Fingle Bridge and the Teign Gorge

Fingle Bridge is a seventeenth-century packhorse bridge crossing the River Teign at the bottom of the gorge about four miles from Chagford. The setting is some of the most beautiful river scenery in Devon: steep oak woodland rising from the water's edge, the granite bridge reflected in the clear river, and the sounds of the water drowning out everything else.

A riverside path runs along the Teign from Fingle Bridge in both directions, connecting to Castle Drogo upstream and to the broader Dartmoor access paths downstream. The circular walk from Chagford to Fingle Bridge and back via Castle Drogo is one of the classic Devon walks, taking three to four hours at a comfortable pace. There is a small cafe at the bridge during summer months.

things to do sight
A story
Fingle Bridge was built in the early seventeenth century to carry packhorses across the Teign. At roughly the same time, Cranbrook Castle — the Iron Age hillfort visible on the ridge above — was already two thousand years old. The juxtaposition of eras is typical of the Teign Gorge, where the landscape seems to compress time.