DNP ENJOY DARTMOOR 2024 digital - Flipbook - Page 3
Welcome
Car-free Dartmoor
page 30
Dartmoor’s flora and
fauna page 32
Dartmoor is a landscape rich in
natural beauty: shaped by nature
and humans over time; steeped in
history but always changing; one
of Britain’s finest. Dartmoor has
the power to inspire and enrich
lives. We look forward to helping
you discover this special place and
sharing ways in which you can help
care for it.
In 2024 we celebrate the 75th
anniversary of the legislation that
led to the designation of National
Parks in England and Wales. The
National Parks and Access to the
Countryside Act 1949 responded
to a clamour for legislation to
protect our finest landscapes and
provide people with opportunities
to access and enjoy the countryside.
Introducing the National Parks
Bill, the Minister Lewis Silkin told
Parliament that “This is not just
a Bill. It is a people’s charter – a
people’s charter for the open air,
for the hikers and the ramblers,
for everyone who loves to get out
into the open air and enjoy the
countryside”. These were heroic
goals, and we owe a debt of
gratitude to the vision of those who
campaigned for National Parks.
Within the pages of this magazine,
we celebrate all that has gone
before, and we look forward to
another 75 years of continuing to
conserve and enhance Dartmoor
National Park’s natural beauty,
wildlife and cultural heritage.
Page 10 takes a journey through
Dartmoor’s rich history and provides
a background to how the park has
evolved over this time.
Dartmoor’s
archaeological
discoveries page 36
dartmoor.gov.uk
While we celebrate 75 years of
National Park designation, on page
34 we look back further to the
agriculture and farming that have
shaped the Dartmoor landscape
for millennia. Respecting the fact
that people live and work in the
National Park is an important
consideration we ask of our visitors.
Our National Parks are as important
today as they ever were. Now is a
time to renew the ‘people’s charter’.
Our National Parks are not just about
access and enjoyment they are also
at the forefront of work to address
the climate and ecological crises; they
are an environmental asset to be
nurtured and enhanced but are also
living, working landscapes.
Dartmoor, and all other National
Parks are for the many, not for
the few. We welcome everyone to
Dartmoor; we ask that you help us
look after it so future generations
can enjoy its special qualities. You
can do this by following the Ranger
Code, supporting local businesses,
and Donating for Dartmoor.
Kevin Bishop Chief Executive,
Dartmoor National Park Authority
Looking to the future of travel
and recreation across our precious
landscape, we share how to enjoy a
Car-Free Dartmoor on page 30.
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