Day Walks From Exeter Onto Dartmoor

Dartmoor’s eastern edge is closer to Exeter than most people realise. Drive twenty minutes west on the B3212 and you are at Dunsford, on the River Teign, with the moor rising behind you. The day walks from Exeter onto Dartmoor in this guide all start within a forty-five-minute drive of the city, and they give you a proper sense of the National Park (gorse, granite, wild river) without the long haul to Princetown or Postbridge.

The wild daffodils at Dunsford

Dunsford Nature Reserve, run by Devon Wildlife Trust (not the RSPB, as is sometimes claimed), is the obvious place to start. The reserve sits on the north bank of the River Teign and is one of the best sites in south-west England for wild daffodils, which carpet the floodplain in the second half of March. The standard Daffodil Walk is around 6.3km out-and-back along level paths from Steps Bridge, taking about ninety minutes to two hours.

Park at Steps Bridge car park (paid, run by Dartmoor National Park) or at Clifford Bridge for a quieter start. The path is well marked, dog-friendly on leads (otters and ground-nesting birds), and gentle enough for older children. Even outside daffodil season, the reserve is a lovely riverside walk with pied flycatcher, dipper and the occasional fallow deer.

Bridford and Christow loop

For something hillier, the lanes and woods between Bridford and Christow on the north-eastern fringe of Dartmoor give you a full half-day walk with proper climbs and proper views. A classic six-mile loop starts in Bridford, drops through Bridford Wood to the Teign, climbs Heltor Rock for the wide moor view, and returns via Lawrence Castle or the back lanes through Christow.

Pub stops at either end help. The Bridford Inn and the Artichoke Inn at Christow are both real-fire-and-local-ale places that take walkers seriously. The terrain is mixed: bridleway, woodland path, narrow lane and open moor. Walking boots, OS Explorer OL28 map and an eye on the weather are sensible.

Haldon Forest Park

Closer still, on the wooded ridge above Exeter, Haldon Forest Park is the easiest “day on the edge of Dartmoor” option. Strictly, Haldon sits outside the National Park boundary, but the views across to the moor are the best in the area and the forest is criss-crossed with waymarked trails. The Discovery Trail (1.5 miles) is buggy-friendly and shared with beginner cyclists. The Raptor Trail and the Butterfly Trail run longer, both around three to four miles, with seating, sculpture and viewpoints.

Parking is paid by ANPR. There is a Go Ape on site, a Forestry cafe with decent coffee, and bike hire if you want to ride. Dogs are welcome everywhere. Haldon is the rainy-day Dartmoor fallback when the moor itself is in cloud.

Castle Drogo and the Teign Gorge

A little further west, but still inside the day-walk envelope, Castle Drogo (National Trust) sits above the Teign Gorge near Drewsteignton. The Hunter’s Path and Fisherman’s Path together make a classic four-mile loop along the gorge: high on the way out, riverside on the way back. The views over the Teign as it cuts through Dartmoor are among the most photographed on the moor for good reason. National Trust members park free; pay-and-display for non-members. Allow half a day with a castle tour, more for a longer hike on Piddledown Common.

Fingle Bridge and the riverside path

If you only have a couple of hours, drive to Fingle Bridge, an old packhorse bridge in a steep wooded gorge, and walk the river path either upstream towards Castle Drogo or downstream towards Clifford Bridge. The Fingle Bridge Inn is the trailhead pub and serves food all day in season. The walk along the Teign is flat, shaded and easy underfoot. This is the route to do with grandparents and pushchairs.

What to bring, and weather

Dartmoor weather changes faster than anywhere else within an hour of Exeter. Always pack a waterproof, a hat, and water. Even on summer Sundays, mist can roll in within twenty minutes. Mobile signal is unreliable across the moor, so download maps offline or carry the OS Explorer paper sheets.

All the day walks from Exeter onto Dartmoor in this guide are doable in trainers in dry weather, but walking boots are smarter for anything off the riverside paths. Stagecoach buses serve Dunsford and Drewsteignton from Exeter, but services are limited; check timetables before you commit to a no-car day.

For a different kind of countryside outing, our guide to Killerton Estate covers a gentler National Trust day to the north of the city.

A note on the National Park boundary

Worth knowing for the OS-map purists: of the five walks above, only Dunsford, Bridford, Castle Drogo and Fingle Bridge sit inside the Dartmoor National Park boundary. Haldon Forest is on the Haldon Hills, a separate ridge of high ground east of the park. The landscape feels similar and the views overlap, but if you want to honestly say you have walked on Dartmoor, pick one of the four named first. The Dartmoor National Park visitor centre at Princetown is forty minutes further west and worth a separate trip if you want context on the moor’s archaeology, geology and farming history.

Whichever route you pick, treat the moor with respect. Cattle, sheep and ponies roam freely on the open commons, and farm gates are there for good reason. Leave them as you find them, take all litter home, and keep dogs under close control during lambing (March to May) and the deer rut (October).