Two Moors Way (Dartmoor section)

This is the 34.7-mile, one-way Dartmoor section of the Two Moors Way, from the Ivybridge route marker north to Drewsteignton. It is a point-to-point crossing, not a loop; the wider Ivybridge–Lynmouth trail continues beyond this mapped section. The line divides naturally into four walking stages. Allow about 17 hours on foot in total and plan separate transport and overnight stops; the 13-mile opening stage is the most testing.

Leaving Ivybridge, the route follows the former Redlake Railway for six miles across open, bare moorland before dropping toward Holne. It crosses the River Avon on a 19th-century clapper bridge and passes Huntingdon Warren, where rabbits were farmed from the mid-13th century until the 1950s. The opening miles are bare and exposed before the route descends to its first village at Holne.

From Holne, a wooded descent reaches New Bridge over the Dart. The route climbs onto Dr Blackall’s Drive, high above the Dart Valley, then descends along the West Webburn toward Hameldown’s open ridge. North of it, the low cairn and upright marker on Hameldown stand out on the open ridge, a good spot to take in the moorland before the path turns toward Chagford. The path skirts Grimspound, crosses the road at Bennett’s Cross, a 13th-century boundary marker, and passes the long stone row on Hurston Ridge. Field paths and woodland tracks lead by old farmsteads to Chagford Bridge. Chagford is about a mile away for food or a bed; Widecombe is another village detour. Neither diversion is part of the mapped line.

The final four-mile stretch follows the River Teign below Castle Drogo, then climbs to the rim of Teign Gorge before ending at Drewsteignton. The Castle Drogo café requires a detour from the route. Much of the wider way is marked, but the open moorland sections are not signed and the weather can change quickly; carry a map and compass and be ready to navigate. Dogs are allowed on the public rights of way; keep them under close control and put them on a lead near livestock.