The right to wild camp on Dartmoor: gone but not forgotten
The outcome last week of a wealthy landowner’s high court case was sadly predictable: he’s stripped people of their legal right to camp on Dartmoor.
As the fight to win back this right goes on, I’ll look back fondly on nights I’ve spent on the moor. Those nights in a tent were special, with Dartmoor the only place in England where you could roam until you were tired, then wild camp legally for the night. That’s because, until last week, backpack camping in small groups had been an assumed right under the Dartmoor Commons Act 1985.
Then, hedge fund manager Alexander Darwall won his case against the National Park Authority after arguing the right to pitch a tent on the moor did not exist. Like many people, I felt this ruling personally. I’ve camped across Dartmoor, including in the area of Darwall’s 4,000 acre Blachford Estate – most recently a few years ago, when G had just turned five.
On a hot June day G and I packed up our gear and took the long train ride to Ivybridge. As Somerset turned to Devon outside the window, G was excited and I was nervous. Would he enjoy the experience? Would he sleep? Could I carry all our gear? Eventually, having changed trains at Plymouth, we rattled into Ivybridge and climbed off to find the track up to the moor, and the answers to these questions.