Three categories of ground
Almost everywhere you might consider going falls into one of three buckets, and they behave very differently.
Open access commons
Section 10 of the Dartmoor Commons Act 1985 gives the public a right of access to the commons on foot and on horseback for open-air recreation UK Parliament 1985. That is over 50,000 hectares, and it is one of the best access rights in England.
What it gives you: the freedom to walk essentially anywhere on the commons.
What it does not give you: any right to dig, pan, detect, or remove anything. The byelaws are explicit Dartmoor National Park Authority, and they are covered on the law page.
Enclosed private land
Everything else: the farmland of the South Hams, the Crediton Trough, the in-bye land around the moor’s edge. No general right of access. Public footpaths give you a right to pass along the line of the path and nothing more.
This is, inconveniently, where the gold is.
The MOD Dartmoor Training Area
Three live-firing ranges occupy a large block of the northern moor:
- Okehampton Range, the largest, covering much of the high northern moor
- Merrivale Range, central-west, between Princetown and Tavistock
- Willsworthy Range, west, north of Tavistock
Public access is allowed within the ranges except during live firing, under byelaws that let the MOD close them on a licensed number of days each year Dartmoor National Park Authority.
How to check whether firing is on
This is a routine that takes two minutes and you should do it every time.
- Check the published programme. The MOD publishes rolling six-week firing timetables for all three ranges on GOV.UK Ministry of Defence.
- Ring the freephone line for same-day confirmation: 0800 458 4868 (or 01837 657 210).
- Look for the flags on the day. Red flags by day and red lamps by night mean live firing is taking place. Range boundaries are marked by red-and-white posts.
- Use the morning cut-off. If the warning signals are not hoisted by 09:00 (April to September) or 10:00 (October to March), there will be no live firing that day Ministry of Defence. This is the single most useful rule to remember. Flags come down as soon as firing ceases.
There are also guaranteed public access days published annually for Okehampton, Willsworthy and Merrivale, when the ranges will be open regardless.
Other access complications worth knowing
Tidal reaches and foreshore. The lower Erme, Avon, Yealm and Dart are tidal. Foreshore below mean high water is typically Crown Estate land, which is a separate permission again from the riparian farmer upstream.
Water company land. Burrator, Meldon, Avon Dam, Fernworthy and Venford reservoirs and their catchments carry their own access rules.
Common land grazing. The commons are working farmland with stock on them. Dogs under close control, gates as you find them, no interference with animals, and be aware that during lambing and pony drifts your presence in a stream bed will attract attention.
Weather and ground. Dartmoor mires are genuinely dangerous, visibility can collapse in minutes, and the valley bottoms you would want to prospect are the wettest ground on the moor. Carry a map and compass and know how to use them; phone signal on the high moor is unreliable.
A practical decision tree
Before you go anywhere with a pan, work through this:
- Is it inside the National Park boundary? If yes, and it is access land, you may walk but not dig. Stop here unless you are only walking.
- Is it inside a firing range? Check the programme and the flags. If firing, do not enter. If not firing, walk only.
- Is it a Scheduled Monument or SSSI? Check the Historic England and Natural England public map viewers by postcode. If yes, do not disturb the ground at all.
- Who owns it, and have you asked? Land Registry title searches are inexpensive and will usually get you a name.
- Do you have that permission in writing? Get it. It costs nothing and it ends every argument.
- Are you using anything mechanised? If yes, you have crossed into territory needing Environment Agency engagement. Reconsider.