Forestry England is the government body that manages the nation's public forests across England, including a cluster of woodlands on Dartmoor. On the moor, its holdings stretch from Fernworthy in the north, three miles west of Chagford, through Soussons and Bellever near the village of Bellever, down to Brimpts in the south, together forming the Dartmoor Forest Plan area. These forests are predominantly conifer plantations, established after the First World War by the Duchy of Cornwall to address a national timber shortage.
Beyond timber production, Forestry England manages these Dartmoor woods for public access, recreation and conservation. Bellever Forest has two car parks, at Bellever village and Postbridge, with waymarked trails and riverside picnic spots along the East Dart. Fernworthy Forest sits on the edge of Fernworthy Reservoir and offers walking and wildlife-watching alongside prehistoric remains including the Fernworthy Cairn Circle and Assycombe Stone Row.
Cover photograph: photo by Fernweh, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
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