Land Use

Human settlement across the moor is sparse. A small number of lonely granite farms can be found hunkering down below the brow of the hills on the exposed moor itself. Whereas the valleys on the edge of the moor provide sheltered hollows better suited for farming practice and village settlement such as St Breward, St Neot and St Cleer. include the three reservoirs: Colliford Lake, Crowdy Reservoir and Siblyback Lake.

These large expanses of water provide dramatic and very changeable seasonal contrasts from sparkling azure on a bright summer day to drab, grey and eerie in the winter.

The smaller Dozmary Pool, close to Colliford Lake, is the largest and most notable of the many pools found across the moor. The overall sense of wilderness on Bodmin Moor still endures, despite thousands of years of human intervention. It remains one of the few places in Cornwall where you can enjoy complete peace, quiet and tranquillity, being particularly important for its dark night skies.

Extensive, unenclosed high moorland is grazed by hardy weather-beaten cattle, sheep and ponies according to historic laws governing common land. This grazing plays an essential role in controlling scrub thereby maintaining the distinctive openness of this landscape. In parts the moor has never been enclosed. In other areas, past efforts at enclosure are long abandoned leaving enigmatic vestiges of past attempts to tame the land.

Edging the open moorland, larger fields show enduring recent enclosure whilst nestling in sheltered folds at lower levels anciently enclosed farmland is recognisable by its smaller fields with irregular boundaries. This long historic process of attempts to tame the open moor has created a fascinating texture of intermingling pockets of commons and enclosures that distinguishes Bodmin Moor from most other upland landscapes.

The uplands of Bodmin Moor are extensively covered with open moorland consisting mainly of coarse grassland, wetland and wet heathland, which includes scrub, bracken and gorse. Much of the northern section of the Moor is designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). The peaty soil is generally poor with high acid content which in turn has a significant influence on vegetation providing a suitable environment for acid grassland, heather, gorse and bracken, grazed by small flocks of sheep, together with small herds of cattle and moorland ponies.

In the valleys at the edge of the moor there are large areas of peat and blanket bog. Due to its exposed nature, Bodmin Moor is frequently subjected to high winds and rain blown in from the Atlantic and this in turn has influenced the type of vegetation. Many streams and small rivers traverse the Moor having penetrated weaknesses in the granite and eventually cascade into shallow falls at the edge of the granite shelf. The deep river valleys around the edges of the moor support luxuriant broadleaved woodland adding to the enclosed intimacy of these locations. Stately mature Beech trees are especially characteristic of the Fowey valley (Fowey means ‘River of Beech Trees’ in Cornish). Isolated modern conifer plantations however add a dark and sombre contrast to the open moorland.

Gorse and bracken add to the roughness of the unimproved acid grassland of some commons whilst at the heads of streams on higher ground between hills poor drainage and substantial rainfall create a rich and

interesting patchwork of fens, wetlands, quaking bogs and other valuable habitats emphasising the sense of remote exposure.

Golitha Falls is a geological feature, where the river Fowey tumbles down a series of low waterfalls bounded by large mounds of lichen covered granite and runs through an ancient wooded valley of sessile oak and ash – a complete contrast to the barren moor upstream. The area surrounding Golitha Falls is rich in flora and fauna and is one of the three National Nature Reserves in Cornwall.

Bodmin Moor is hugely important historically. The open moorland reveals historic relics such as long cairns and hilltop enclosures from the Neolithic period. In addition, evidence of Bronze Age activity can be found in a ritual and domestic landscape of hut circles, barrows, cairns and stone circles, the most notable being the famous Hurlers Stone Circles near Minions. In some areas, the land has never been enclosed, although around the stony remains of prehistoric roundhouses and medieval long houses, remnants of ancient field boundaries can be clearly seen.

Significant numbers of surviving holy wells and stone crosses are poignant reminders of the enduring  importance of religion in the history of Bodmin Moor’s communities. Some of the older granite quarries make a positive contribution to the landscape for example at Carbilly Tor and Bearah Tor, and particularly the historic stone finger dumps. Partially flooded China clay workings occur at Lower Hawkstor, Parson’s Pit and Stannon Pit where this product of weathered granite has been found close to the surface. Prominent engine houses and

mining structures, especially in the southeast of the moor near Caradon Hill and at Minions, are a reminder of Cornwall and Bodmin Moor’s once great mining industry. The bleak central hamlet of Bolventor (named after a ‘bold venture’ to recover tin from moorland streams) is home to the Jamaica Inn, made world famous by the writings of Daphne du Maurier.

To celebrate 60 years of the Cornwall AONB designation and 4,000 years of the humble Cornish hedge, a permanent piece of public art has been created at Colliford Lake. Kerdroya is a 56m diameter classical labyrinth built of Cornish stone hedging celebrating the aesthetics of distinct hedging styles from 12 Cornish locations. At the very heart of Kerdroya, a 10m circular space opens out to breathtaking views across the moorland and lake.

Here you will find a one-off specially commissioned artwork funded by Arts Council England and created by Thrussells, which augments and deepens the Kerdroya experience.