Paddling in Dartmoor National Park

Dartmoor sits on the granite uplands of southern Devon, where rainfall is high and rivers run fast off the moor in all directions. The water here is almost entirely spate-driven — short, steep, rocky rivers that rise quickly after rain and drop just as fast.

This is whitewater country, not flatwater touring, and the paddling calendar is shaped as much by access agreements as by flow. The River Dart is the anchor.

It carries some of the best mid-grade whitewater in the UK, and it's the one river in the park with a formal paddling agreement in place.

The Dart Fisheries Association and British Canoeing have negotiated seasonal access: the upper section from Dartmeet down to Newbridge runs from 1st October to the end of March, and the middle and lower section from Newbridge through to Totnes weir runs over the same window.

Outside those dates, there is no paddling permitted.

The reason is biological — above Dartmeet, the East and West Dart and their tributaries are legally protected during salmon spawning season, and disturbing the redds is a criminal offence, not just a courtesy violation.

Egress points are at Dartmeet, Newbridge, Waterworks Bridge, and Totnes; the egress at Holne Bridge is permanently closed following road works, and parking at Newbridge is limited.

Beyond the Dart, the picture is stark: there is no general permission to canoe on Dartmoor's inland rivers. The Teign, Plym, Erme, Taw, Walkham, and the other moorland streams that drain the park all require landowner permission to paddle.

That's not a technicality — it's the legal baseline for non-tidal water in England, and Dartmoor enforces it in practice. What this means on the ground is that the Dart in winter, running well after rain, is where the accessible paddling concentrates.

Plan around flow, plan around the access window, and check egress before you put on. The moor gives the water its character — cold, peat-stained, fast — and the season its limits.