Where you can wild camp on Dartmoor. Dartmoor is the one place in England where backpack camping on open moorland is allowed, within set areas and rules. This map shows the permitted zones, so you can plan a night under the stars in the right place.
Open the full-screen camping map →
The rules in short
Where
Only within the shaded permitted areas, away from roads, walls and farmland, and not on enclosed fields or moorland edges outside the zones.
How
One or two small tents, for one or two nights, carried in and carried out. Leave no trace, take all litter home, and light no fires.
Plan your night
Pick a zone and a safe pitch
Choose a permitted area, then find flat, dry ground away from water that can rise. Combine this map with the firing times map if your route is in the north of the moor.
Backpack camping areas © Dartmoor National Park Authority. Our Dartmoor is a community project built with the help of AI. Always check the current rules with the National Park before you camp.
Is the river clean today? Storm overflows can release sewage into Dartmoor's rivers, especially after rain. This map shows the monitored overflow points and their recent status, so you can make an informed choice before you swim, paddle or let the dog in.
Open the full-screen river map →
How to read the map
Overflow status
Each marker is a monitored storm overflow. The colour shows whether it is spilling now, has spilled recently, or has been clear, based on the latest available readings.
What it does and does not tell you
The data reflects known, monitored overflows and the most recent readings, which can lag reality. Treat it as a strong guide, not a guarantee, and take extra care after heavy rain.
Swimming and paddling on Dartmoor
Choose your spot with care
Rivers rise fast on the moor and cold water carries its own risks. Combine this map with your own judgement, and check upstream as well as your chosen spot.
Storm overflow data via the National Storm Overflow Hub, Creative Commons Attribution 4.0. Our Dartmoor is a community project built with the help of AI. This information is provided in good faith and is not a substitute for official advice.
Check the moor before you go. Three military ranges cover a large part of northern Dartmoor, and live firing takes place on many days. This map shows the range danger areas and, where available, today's live firing schedule, so you can plan a safe route.
Open the full-screen firing map →
The three ranges
Okehampton, Merrivale and Willsworthy
These are the areas marked by red flags and lights when firing is on. When they are active, you must stay out. The map colours each range and, on a range with firing today, shows the times.
How to stay safe
Always check on the day
Schedules change, so confirm before you set out, and never touch any metal object you find on the ground. Tap a range on the map to open the official firing programme.
Plan an alternative
If your route crosses a firing range on a firing day, the rest of the moor is open. Use the main map to find a safe walk nearby.
Range areas © OpenStreetMap contributors. Live firing schedule © Crown copyright (GOV.UK), Open Government Licence v3.0. Our Dartmoor is a community project built with the help of AI. Always confirm with the official source before travelling.
Dartmoor's ancient landscape, revealed from the air. Thousands of years of human activity are written into the moor's surface, but most of it hides under grass, heather and bracken. This map shows Dartmoor as a laser-scanned model of the bare ground, where old boundaries, settlements and burial mounds rise back into view.
Open the full-screen LiDAR map →
What is LiDAR?
LiDAR is a survey made by firing laser pulses at the ground from an aircraft and measuring what returns, building a detailed model of the land surface. Shaded like a relief map, it exaggerates tiny bumps and hollows, so a low bank you would walk straight past becomes an obvious line on the screen. The data here is the official national survey, published as open data.
What you can see on Dartmoor
Hut circles and settlements
The round stone footings of Bronze Age homes, often in clusters behind an enclosing wall.
Reaves and field systems
The long, straight prehistoric land boundaries that stripe the moor, and the faint grids of the ancient fields they divided.
Cairns and barrows
Burial mounds, frequently set on ridges and skylines.
Later features
Mine workings, leats, rabbit warrens and the earthworks of lost farmsteads.
How to explore it
Zoom in and switch between LiDAR and the normal map to place what you are seeing. Every listing pin stays on top, so you can open a site's page as you go. Try Grimspound, the reaves around Rippon Tor, or the deserted medieval village below Hound Tor. See the full Our Dartmoor map →
LiDAR imagery © Environment Agency copyright and/or database right, Open Government Licence v3.0. Our Dartmoor is a community project built with the help of AI.
