Moor Barton Wilding Beaver Safari

Come and see the beavers at Moor Barton Wilding!

11th & 12th May, 15th & 16th June, 9th, 22nd & 23rd July

This unique Dartmoor ‘safari’ offers the opportunity to spend time in the beaver enclosure at Moor Barton Wilding, giving you the experience of being in a 'beaver engineered' landscape, as much of this country would have once been. Explore the complex network of dams and slow moving pools that the beavers have created and witness the hum of life in this extraordinarily bio-diverse habitat, where dragonflies and damselflies fill the air, kingfishers dart past and herons stalk froglets in the shadows. If you’re lucky, you'll see the beavers at work on their dams, nibbling away at trees or swimming through their pools.

You'll be guided through the beaver habitat by Peter Cow, a member of the Moor Barton Wilding steering group and passionate rewilder who has been involved with the project for many years. Peter helped make the first lodge for the beavers the week before they arrived in 2022.

Starting at 3pm, you'll go straight down to the beaver waterland to get a closer look at the dams they have built, and witness how they have transformed what was once a canalised stream into a complex and ever changing wetland habitat that now supports a myriad of other wildlife. 

After exploring the beaver habitat, you'll return to the hearth to have dinner around the fire, under shelter (everyone needs to bring a 'packed dinner' with them) and learn more about these fascinating creatures, as well as other projects at Moor Barton.

At around 7.30 pm, after the beavers have woken up, you'll head back down to the enclosure for 'sit-spot' and, hopefully, beaver watching time! As the beavers are wild animals, we cannot guarantee a sighting. However, late Spring and Summer, when the days are longest, offers the best possibility of seeing them. And it can still be a very magical experience to sit quietly in this beautiful place, seeing and hearing the natural world around you, even if you don’t see the beavers!

The evening will finish around the fire, closing by 9.30pm at the latest.

There is also the option of staying on, camping for the night and having another chance to see the beavers in the early morning, at around 6am.

A passionate nature lover and rewilder, Peter Cow has taught Permaculture Design for over 15 years all around Europe and beyond. He also leads online and in person nature connection trainings, gatherings and events. A graduate of the Embercombe Rewilding training, Peter has been involved with Moor Barton Wilding since its inception, as a member of the Steering Group and also running events on site since 2015.
Peter lives in a fledgling permaculture neighbourhood near Liskeard in East Cornwall, and loves travelling on his e-bike, listening to bird song and getting into rivers.

A bit about Moor Barton Wilding

Moor Barton Wilding CIC is a 120 acre project on the north east shoulder of Dartmoor dedicated to rewilding land and people. The land is made up of a mosaic of ecologically rich habitats - including wood pasture, hazel coppice, transitional edge and wildflower glades, closed canopy woodland, wetland, veteran trees and conifer woodland - and has been a site for species reintroductions including, in 2022, four beavers. Believing that humans are part of nature with a key role to play in restoring our ecological systems, Moor Barton engages communities near and far, offering many opportunities to learn about and get involved in different aspects of rewilding. https://www.moorbarton.org/