to the River Lyd, crosses by an arched bridge, follows the water upstream, then returns across a metal bridge. Look into the deeper pools there: brown trout are sometimes visible against the current. The path is narrow and rocky, with a steep descent and climb. Uneven ground can be slippery even when dry, so the short mileage does not make it an easy stroll.
Make the visit workThe exit leg has another steep rise up to a gravel path and the entrance.
The exit leg has another steep rise up to a gravel path and the entrance. There is a short optional section beneath a road bridge; take it only if you want the extra look, then double back to the uphill branch. A tea room, toilets, second-hand bookshop and orchard picnic tables are beside the visitor welcome, not out on the route. The car park is free, but has limited room for long vehicles and does not allow overnight parking. This is a managed attraction, and admission may apply. The Devil's Cauldron section closes each winter, so check seasonal access before planning a cold-weather walk.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Dartmoor
32 sightingsWestern Roe DeerMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
10 sightingsRed FoxMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
37 sightingsEuropean RabbitMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
19 sightingsGrey HeronMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
34 sightingsGreat Spotted WoodpeckerMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
20 sightingsCommon RavenMost seen around 8 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Dartmoor. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
