The DPA are proud to offer a broad variety of #volunteering opportunities, with workdays happening across our land holdings on weekdays and weekends. Our most recent workday at Pudsham Meadows focused on removing bramble patches, #Molinia tussocks & scrub. dartmoorpreservation.co.uk/meadow-impro...

Huge thanks to John Bainbridge for sharing our article on Land Management at Pudsham Meadows on his Country ways blog. It's brilliant to have support in sharing our work, and conservation plans for the future, with our community. countryways569333284.wordpress.com/2026/02/07/m... #Dartmoor #meadow

Could you take part in a study investigating exposure to tick-borne diseases on Dartmoor? Drop in opportunities are available in Postbridge, Brentor, Throwleigh and South Brent this February. Any questions or for more information please email: [email protected] #lymedisease #Dartmoor

'Volunteering here is more than clearing gorse – it’s participation in guardianship, a chance to connect with the land’s stories and to contribute to a living legacy.' - Daniel Moonen shares his experience #volunteering with the DPA at High House Waste. www.nhbs.com/blog/conserv... #conservation

After days of rain, our Conservation #Volunteers were delighted to be back out on the land, clearing the historic Drake’s Leat. Winter #conservation work focuses on clearing gorse and bramble from the sides of the channel, lessening chance of collapse. dartmoorpreservation.co.uk/gorse-cleara...

Pudsham Meadows is a marvellous example of flower rich grassland. 2320 orchids were counted in 2025, including the rare Greater Butterfly Orchid. For 2026, we have refreshed our land management plans for the site, aiming to make it even more species rich. dartmoorpreservation.co.uk/marvellous-m...

A Year on Dartmoor is a wildlife documentary by Ben Silverwood, filmed over a year in Dartmoor National Park. From winter storms and biting winds to the quieter abundance of spring and summer, the film explores life on one of Britain’s most iconic landscapes. www.youtube.com/watch?app=de...

We're pleased to share bold & refreshed #ecological land management plans for our land at High House Waste. This land was purchased on behalf of the DPA in 1964, to save it from inappropriate afforestation, and we've looked after it ever since. Read more: dartmoorpreservation.co.uk/ecological-l...

We've now awarded 138 Moor Boots grants to young people. These small grants will enable them to purchase appropriate boots and waterproofs that will stand up to the demands of training for Ten Tors. Moor Boots grant applications are still open: dartmoorpreservation.co.uk/access-suppo... #TenTors

Join Detective Inspector Mark Harrison of the UK National #Wildlife #Crime Unit for insight into the real-world challenges of protecting vulnerable and endangered birds of prey in North Yorkshire. Online talk: 27 Jan 5:30-7:00pm www.trybooking.com/uk/events/la... @friendsofthedales.bsky.social

Winter workdays are in full swing and our fantastic team of DPA #Conservation #Volunteers have been busy on various sites. On Wednesday 14th January the team made their yearly winter visit to Roborough Common, accompanied by @savebutterflies.bsky.social. dartmoorpreservation.co.uk/butterfly-co...

The Hound of the Baskervilles wasn't the only tale of Arthur Conan Doyle's to be influenced by Dartmoor. Delve deeper into Conan Doyle's lesser known #Dartmoor stories with this examination of 'The Winning Shot' by DPA Trustee William Fell MBE: dartmoorpreservation.co.uk/cona-doyles-...

DPA Conservation Volunteer, and Ecological Composer, Roz Brady writes about her experience helping to care for the ponies visiting our land at Pudsham. These native ponies have been doing #conservation grazing as part of our long term land management plan. dartmoorpreservation.co.uk/guest-blog-t...

The 1st of January 2026 marked the centenary of landmark legislation which, for the first time, created a right to walk and ride on significant areas of common land in town and country. This law was largely thanks to our friends the Open Spaces Society. dartmoorpreservation.co.uk/centenary-of...

If you haven't read our brilliant Wild Words #magazine yet, perhaps now is the time! It features over 50 atmospheric, exciting and inspiring pieces of #writing inspired by #Dartmoor and written by people who love this special landscape. dartmoorpreservation.co.uk/wild-words/ Image: David Bates

Here's 'Inside the Snow' by Chris Gilchrist, delightfully read by Jan Gayton, who has her own writing featured in our Wild Words magazine also. #wildwords #Dartmoor #poetry #poem www.youtube.com/shorts/T-43R...

An intrepid group of walkers joined DPA Chairman, John Howell, for a Winter #Solstice walk to Merrivale on Sunday the 21st of December. Many Bronze Age stone rows and circles are thought to interact with the rising or setting sun on the solstices. dartmoorpreservation.co.uk/winter-solst...

Enjoy 'Venford Falls' by Susan Taylor, read by Bill Brealey. This #poem, recorded as part of our Wild Word pairings, features a video of Venford falls and transports the listener to #Dartmoor for a few minutes of wonder. Discover more on the DPA YouTube channel. www.youtube.com/shorts/8_2Ba...

For todays Wild Words recording, Helen Bruce reads an abridged extract from 'The Green Hill: Letters to a Son' by Sophie Pierce. This was filmed near #Princetown and the words take the listener on a journey of joy, reflection and grief, all deeply rooted in place. www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9i8...

If you aren't able to get to the moor physically at the moment, we will be sharing some more of our fantastic Wild Words recordings between now and the new year. Here's 'Wistman's Wood' by Jan Gayton, read by Nick Pannell: www.youtube.com/watch?v=tTEK... #dartmoor #natureconnection #wistmanswood

The Rivers and Moorland #festival is being held in Ivybridge on 5th – 7th June 2026, with the launch event happening on 12th January. Attend the planning meeting, either in person or online, for your chance to shape this local #Dartmoor festival! RSVP here: www.riversandmoorland.org

The Trustees and staff of the Dartmoor Preservation Association wish all our members, sponsors, partners and supporters a very merry Christmas and a happy New Year. Our office will be closed from Fri 19th of Dec to Sun 28th of Dec and we will be working remotely until the 4th Jan.

On Friday 12th December we held our final leat workday of 2025, welcoming our group of enthusiastic #Conservation #Volunteers back to Roborough Down. We celebrated a year of fantastic work on #Dartmoor with some local pasties on the freshly cleared leat. dartmoorpreservation.co.uk/pasties-on-t...

The DPA were delighted to attend a Future Leaders celebration event in the House of Commons on Tuesday the 16th of December, hosted by @campaign4parks.bsky.social, and opened by the Minister for Nature, Mary Creagh MP. dartmoorpreservation.co.uk/future-leade... #futureleaders #newperspectives

We're delighted to have hosted native Dartmoor ponies for #conservation #grazing on our land at Pudsham Meadows, as part of our ongoing land management plan. Semi-wild #Dartmoor #ponies have grazed the moorland for at least 4000 years. dartmoorpreservation.co.uk/conservation...

Exceeding our 76 grants in 2025, we have currently awarded 88 Moor Boots grants across 14 Ten Tors teams. This will enable young people to purchase essential outdoor equipment, such as boots and waterproof trousers. Applications are open now: dartmoorpreservation.co.uk/access-suppo... #moorboots

A group of young women from #Tavistock College have been presented Sylvia Sayer awards, after completing the Girls Do Dartmoor programme. This empowering programme brings school students out onto #Dartmoor to experience time in nature and learn new skills. dartmoorpreservation.co.uk/tavistock-st...

The DPA were delighted to be able to meet with the APPG on National Parks in Westminster yesterday to discuss the challenges and opportunities facing #Dartmoor as it balances #NatureRecovery, #access, statutory duties and the needs of the future. dartmoorpreservation.co.uk/all-party-pa...

The DPA were invited to speak at the third session of #Plymouth Culture’s ‘Let’s Make Change’ programme, which has been created to support Plymouth-based creative freelancers in developing bold, imaginative projects that respond to the #climate crisis. dartmoorpreservation.co.uk/lets-make-ch...

'Youth Voice Rising' was created by Mafia Weekend CIC as part of the @campaign4parks.bsky.social New Perspectives Storytelling Grant. What happens when young people step into a National Park with open eyes, open hearts & a professional videographer by their side? www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ODm...

The #medieval farmstead and newtake wall, which traces the path of a Bronze Age reave, are being cleared of gorse growth on DPA owned land at High House Waste. This makes the archaeology more accessible to visitors & also helps preserve it for the future. dartmoorpreservation.co.uk/clearing-the...

Our Wild Words magazine is now available to read for free on our website! Enjoy over 100 pages of inspiring stories, essays, lyrics and poetry, all inviting us to fall even more deeply in love with Dartmoor. dartmoorpreservation.co.uk/wild-words/ #Dartmoor #naturewriting #poetry #indiemagazine

Wild Words magazine will be available to download from our website for free from 10am on Friday the 28th of November. In the meantime, here is 'Dartmoor Grey' by Colin Kirk Potter, read by Samantha Webb. www.youtube.com/watch?v=x5Y8...

Wild Words #magazine launches this Friday! Here's an inspiring account of time spent on Dartmoor, written by Lotti Rains. 'First Solo Backpack Camp on Dartmoor' is read by Susan Taylor and filmed in the company of a bubbling #Dartmoor stream. www.youtube.com/watch?v=hE1m... #wildwords #nature

Thanks to Visit Dartmoor for sharing this excellent article on our Wild Words project and the upcoming magazine launch. visitdartmoor.co.uk/wild-words-s... #naturewriting #wildwords #Dartmoor #writing #poetry #natureconnection #inspiringlandscapes

'Ecosystem' by Walker Zupp uses rhyme and simile to explore the complexity of the #Dartmoor landscape, and entangled #ecosystem where human and animal inhabitants take up the same space. The free digital 'Wild Words' magazine comes out Friday 28th December. www.youtube.com/watch?v=_weJ...

With just 4 more days to go until the launch of our Wild Words #magazine on the 28th November, here is 'Aerobate' by Marten Baxter, read by Victoria Robinson. Wild Words has over 100 pages filled with 50+ pieces of #Dartmoor inspired #writing. www.youtube.com/watch?v=gvXq... #naturewriting #poem

With Ten Tors training now in full swing on #Dartmoor, we are very pleased to announce that we have already awarded Moor Boots grants to 74 young people. We've provided 45 pairs of boots & applications for these essential equipment grants are still open. dartmoorpreservation.co.uk/access.../mo...

'Dartmeet' by Kate Gold, read by Sophie Pierce, is a hymn to water & wildlife. It breaks the human experience down into #Dartmoor sensations until the separation between human, plant & animal blurs to nothing. Our 'Wild Words' #magazine launches on 28th November. www.youtube.com/watch?v=T2lb...

Thanks to Maureen Boon for her reading of 'Dartmoor' by Jill Stewart-Rattray. 'Dartmoor' is one of over 50 pieces of writing which can be found in our 'Wild Words' digital magazine, launching on the 28th of November. www.youtube.com/watch?v=mW8q... #wildwords #Dartmoor #poetry #naturewriting

Todays recording is 'A Handbag Full of Caterpillars' by Rebecca Beattie, read by Gillian Healey. Rebecca reflects on her experiences as a Dartmoor #pagan, blending humour and observations on the divine in nature. Wild Words magazine launches on the 28th of November. www.youtube.com/watch?v=SM5k...

In late September, @campaign4parks.bsky.social learned that the Westminster Government was planning to quietly weaken a vital new legal protection for National Parks and National Landscapes in England. The DPA joined over 200 others to oppose this change. It worked. www.cnp.org.uk/news/the-10-...

There's still just over a week to wait until our Wild Words digital magazine is launched on the 28th Nov, but here's a reading of 'Rock Monsters of #Dartmoor' by Samantha Webb, read by @onlyindevon.co.uk. www.youtube.com/watch?v=h3EZ... #wildwords #childrenswriting #naturewriting

This extract from Wicker Dogs engages with the #myths and #legends associated with the rock formations of #Dartmoor & the traditions that form alongside these stories. Wild Words digital magazine launches Friday 28th November & is free to read. www.youtube.com/watch?v=foo8... #wildwords #folklore

'Crossbills in a #Dartmoor Forest' by Charlie Elder was first published in the Guardian Country Diary. This extract is included in our Wild Words magazine & it is read aloud by David Bates. Wild Words launces 28th Nov as a free digital #magazine. www.youtube.com/watch?v=JeJX... #birdwatching

Hannah Durdin of Moorland Guides reads 'Sister of the Moors' by Daisy Dugmore. You'll be able to read this written piece, alongside more than 50 others, in our Wild Words magazine when it launches on the 28th Nov. www.youtube.com/watch?v=_-B4... #Dartmoor #wildwords #naturewriting

We welcome the Call to Action from the #Dartmoor Nature Alliance. Many of their recommendations are essential for a productive, nature-rich, #biodiverse Dartmoor that will form the foundations for the future of the National Park. Read more: www.dartmoornature.org.uk #calltoaction #nationalpark

'Is Dartmoor Unknowable?' by David Hawkings, read by Benjamin Pering. Enjoy listening to this thought provoking reflection on #Dartmoor as both a historic #landscape and a place full of modern-day meaning. Wild Words digital #magazine launches 28th of November. www.youtube.com/watch?v=dxb-...

Enjoy 'Dartmoor' by Beverley Beck, read by Michael Tucker. Our digital Wild Words magazine comes out on the 28th of November, bursting with over 100 pages of gorgeous #Dartmoor inspired #writing. www.youtube.com/watch?v=eSLJ... #wildwords #naturewriting #poetry