Finch Foundry

Dartmoor National Park


A century ago, this dramatic building would have thundered to the sound of clanging hammers and grinding metal. It was one of the busiest tool factories in the southwest, turning out hundreds of chisels, knives, shears and scythes a day. Though it's not quite the industrial powerhouse of yesteryear, it's still a working forge, powered by three working watermills. You can drive or cycle here, or follow a 4-mile (3½-hour) walk east along the Tarka Trail from Okehampton.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Dartmoor National Park attractions

1. Okehampton Castle

3.47 MILES

Okehampton's castle dates back to Norman times, and is strategically sited on top of a rocky escarpment. Later it became a sumptuous residence for Hugh…

2. Scorhill Stone Circle

4.24 MILES

At around 30m in diameter, Scorhill is impressive, despite around half the stones (27) only still standing. It's tucked away on open moor near Gidleigh.

3. Castle Drogo

5.75 MILES

Three miles northeast of Chagford, this outlandish architectural flight of fancy was designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens for self-made food-millionaire Julius…

4. Fingle Woods

6.81 MILES

One of the last remaining patches of ancient woodland left on Dartmoor, this lovely 214-hectare forest was badly marred by the introduction of fast…

5. Grey Wethers

6.83 MILES

At this remote site near Chagford, stone circles stand side by side on a stretch of open moor; another stone circle is 400m away near Fernworthy.

6. Grimspound

8.98 MILES

The remains of 24 Bronze Age houses (often called huts) dot a sprawling 1.45-hectare site that is encircled by an arching 1.5m-high and 7m-wide perimeter…

7. Lydford Castle

10.05 MILES

Lydford's diminutive 13th-century castle sits in the heart of the village. Now a compact, roofless, cube, it used to double as a jail and helped make …

8. Lydford Gorge

10.19 MILES

This plunging gorge is the deepest in the southwest, and can be reached via a 1.5-mile rugged riverside hike past a series of bubbling whirlpools …

  • placement: superzone
  • path: Destinations/POIs/superzone
  • possible size: [970, 250], [970, 90], [728, 90], [1, 1],
  • targeting:
    {
      "url": "england/southwest-england/okehampton/attractions/finch-foundry/a/poi-sig/1216101/359001",
      "destination": "Dartmoor-National-Park",
      "continent": "Europe",
      "country": "England",
      "region": "Dartmoor-National-Park",
      "position": "superzone"
    }