Wistman's Wood

Wistman's Wood is a forest in Dartmoor, England, where gnarled oaks squeeze between large granite boulders and barely reach the height of a person. Each branch carries a thick layer of moss and lichen that coats the wood completely, giving the forest a green, almost otherworldly appearance.

Documents from the 17th century already mention this forest as an old woodland that escaped clearance. Ring analysis has confirmed that individual oaks reach over 400 years of age, making them among the oldest tree populations in England.

The name recalls an old legend about a ghostly hunter who rides through these trees leading a pack of phantom hounds. Those stories fed into the dark moorland creature that Arthur Conan Doyle later wove into his Sherlock Holmes tale.

A trail of about 4 kilometers leads from the car park opposite the Two Bridges Hotel to the forest and runs mostly over open moorland. The ground inside the forest itself is wet and uneven, so waterproof footwear and sure footing are necessary to walk among the boulders.

Over 120 species of lichen grow here, including the rare Horsehair lichen found in only two locations across the United Kingdom. This lichen diversity shows how clean the air is and how old the forest has remained, since many lichen species can only thrive in undisturbed surroundings.