0:00:09 > 0:00:12We live in a country with some of the most diverse
0:00:12 > 0:00:15and beautiful landscapes in the world.
0:00:17 > 0:00:21So diverse, very few of us know every nook and cranny.
0:00:25 > 0:00:28And so beautiful it'd be a crime to miss any of them.
0:00:31 > 0:00:34The British Isles are full of secrets and surprises
0:00:34 > 0:00:37just waiting to be discovered.
0:00:39 > 0:00:41- CHRIS GROANS - Good, Chris, good.- Thank you!
0:00:41 > 0:00:44Wow! Oh, my God!
0:00:44 > 0:00:46Out of nowhere they came!
0:00:46 > 0:00:49It's easy to think Britain is a crowded place,
0:00:49 > 0:00:52but with more than 60 million acres out there,
0:00:52 > 0:00:56there's still plenty of the UK for us to discover and enjoy.
0:00:56 > 0:00:58SHE LAUGHS
0:00:58 > 0:01:02The power of the elements really belittles you!
0:01:02 > 0:01:05In this series, we're going to escape the crowds
0:01:05 > 0:01:07and get off the beaten track.
0:01:08 > 0:01:10We're on the hunt for the unexpected...
0:01:10 > 0:01:12Did you see it?
0:01:12 > 0:01:13- There we go!- Woohoo!
0:01:13 > 0:01:15..the breathtaking..
0:01:16 > 0:01:17Oh! It's freezing!
0:01:17 > 0:01:18..the hidden...
0:01:19 > 0:01:21I think I've found it!
0:01:22 > 0:01:24Look at the size of this place.
0:01:25 > 0:01:29This is the place we call home.
0:01:29 > 0:01:31This is our secret Britain.
0:01:42 > 0:01:46The clear blue waters of the English Riviera.
0:01:48 > 0:01:50A mysterious moor,
0:01:50 > 0:01:54once inhabited by people known as "deep-valley dwellers".
0:01:56 > 0:01:59And wild, dramatic granite cliffs.
0:02:01 > 0:02:06This is the only county in England with two separate coastlines.
0:02:09 > 0:02:14I'm in one of the most important naval bases anywhere in the UK
0:02:14 > 0:02:16and the biggest in Western Europe.
0:02:16 > 0:02:19This is Devon.
0:02:26 > 0:02:28From holding off Viking raiders
0:02:28 > 0:02:31to seeing off the Spanish Armada,
0:02:31 > 0:02:34Devon has a long naval history.
0:02:34 > 0:02:37It's from here in Plymouth that our warships sailed
0:02:37 > 0:02:40when Britannia ruled the waves.
0:02:44 > 0:02:48In our quest to uncover Devon's secrets,
0:02:48 > 0:02:52we'll be travelling from the south coast, all the way across
0:02:52 > 0:02:54the wild expanse of Dartmoor,
0:02:54 > 0:02:57to the craggy and treacherous north coast.
0:03:02 > 0:03:05And so our journey begins here in Plymouth.
0:03:09 > 0:03:14It was from here in 1577 that Devon's greatest hero,
0:03:14 > 0:03:18the explorer Sir Francis Drake, set off to circumnavigate the globe.
0:03:20 > 0:03:23When he returned, he was made governor of a small island
0:03:23 > 0:03:26that's just a stone's throw from the mainland.
0:03:28 > 0:03:32It may have been little, but it was of huge strategic importance.
0:03:36 > 0:03:39Still known as Drake's Island, it's right in the middle
0:03:39 > 0:03:42of Plymouth Sound,
0:03:42 > 0:03:46and is the site of five centuries of military history.
0:03:50 > 0:03:53It's not easy getting onto Drake's Island, and it's been in private
0:03:53 > 0:03:57ownership for two decades, so I'm really lucky to get to explore it.
0:04:03 > 0:04:06Drake's Island covers just six-and-a-half acres.
0:04:06 > 0:04:09Yet in the days when the greatest threat of invasion
0:04:09 > 0:04:13was from the sea, it was critical for the defence of the realm.
0:04:13 > 0:04:16Without it, Plymouth harbour would have been dangerously exposed.
0:04:22 > 0:04:23Welcome.
0:04:23 > 0:04:27Chris Bourne quite literally holds the keys to the island.
0:04:27 > 0:04:30Wow! This place has got a lot to tell us, hasn't it?
0:04:30 > 0:04:31Oh, it has indeed!
0:04:31 > 0:04:33He's the estate manager,
0:04:33 > 0:04:36and knows this place like the back of his hand.
0:04:36 > 0:04:39- You know, I think these are sort of, like, 1880.- Pretty old.
0:04:39 > 0:04:43But God knows how on earth they got them up here. I'll never know.
0:04:43 > 0:04:45And it's shabby-chic, really.
0:04:45 > 0:04:47LAUGHING: Is that the look you're going for?
0:04:47 > 0:04:49- We're working for, yeah, very nice.- Amazing.
0:04:49 > 0:04:50Yeah.
0:04:52 > 0:04:56'The ambition is to develop the island and build a luxury hotel.
0:04:57 > 0:05:00'So this could be a last chance to see
0:05:00 > 0:05:02'what remains of the island's rich history.
0:05:06 > 0:05:08'It's an overgrown mishmash of abandoned
0:05:08 > 0:05:12'military buildings, old cannons and underground tunnels.
0:05:15 > 0:05:17'But one feature that really stands out
0:05:17 > 0:05:20'is the late-19th-century horseshoe-shaped building
0:05:20 > 0:05:23'which wraps itself round the head of the island.'
0:05:24 > 0:05:26Wow! What's all this?
0:05:26 > 0:05:28Well, welcome to the casemates.
0:05:28 > 0:05:31These are located on the south-east of the island.
0:05:31 > 0:05:34We have 20 gun placements here,
0:05:34 > 0:05:38and behind, we have the ammunition stores.
0:05:38 > 0:05:41The island has a myriad of underground tunnels,
0:05:41 > 0:05:44and the ammunition was brought through here, through those tunnels,
0:05:44 > 0:05:48and stored in here for the guns directly in front of you.
0:05:48 > 0:05:51You could play hide-and-seek for days in here, couldn't you?
0:05:51 > 0:05:54- Yeah, you can get lost quite easily, that's for sure.- Yeah!
0:05:54 > 0:05:56- Shall we have a look further on? - OK.
0:05:59 > 0:06:02'I'm glad Chris is here to show me around.
0:06:02 > 0:06:04'There's no logic to this place.
0:06:06 > 0:06:10'He's promised me a trip back in time and underground,
0:06:10 > 0:06:13'to a part of the island built during the Napoleonic Wars.'
0:06:17 > 0:06:22- Whoo! Down the rabbit hole. - Yes. Mysterious.
0:06:22 > 0:06:24- A secret world down here. - It really is.
0:06:24 > 0:06:27- Ooh, crumbs! It goes down a long way!- I know. All the way.
0:06:29 > 0:06:32Welcome to the underworld.
0:06:32 > 0:06:36- What an entrance!- I know. It's somewhat menacing.
0:06:36 > 0:06:38It is, a bit.
0:06:38 > 0:06:40I'm sure I know where I'm going.
0:06:40 > 0:06:42Yeah, I trust you. HE LAUGHS
0:06:42 > 0:06:47- I bet there's no phone signal. - It's all right, I've got the torch. We're OK.
0:06:47 > 0:06:49There's about a kilometre of this.
0:06:49 > 0:06:52- Is there?- Yeah. It goes... It goes...
0:06:52 > 0:06:55Some go that way, some go this way, and there's huge underground stores
0:06:55 > 0:06:58where they obviously put all of the ammunition.
0:07:00 > 0:07:03'These tunnels were built in the early 1800s.
0:07:03 > 0:07:07'They're part of a subterranean network that runs between
0:07:07 > 0:07:08'all the buildings on the island,
0:07:08 > 0:07:11'making it possible to move ammunition and men
0:07:11 > 0:07:14'safely between the gun placements.'
0:07:17 > 0:07:18And this is an ammunition store,
0:07:18 > 0:07:21the main ammunition store for the island.
0:07:21 > 0:07:24This could be an art installation, couldn't it, this stretcher?
0:07:24 > 0:07:26- It could indeed.- Really spooky.
0:07:28 > 0:07:30D'you know what's quite strange?
0:07:30 > 0:07:31Cos they're not caves, they're not mines,
0:07:31 > 0:07:34they're clearly human places, it asks so many questions -
0:07:34 > 0:07:36what were they doing, what was it like? All of that.
0:07:36 > 0:07:40Yeah. This... How much time and effort it must have taken to...
0:07:40 > 0:07:42to create these tunnels in the first place.
0:07:42 > 0:07:43Yeah.
0:07:43 > 0:07:46- The secrets of these walls, eh? - Yeah. Yeah, absolutely.
0:07:48 > 0:07:51- That is quite long enough in here. - Oh, OK. Let's get out of here.
0:07:51 > 0:07:54- Yeah, I'd rather like to get out. - I think I know the way.
0:08:00 > 0:08:03No matter how long I spend on Drake's Island,
0:08:03 > 0:08:06I'm not sure I'd ever uncover all its secrets.
0:08:07 > 0:08:10What is clear, though, is how critical it was
0:08:10 > 0:08:13to the protection of our shores in perilous times.
0:08:15 > 0:08:18Drake's Island is the land that time forgot,
0:08:18 > 0:08:22and I must say, I feel so lucky to have had a chance to look round it,
0:08:22 > 0:08:24and this is just the beginning.
0:08:28 > 0:08:33We don't have to go far to discover more of Devon's secrets.
0:08:33 > 0:08:35Just across the bay is Plymouth Hoe,
0:08:35 > 0:08:39one of Devon's top tourist attractions.
0:08:39 > 0:08:41SEAGULLS CRY
0:08:41 > 0:08:47It's an area rich in history, seaside fun and cream teas.
0:08:47 > 0:08:49Cream on first, of course.
0:08:50 > 0:08:52But in the past,
0:08:52 > 0:08:55it was the first port of call for some very different visitors.
0:08:56 > 0:09:00It looks pretty now, but at the beginning of the 19th century
0:09:00 > 0:09:01the waters around here
0:09:01 > 0:09:05were full of prison hulks, packed with French prisoners of war.
0:09:05 > 0:09:09Cream teas were definitely not on the menu for those guys.
0:09:10 > 0:09:14Back then, Britain was at war with Napoleon's France.
0:09:18 > 0:09:22As the war rumbled on, more and more French POWs
0:09:22 > 0:09:26were sent to floating prison ships just off Plymouth.
0:09:27 > 0:09:30Eventually, conditions on the ships got so bad
0:09:30 > 0:09:32that plans had to be drawn up for a prison,
0:09:32 > 0:09:36not on the coast, but high up on the moors.
0:09:37 > 0:09:42The prison was finished in 1809, and to get to their new home
0:09:42 > 0:09:44the French POWs had to walk.
0:09:48 > 0:09:53Dartmoor is the largest open space in southern England.
0:09:57 > 0:10:01Its highest point is over 2,000ft above sea level.
0:10:04 > 0:10:06For the prisoners,
0:10:06 > 0:10:10most of the 17-mile walk to the new prison in Princetown was uphill.
0:10:16 > 0:10:21Even on a beautiful day like this, this is pretty tough going,
0:10:21 > 0:10:23and I've got walking boots on.
0:10:23 > 0:10:26Most of the prisoners would have been barefoot.
0:10:32 > 0:10:34The original POW prison on Dartmoor
0:10:34 > 0:10:37was built by Sir Thomas Tyrwhitt.
0:10:37 > 0:10:40He was a close friend of the Prince Regent -
0:10:40 > 0:10:43so close, he named Princetown after him.
0:10:43 > 0:10:46The land Tyrwhitt owned on Dartmoor
0:10:46 > 0:10:48wasn't much good for farming,
0:10:48 > 0:10:52but what he DID have was space and granite.
0:10:52 > 0:10:56The prison was the perfect opportunity to capitalise on both.
0:10:57 > 0:11:00This is the old prison quarry.
0:11:02 > 0:11:06I've been told the granite from here was used to build the prison.
0:11:09 > 0:11:15Once the prisoners were here, those who could worked in the quarry.
0:11:16 > 0:11:20It's eerie down here and it's cold.
0:11:20 > 0:11:23Can you imagine what it must have been like to be a prisoner,
0:11:23 > 0:11:29hundreds of miles away from home, to end up here, working in a quarry?
0:11:29 > 0:11:30Not nice.
0:11:35 > 0:11:39Alain Sibiril is following in the footsteps
0:11:39 > 0:11:41of his 19th-century countrymen.
0:11:42 > 0:11:46But unlike them, this Frenchman has chosen to live in the area.
0:11:47 > 0:11:50He is the French Consul in Plymouth.
0:11:51 > 0:11:55We're meeting in a place which has a special resonance for Alain.
0:11:55 > 0:11:57Well, this is the beautiful church
0:11:57 > 0:12:01of St Michael and All Angels Church in Princetown,
0:12:01 > 0:12:07which was built partially by the French prisoners of war in 1812.
0:12:07 > 0:12:11It is probably the only church in England which has been built
0:12:11 > 0:12:12by prisoners of war.
0:12:12 > 0:12:14The French, in 1812...
0:12:14 > 0:12:19'Most people walk by St Michael's and All Angels Church in Princetown
0:12:19 > 0:12:22'and have no idea of its unique history.'
0:12:23 > 0:12:27I can't imagine what it must have been like for these prisoners
0:12:27 > 0:12:30to find themselves in such a remote place.
0:12:30 > 0:12:34This is a letter.
0:12:34 > 0:12:39It was written by a young... we would call a novice in French,
0:12:39 > 0:12:44but we would probably say that it's a midshipman in English.
0:12:44 > 0:12:48It's dated 1 January 1814
0:12:48 > 0:12:52and this young man is called Jean Antoine Grande.
0:12:52 > 0:12:55His family lived in Grasse in the south of France
0:12:55 > 0:12:57on the Mediterranean.
0:12:57 > 0:12:59And as you can see, he writes here...
0:13:00 > 0:13:03"Your son, Jean Antoine Grande,
0:13:03 > 0:13:07"novice on board the vessel Rivoli,
0:13:07 > 0:13:11"prisoner of war at Dartmoor Prison, England."
0:13:11 > 0:13:12England.
0:13:14 > 0:13:20Does the young novice say anything about the conditions
0:13:20 > 0:13:23that they were under and facing whilst they were here?
0:13:23 > 0:13:24Yes, h-h-he does.
0:13:24 > 0:13:29You know, for instance, he says that...
0:13:29 > 0:13:33as far as his health is concerned, he said it's rather good.
0:13:33 > 0:13:40But being far away from his family causes him a lot of chagrin,
0:13:40 > 0:13:43you know, a lot of grief, a lot of unhappiness.
0:13:43 > 0:13:45And...
0:13:45 > 0:13:48he...he hopes that his family is well
0:13:48 > 0:13:53and he's hoping that very soon his chains will be broken.
0:13:53 > 0:13:56- That he'll be released. - He'll be... He'll be released.
0:13:56 > 0:13:58Yeah, of course, at that time - 1 January -
0:13:58 > 0:14:01he didn't know that he would be released just a few months after.
0:14:04 > 0:14:08I have read it a number of occasions and every time I read it,
0:14:08 > 0:14:12I'm moved, each time I read it.
0:14:14 > 0:14:18French prisoners of war were held on Dartmoor for six years
0:14:18 > 0:14:22until the war with France came to an end.
0:14:24 > 0:14:28At its peak, 6,000 prisoners of war were held here.
0:14:28 > 0:14:321,200 of them died before the Napoleonic Wars were over.
0:14:35 > 0:14:39I like to think that this granite church on these windswept moors
0:14:39 > 0:14:41is a lasting tribute to them.
0:14:50 > 0:14:53- SOLDIER YELLS:- Rapid fire! - GUNFIRE
0:14:54 > 0:14:57The French POWs are long gone,
0:14:57 > 0:15:00but you can still find soldiers on the moor,
0:15:00 > 0:15:03like these members of the British Armed Forces.
0:15:03 > 0:15:06SOLDIERS SHOUT
0:15:06 > 0:15:08What you might not know about Dartmoor
0:15:08 > 0:15:12is how crucial it is for the defence of the realm.
0:15:15 > 0:15:16So why is this beautiful landscape
0:15:16 > 0:15:19so important to the British military?
0:15:19 > 0:15:21Well, there's only one way of finding out
0:15:21 > 0:15:24and that is to join in and get stuck in.
0:15:24 > 0:15:27These boys are the best of the best.
0:15:27 > 0:15:29They've got all the equipment, they've got helmets
0:15:29 > 0:15:30and they have guns.
0:15:30 > 0:15:34I've got a woolly hat and some waterproofs.
0:15:37 > 0:15:42These soldiers are on a 72-hour training exercise
0:15:42 > 0:15:45and they spent last night sleeping out on the moor.
0:15:47 > 0:15:52Dartmoor is beautiful, but it's also an austere landscape
0:15:52 > 0:15:56and this is why it's the perfect place for military training.
0:15:58 > 0:16:02There are huge areas that are almost featureless, so navigation -
0:16:02 > 0:16:05so vital in many hostile environments - is tough.
0:16:05 > 0:16:07- SOLDIER:- Down the right now!
0:16:07 > 0:16:10And as in any combat zone,
0:16:10 > 0:16:13to survive, you need to be completely self-sufficient.
0:16:16 > 0:16:17Right lads, OK.
0:16:17 > 0:16:20What we're doing is removing these two ammo tins from here
0:16:20 > 0:16:22to White Tor, which we're...
0:16:22 > 0:16:25'Lieutenant Oli Sharland is the Troop Commander.'
0:16:25 > 0:16:26When your arm's tired, swap arms.
0:16:26 > 0:16:29When both arms get tired, then rotate in from Delta to Charlie.
0:16:29 > 0:16:31Happy? OK.
0:16:31 > 0:16:33Can I just say, thank you for letting me be part of this.
0:16:33 > 0:16:35Was it a tough night last night?
0:16:35 > 0:16:39Aye, been in worse, like, but, yeah, it's quite cheeky.
0:16:39 > 0:16:43My room in the hotel last night was a little bit hot
0:16:43 > 0:16:46and I didn't sleep that well, and the breakfast, well...
0:16:46 > 0:16:48You know, the latte that I had just wasn't strong enough.
0:16:48 > 0:16:50So, bear with me.
0:16:50 > 0:16:52You can burn that off when you carry this...
0:16:52 > 0:16:55- LAUGHTER - When you say helping, along with us.
0:16:55 > 0:16:56Yeah.
0:16:56 > 0:16:57- SOLDIER:- Cheers, mate.
0:16:58 > 0:17:01Oh, my word! How heavy is this?
0:17:02 > 0:17:04Between about... It's about 45 kilos.
0:17:04 > 0:17:05You... You just tell me when you get...
0:17:05 > 0:17:08Just tell me when you get tired and I'll...I'll help out, yeah?
0:17:10 > 0:17:12'With a 7st load on their backs,
0:17:12 > 0:17:15'by the time the soldiers finish their exercise
0:17:15 > 0:17:18'they'll have covered 20 miles.'
0:17:18 > 0:17:20Who's got the short straw first?
0:17:22 > 0:17:23OK.
0:17:47 > 0:17:49You've been out here for 36 hours?
0:17:49 > 0:17:51Normally we do it between 36 and 46 hours
0:17:51 > 0:17:54- because the cannon patrol is 40-46 hours.- Yeah.
0:17:56 > 0:17:58I've just been having a chat with them
0:17:58 > 0:18:00and they say that THIS is the toughest test.
0:18:00 > 0:18:01All the wind,
0:18:01 > 0:18:04the wet overnight, and now they go walking,
0:18:04 > 0:18:07and I do feel very guilty,
0:18:07 > 0:18:11cos I'm having really good fun. This is beautiful!
0:18:11 > 0:18:13Absolutely beautiful.
0:18:14 > 0:18:17Dartmoor might have fabulous scenery,
0:18:17 > 0:18:20but it also has a reputation for...
0:18:20 > 0:18:21changeable weather.
0:18:21 > 0:18:23- THUNDER RUMBLES - Presumably another reason
0:18:23 > 0:18:25why it's good for military training.
0:18:27 > 0:18:32I mean, who else would come out for a walk in this kind of weather?
0:18:32 > 0:18:36And you can walk for absolutely miles and see nothing -
0:18:36 > 0:18:39and I mean nothing - and no-one.
0:18:39 > 0:18:43But every now and again you see something really unusual.
0:18:43 > 0:18:45SHEEP BLEAT
0:18:45 > 0:18:48'Someone who holds the key to another military secret up here
0:18:48 > 0:18:51'is Lieutenant Colonel Tony Clarke.
0:18:51 > 0:18:54'Now, he was in charge of military training in the South West
0:18:54 > 0:18:56'before he retired.
0:18:56 > 0:18:59'But he still loves to spend time wandering the moor...'
0:18:59 > 0:19:01Oh, it's gorgeous...for Dartmoor.
0:19:01 > 0:19:03- Dartmoor, lovely weather.- Yeah.
0:19:03 > 0:19:07'..and keeping up-to-date with what's going on on his old patch.'
0:19:07 > 0:19:11If they can survive on Dartmoor, they can survive anywhere.
0:19:11 > 0:19:14'I'm hoping that whatever the Colonel has in store,
0:19:14 > 0:19:17'it's worth coming out in this weather for.'
0:19:17 > 0:19:18Ah... Oh!
0:19:20 > 0:19:21There you are, look, a railway.
0:19:21 > 0:19:24Did you expect to find a railway on Dartmoor?
0:19:24 > 0:19:28No, what is it, a fun railway? Or a mine? Am I close?
0:19:28 > 0:19:31- That's what it looks like. - Yeah, but you're wrong.
0:19:31 > 0:19:33It's one of five railways on Dartmoor -
0:19:33 > 0:19:35run by the military in years gone by -
0:19:35 > 0:19:38to move targets representing tanks.
0:19:38 > 0:19:41Absolutely necessary for the infantry anti-tank gunners
0:19:41 > 0:19:44to knock out those tanks that were trying to kill them.
0:19:44 > 0:19:47And we'll have a look at one, cos it lives down there in that shed.
0:19:47 > 0:19:49- There's a tank in there? - No, not a tank,
0:19:49 > 0:19:52just a trolley on which the cut-out of the tank will be.
0:19:52 > 0:19:54- CHRIS WHEEZES - Oh, right, OK.
0:19:54 > 0:19:56And it goes, what, around in a circle? And then...
0:19:56 > 0:19:58- A circle at this end...- Yeah.
0:19:58 > 0:20:00A long straight, where they fired at it...
0:20:00 > 0:20:02- Yeah.- ..and then another circle at the far end.
0:20:02 > 0:20:05And it continued like that until all the rounds were expended.
0:20:05 > 0:20:07I've got to say, Tony, I'm a bit disappointed.
0:20:07 > 0:20:11- I thought it was going to be a fun ride, for me. I thought it was going to go up and down...- It can be.
0:20:11 > 0:20:12..on a little trip, you and me.
0:20:12 > 0:20:15What we can do is I'll put you on top of it and give you a push.
0:20:15 > 0:20:16- Yeah?- Yeah.
0:20:16 > 0:20:18Oh, at least I'm going to have some fun on a day like today.
0:20:18 > 0:20:20- I won't be shot at, though, will I? - No, no, no, no.
0:20:20 > 0:20:22- Those boys have gone? - As long as you behave.
0:20:22 > 0:20:24Yeah!
0:20:26 > 0:20:28'If I'd stumbled across this shed on my own,
0:20:28 > 0:20:31'I'd never have guessed what's locked inside it.
0:20:31 > 0:20:36'But thanks to Tony, I'm getting a peek at a curious relic
0:20:36 > 0:20:37'from our military past.'
0:20:38 > 0:20:40Right, here we go. Here we go.
0:20:40 > 0:20:42Right, let's get it outside where we can see.
0:20:42 > 0:20:44All right. It's not pretty, is it?
0:20:44 > 0:20:46- BOTH GROAN - Hey-aah!
0:20:46 > 0:20:48It is. It depends on what you... what you like.
0:20:48 > 0:20:49- STRAINING:- Mind the door!
0:20:49 > 0:20:51- Here we are. - That's it, we've got it.
0:20:51 > 0:20:52- CHRIS CHUCKLES - Go on!
0:20:52 > 0:20:53I'm coming! Come on, let's get him out.
0:20:53 > 0:20:55- BOTH GROAN - Hey-aah!- Aah!
0:20:55 > 0:20:56- Come on. Come on, then. - CHRIS GROANS
0:20:56 > 0:20:57Ah! Come on.
0:20:57 > 0:20:59- There she is.- There we go.
0:20:59 > 0:21:01- So...- Look at that. There you are.
0:21:01 > 0:21:02Right.
0:21:02 > 0:21:06- So there's an engine in there, is there?- 1942...
0:21:06 > 0:21:10and it's provided invaluable training to soldier after soldier
0:21:10 > 0:21:13using the 120mm anti-tank weapon.
0:21:13 > 0:21:17So you say 1942, so this would have been used for training soldiers
0:21:17 > 0:21:18- during the Second World War? - Absolutely.
0:21:18 > 0:21:20And it's just a vehicle engine inside here,
0:21:20 > 0:21:22inside this armour plate - look.
0:21:22 > 0:21:24So, come on, let's see the workings of this.
0:21:24 > 0:21:26- Here you are. If you lift that bit up.- Is this the engine in the back?
0:21:26 > 0:21:28That's it. You can see the engine.
0:21:28 > 0:21:30- Just turn that one over.- OK.
0:21:30 > 0:21:32- Out the way, mind the... That's it, good.- So, petrol?
0:21:32 > 0:21:34It's petrol, yeah. See the spark plugs?
0:21:34 > 0:21:37And just turn that up there. Look, there's the engine there.
0:21:37 > 0:21:38- Beautiful.- Two-cylinder.
0:21:38 > 0:21:41But look at the machinery in there, it's incredible.
0:21:41 > 0:21:44I assume that people just didn't sit on it and drive it?
0:21:44 > 0:21:46- No, not unless they were totally stupid.- Yeah.
0:21:46 > 0:21:49High explosive and human beings - not a good mixture.
0:21:49 > 0:21:50But it was all automatic.
0:21:50 > 0:21:52The accelerator was triggered
0:21:52 > 0:21:55when it went over a bit of metal that raised it up.
0:21:55 > 0:21:57The points were changed automatically,
0:21:57 > 0:21:59and even stopping was the same.
0:21:59 > 0:22:01Or you waited until it ran out of fuel.
0:22:01 > 0:22:03And it would just go round and round and round...
0:22:03 > 0:22:04Round and round
0:22:04 > 0:22:07and fired at when it was going through from both directions.
0:22:07 > 0:22:10This is a lovely little secret, it really is.
0:22:10 > 0:22:13I mean, as I said, I quite literally tripped over this little secret.
0:22:13 > 0:22:15Shall we put this engine back?
0:22:15 > 0:22:18- Yeah. Careful of your fingers. - I will.
0:22:18 > 0:22:20- I notice you left me to do it. - I'm using the handle!
0:22:20 > 0:22:21You see, that's mil...
0:22:21 > 0:22:24That's military training, that's military training for you!
0:22:24 > 0:22:25- Right.- There we are.
0:22:25 > 0:22:28- Right. And here... - This back in there.
0:22:28 > 0:22:29- Right, on you go.- Really?
0:22:29 > 0:22:32- Yes! Come on, come on.- Come on, then, sunshine. Away you go.
0:22:32 > 0:22:35Right. Have we got anybody else to help us, or is it just you and me?
0:22:35 > 0:22:37- What's your rank? What's your rank? - A colonel.
0:22:37 > 0:22:40Colonel. I'm going to be pulled around by the Colonel.
0:22:40 > 0:22:43- What is another name for a colonel? - I don't know.
0:22:43 > 0:22:44A nut.
0:22:44 > 0:22:47- LAUGHS:- Very good! - Here we go! Ahh, heave!
0:22:47 > 0:22:49- Hey, I'm moving it!- And very good.
0:22:49 > 0:22:52- Can you just get the whip out a bit? - Yeah, exactly.
0:22:52 > 0:22:53- GROANS:- Hey-ahh! Come on!
0:22:53 > 0:22:56'Who would have guessed that this old piece of railway track
0:22:56 > 0:22:59'has trained the best of British?'
0:23:06 > 0:23:09For some Dartmoor enthusiasts,
0:23:09 > 0:23:12hitching a lift is the last thing they want.
0:23:13 > 0:23:16This National Park is the only place in England
0:23:16 > 0:23:17where you're legally allowed
0:23:17 > 0:23:20to go wild camping.
0:23:20 > 0:23:21This means you can pitch your tent
0:23:21 > 0:23:23almost anywhere on the moor,
0:23:23 > 0:23:27taking everything you need to survive on your back.
0:23:28 > 0:23:29Mike Nendick has camped
0:23:29 > 0:23:32in some of the most spectacular places in the world,
0:23:32 > 0:23:36but he always comes back to the 400 square miles
0:23:36 > 0:23:39of outstanding natural beauty that is Dartmoor.
0:23:40 > 0:23:44I never cease to be inspired by it, amazed by it.
0:23:44 > 0:23:49The landscape changes every day, the colours change through the seasons.
0:23:49 > 0:23:51Dartmoor gets in your blood, I think.
0:23:55 > 0:23:58One of the great things about Dartmoor, for me,
0:23:58 > 0:24:00is being able to navigate through it.
0:24:00 > 0:24:03It's not just about looking at a map and seeing,
0:24:03 > 0:24:04"There's point A, there's point B,"
0:24:04 > 0:24:07it's about reading the landscape as well.
0:24:07 > 0:24:11Following streams, tracks...
0:24:11 > 0:24:14looking at the contours of the hillside.
0:24:14 > 0:24:16It's a way of actually moving through the landscape,
0:24:16 > 0:24:18which human beings have been doing
0:24:18 > 0:24:20for thousands and thousands of years.
0:24:25 > 0:24:28You can see this area around here is really wet.
0:24:28 > 0:24:29Pick a piece...
0:24:31 > 0:24:34You can see underneath it's... it's very brown
0:24:34 > 0:24:36and the top bit's vivid green.
0:24:36 > 0:24:40This is sphagnum moss. Sphagnum moss is a bog plant.
0:24:40 > 0:24:43When it dies back, the dead material sinks down
0:24:43 > 0:24:48and over many, many years, builds up, and that's what creates a bog.
0:24:48 > 0:24:49During the First World War,
0:24:49 > 0:24:53the people of Dartmoor gathered this material and dried it out.
0:24:53 > 0:24:57Because it's so absorbent and it has slightly antiseptic qualities,
0:24:57 > 0:25:01it was used as battlefield dressings and sent to the Western Front.
0:25:01 > 0:25:03So, it's a really fascinating plant
0:25:03 > 0:25:05and something to look out for when you're walking across the moor.
0:25:13 > 0:25:15There are so many things that you can see
0:25:15 > 0:25:17when you come out onto Dartmoor.
0:25:17 > 0:25:20It's... It's known as a palimpsest, which means you can...
0:25:20 > 0:25:23you can see one layer of human history
0:25:23 > 0:25:24superimposed on top of another.
0:25:27 > 0:25:29There are many stone crosses on Dartmoor,
0:25:29 > 0:25:31but this is believed to be the oldest.
0:25:31 > 0:25:33It's called Siward's Cross.
0:25:33 > 0:25:34If you look on this side,
0:25:34 > 0:25:38you can see engraved in the stone "Bocland".
0:25:38 > 0:25:41That's possibly an old version of the word "Buckland".
0:25:41 > 0:25:43There is possibly another meaning, however.
0:25:43 > 0:25:46It could mean "Book-land", a reference to the Bible.
0:25:48 > 0:25:53Not quite so clear, but engraved on this side is the word "Siward".
0:25:53 > 0:25:57Now, Siward was mentioned in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicles
0:25:57 > 0:25:59and he was known to have owned land in the Tavistock area -
0:25:59 > 0:26:04which lies on this side of the cross - before the Norman Conquest.
0:26:08 > 0:26:12Well, the sun's beginning to set and I'm just on me way up the hill.
0:26:12 > 0:26:13It's, um...
0:26:13 > 0:26:16It's one of my favourite places to camp on the moor.
0:26:16 > 0:26:20It's a bit of a climb to get there, but well worth it when you do
0:26:20 > 0:26:24because when you pitch your tent just on the other side of the hill,
0:26:24 > 0:26:27you've got the whole of the north of Dartmoor set out before you.
0:26:27 > 0:26:28Fantastic views...
0:26:28 > 0:26:30No sign of human habitation
0:26:30 > 0:26:33and a great place to stay on a night like this.
0:26:36 > 0:26:39For me, the attraction of wild camping is actually
0:26:39 > 0:26:42coming out onto Dartmoor and experiencing the landscape I love,
0:26:42 > 0:26:45listening to the sounds of the night.
0:26:45 > 0:26:47No trappings of the modern world other than your tent
0:26:47 > 0:26:49and your equipment with you.
0:26:49 > 0:26:51And just having a peaceful night's sleep,
0:26:51 > 0:26:54especially on a marvellous moonlit night,
0:26:54 > 0:26:57away from it all, just listening to the wind blowing through the grass.
0:27:08 > 0:27:11WIND HOWLS
0:27:13 > 0:27:16BIRDS TWITTER
0:27:23 > 0:27:25It is early.
0:27:25 > 0:27:28But thankfully, I'm a morning person, and I've been promised that
0:27:28 > 0:27:31first light on the moor is not to be missed,
0:27:31 > 0:27:36especially if I want to experience Dartmoor at its mystical best.
0:27:38 > 0:27:42Dartmoor is rich with prehistoric monuments.
0:27:42 > 0:27:45There are mysterious standing stones,
0:27:45 > 0:27:49stone rows and 13 stone circles.
0:27:52 > 0:27:55It would be easy to assume that every inch of Dartmoor
0:27:55 > 0:27:58had been meticulously examined by archaeologists,
0:27:58 > 0:28:03but astonishingly, the moor is still revealing more secrets.
0:28:05 > 0:28:08I've seen a few stone circles in my time
0:28:08 > 0:28:11and I just love all the mystery that surrounds them.
0:28:11 > 0:28:15They're usually found in places like this with stunning views,
0:28:15 > 0:28:18which I think, for me, makes it even more special.
0:28:22 > 0:28:23It was at Sittaford Tor
0:28:23 > 0:28:25on north-western Dartmoor nine years ago
0:28:25 > 0:28:28that an amazing discovery was made.
0:28:30 > 0:28:35The first new stone circle to be found in more than 100 years
0:28:35 > 0:28:37was unearthed by Alan Endacott.
0:28:38 > 0:28:43Alan searches for stones like others hunt down hidden treasure.
0:28:43 > 0:28:45He's often joined on his explorations
0:28:45 > 0:28:48by Dartmoor National Park archaeologist Lee Bray.
0:28:50 > 0:28:53- It's pretty squelchy up here. - Yeah!
0:28:53 > 0:28:54You need good boots.
0:28:54 > 0:28:57- Going to have to jump this one. - Yeah.
0:28:58 > 0:28:59There we go.
0:29:00 > 0:29:04'In 2007, a fire swept across this part of the moor.
0:29:06 > 0:29:11'And with the earth laid bare, Alan made his exciting discovery.'
0:29:13 > 0:29:15I was sort of working systematically along the ridge,
0:29:15 > 0:29:17- I came back up the hill and...- Yeah.
0:29:17 > 0:29:20- ..saw that stone there sticking up. - Oh, right, that was your first one.
0:29:20 > 0:29:21- So that was the first clue.- Mm!
0:29:21 > 0:29:23And then, er, I noticed a couple of others
0:29:23 > 0:29:25where the peat had been burnt back by the fire
0:29:25 > 0:29:27and then I went round and sort of started poking around
0:29:27 > 0:29:30beneath the surface to see if I could find further ones...
0:29:30 > 0:29:32And I think I found about 20 stones in total on that day.
0:29:32 > 0:29:35After a while, I realised, yeah, they were all evenly spaced
0:29:35 > 0:29:37and on the same arc - it had to be a circle.
0:29:39 > 0:29:42Lee, what's the thinking behind this stone circle here?
0:29:42 > 0:29:47Erm, well, at the moment it's got a number of unusual features,
0:29:47 > 0:29:50er, we're not too sure about.
0:29:50 > 0:29:53- One of them, obviously, is all the stones are lying flat...- Mm.
0:29:53 > 0:29:55..which we don't see on Dartmoor
0:29:55 > 0:29:58and that leads into why this stone circle is so special.
0:29:58 > 0:30:02Er, it's untouched, it's pristine since prehistory.
0:30:04 > 0:30:10Lee has done radiocarbon testing on samples taken from under the stones.
0:30:10 > 0:30:13The results show that this stone circle is at least
0:30:13 > 0:30:154,000 years old.
0:30:17 > 0:30:21But for Alan the stone circle's existence is proof of a theory
0:30:21 > 0:30:24he's been working on since he was a boy.
0:30:25 > 0:30:27This has been years in the making for you, then.
0:30:27 > 0:30:30It had been, really, because I'd... well, way back into my childhood
0:30:30 > 0:30:32I'd been trying to make sense of all these monuments
0:30:32 > 0:30:36and I'd been predicting there'd be a circle in this vicinity.
0:30:36 > 0:30:38But with the fire, it was a golden opportunity to go round
0:30:38 > 0:30:40and see if I could, you know, prove the point, so...
0:30:40 > 0:30:43How did you realise that it wasn't just a few stones,
0:30:43 > 0:30:45but it was a whole circle?
0:30:45 > 0:30:46You know, looking across at a flat,
0:30:46 > 0:30:49- you don't really get any idea of the spectacle, but...- No.
0:30:49 > 0:30:52..I've tried a number of ways over the years to get aerial photographs.
0:30:52 > 0:30:55I think the first attempt was carrying a stepladder out here,
0:30:55 > 0:30:57- which was not...not... - ELLIE LAUGHS
0:30:57 > 0:30:58Probably got some strange looks as well!
0:30:58 > 0:31:00Then I tried a kite, but believe it or not,
0:31:00 > 0:31:02the day I tried flying my kite there was no wind,
0:31:02 > 0:31:04which is highly unusual for Dartmoor.
0:31:04 > 0:31:06So, um... I then tried a helium balloon,
0:31:06 > 0:31:08- a giant helium balloon, and...- Wow.
0:31:08 > 0:31:10..it was fine, it carried the camera no problem at all,
0:31:10 > 0:31:13it just kept spinning around and around, so that was...that was...
0:31:13 > 0:31:15- LAUGHTER - And then burst, embarrassingly!
0:31:15 > 0:31:19Oh, no! You're like the zany professor, trying all these different techniques!
0:31:22 > 0:31:24Finally, Alan got hold of a drone
0:31:24 > 0:31:27and could see his discovery from the air.
0:31:30 > 0:31:33Today, the moor is reclaiming the stones.
0:31:33 > 0:31:35But from Alan's footage after the fire,
0:31:35 > 0:31:38you can clearly see the circle.
0:31:56 > 0:31:59Well, there's no doubting the beauty of those stone circles
0:31:59 > 0:32:00and I suppose it's a way of man
0:32:00 > 0:32:03responding to the incredible landscape around him,
0:32:03 > 0:32:08but I've got to tell you something, nature does a pretty good job, too.
0:32:08 > 0:32:12There are some wonderful formations in this area
0:32:12 > 0:32:14and that, too, fuels our imagination.
0:32:17 > 0:32:19Dartmoor, and the surrounding area,
0:32:19 > 0:32:23is home to the largest single body of granite in Britain.
0:32:24 > 0:32:27Look, I don't want to tempt fate, but it looks as if it's drying up.
0:32:27 > 0:32:29- I know, it does. Thank goodness. - CHRIS CHUCKLES
0:32:29 > 0:32:31It's only torrential...
0:32:31 > 0:32:34'Pat Read has spent her life wandering the moors,
0:32:34 > 0:32:36'researching the myths and legends
0:32:36 > 0:32:40'connected to the strange granite formations.'
0:32:40 > 0:32:42What is it about this place, Dartmoor?
0:32:42 > 0:32:45Oh, it's just a very healing sort of place,
0:32:45 > 0:32:48- I find it very therapeutic.- Yeah.
0:32:48 > 0:32:51Um... Come here when your spirits are low -
0:32:51 > 0:32:53I think it must be the wide open spaces or something -
0:32:53 > 0:32:55and you just feel better.
0:32:55 > 0:32:59And the fresh air, and just the sheer beauty of the whole place.
0:32:59 > 0:33:02'Pat's taking me to one of her favourite places on Dartmoor
0:33:02 > 0:33:08'to see a beautiful rock formation known as the Tolemen Stone.'
0:33:08 > 0:33:10- And it's perfectly natural... - Perfectly natural.
0:33:10 > 0:33:14- Not man-made?- No, it has been worn away with a hole in the middle,
0:33:14 > 0:33:18which has been caused by river erosion over many, many years.
0:33:18 > 0:33:22The Tolemen means "holed stone".
0:33:22 > 0:33:24- BOTH:- Holed stone.
0:33:24 > 0:33:27- I mean, it does look extraordinary, doesn't it?- It is.
0:33:27 > 0:33:29Which, obviously, then begs legend.
0:33:29 > 0:33:32- I bet this one's got a good one, hasn't it?- It certainly has.
0:33:32 > 0:33:35They said that if a woman had been unfaithful,
0:33:35 > 0:33:38she was told to go and wash in a nearby pool,
0:33:38 > 0:33:41then come down here, go through the Tolemen Stone.
0:33:41 > 0:33:45Then go back to the stone circle, run round it three times
0:33:45 > 0:33:49and then kneel before the stones and ask for forgiveness.
0:33:49 > 0:33:54And another legend says, if you go through it and stand in the river,
0:33:54 > 0:33:57you will never, ever have rheumatism or arthritis again.
0:33:57 > 0:33:59I'm not a woman, I haven't been unfaithful...
0:33:59 > 0:34:02- PAT LAUGHS - So, the only thing I can hope for is lack of rheumatism.
0:34:02 > 0:34:05- Other people say it's a form of purification.- Is it?
0:34:05 > 0:34:07Yes. Perhaps you need to be purified.
0:34:07 > 0:34:11'Clearly, Pat thinks I do. And who am I to argue?'
0:34:11 > 0:34:13So, I've got to go through the... that hole...
0:34:13 > 0:34:15Through the hole. Stand in the river.
0:34:15 > 0:34:17I've got to have my feet in the river?!
0:34:17 > 0:34:18Oh, you've got to get your feet wet.
0:34:18 > 0:34:20I-I hadn't planned on that, but I'll give it a go.
0:34:20 > 0:34:23- Go on. Good luck. - PAT LAUGHS
0:34:23 > 0:34:25CHRIS GROANS
0:34:25 > 0:34:28Be careful! It's slippery.
0:34:29 > 0:34:31- GROANS:- Ahh!
0:34:32 > 0:34:33Oh, dear!
0:34:38 > 0:34:40- Just the one foot, I think, Pat. - Absolutely.
0:34:50 > 0:34:52Ooh! That's cold!
0:34:58 > 0:35:00HE EXHALES
0:35:00 > 0:35:01Oh, it's freezing!
0:35:01 > 0:35:04Did Pat say how long I should put it under?
0:35:05 > 0:35:07Five seconds should be enough.
0:35:09 > 0:35:11SHE LAUGHS
0:35:15 > 0:35:18While granite underpins most of Devon,
0:35:18 > 0:35:21there is one small area which is quite different.
0:35:24 > 0:35:28A tiny pocket of limestone caves.
0:35:28 > 0:35:31They're home to something so rare in England
0:35:31 > 0:35:35that they've been made a Site of Special Scientific Interest.
0:35:36 > 0:35:40And we've been sworn to keep the exact location a secret.
0:35:42 > 0:35:46Gerald Marangone stumbled across the caves when he was a child.
0:35:47 > 0:35:49My name is Gerald.
0:35:49 > 0:35:51I was born in this beautiful part of Devon.
0:35:51 > 0:35:53I grew up here and I've lived here ever since.
0:35:57 > 0:35:59As a child, we explored this area quite a lot.
0:35:59 > 0:36:02We came across the cave, really, by accident.
0:36:02 > 0:36:06We sort of dared each other who would go in, who wouldn't go in.
0:36:06 > 0:36:08We maybe went in a metre or so,
0:36:08 > 0:36:13but when it got dark and a little scary, we were straight back out.
0:36:15 > 0:36:16Yeah.
0:36:16 > 0:36:19I was introduced to caving by a colleague of mine,
0:36:19 > 0:36:22basically reliving what I did as a child,
0:36:22 > 0:36:25but going a lot further in and exploring the whole cave.
0:36:29 > 0:36:31It's reasonably difficult to get in.
0:36:31 > 0:36:34Some places you can crawl along on your hands and knees,
0:36:34 > 0:36:36but most places it's crawl along on your belly.
0:36:42 > 0:36:43The big buzz for me
0:36:43 > 0:36:46is going somewhere that's very claustrophobic.
0:36:46 > 0:36:48You'll not necessarily want to get stuck,
0:36:48 > 0:36:50but it's a challenge to get through it
0:36:50 > 0:36:52and know that you can get through it
0:36:52 > 0:36:54and come out the other side thinking,
0:36:54 > 0:36:56"Yeah, I did that, I managed it."
0:36:59 > 0:37:02There's some absolutely cracking formations up in this corner.
0:37:02 > 0:37:04Yeah, yeah.
0:37:05 > 0:37:07This cave is very secret.
0:37:07 > 0:37:10Not a lot of people know it even exists.
0:37:11 > 0:37:14There are some very, very pretty formations.
0:37:14 > 0:37:17They're quite big aragonite formations that you don't see
0:37:17 > 0:37:19in any other caves in Britain.
0:37:19 > 0:37:22They're the only formations that... that grow like that.
0:37:23 > 0:37:24Very stony.
0:37:27 > 0:37:29Yeah, there's loads more up here.
0:37:31 > 0:37:33- They are all over, fantastic.- Yeah.
0:37:35 > 0:37:38Aragonite tends to grow... almost grow like a flower head,
0:37:38 > 0:37:40but nobody's really sure how they actually form,
0:37:40 > 0:37:42whether it's wind in the cave...
0:37:42 > 0:37:44It's-It's formed the same as a stalactite,
0:37:44 > 0:37:47with calcite dripping out the water.
0:37:47 > 0:37:50But nobody's really sure how they... how they tend to twist and turn.
0:37:50 > 0:37:54Yeah, there's some behind you in that...bit behind you there.
0:37:56 > 0:37:57Up in there.
0:38:02 > 0:38:05So unique to have something like this in Devon, eh?
0:38:06 > 0:38:08- A strange world, innit? - Yeah, yeah, it is.
0:38:19 > 0:38:23The secret world of caving isn't everyone's idea of fun.
0:38:25 > 0:38:26Locals above ground
0:38:26 > 0:38:29have some of Dartmoor's better-known residents to deal with.
0:38:33 > 0:38:35Hill ponies have been living
0:38:35 > 0:38:37on Dartmoor for thousands of years.
0:38:37 > 0:38:42Charlotte Faulkner's mission is to keep them here for thousands more.
0:38:42 > 0:38:46She thinks the Dartmoor ponies are the secret to keeping the moor
0:38:46 > 0:38:48the remarkable place it is.
0:38:50 > 0:38:54Dartmoor has been managed for 3,000 years,
0:38:54 > 0:38:56with the cattle, the sheep and the ponies together,
0:38:56 > 0:38:59and they've created the habitats for all sorts of amazing birds,
0:38:59 > 0:39:01animals, butterflies...
0:39:01 > 0:39:04I mean, the marsh fritillary butterfly wouldn't be there
0:39:04 > 0:39:07without the habitat created by the way the ponies graze.
0:39:10 > 0:39:13The marsh fritillary is one of England's fastest-declining
0:39:13 > 0:39:14species of butterfly.
0:39:16 > 0:39:21Its population has dropped by nearly half since the 1970s.
0:39:23 > 0:39:26So you've got to recognise,
0:39:26 > 0:39:28anything we do now
0:39:28 > 0:39:30will change it for generations to come
0:39:30 > 0:39:34and we have got to try and ensure that that's kept.
0:39:34 > 0:39:37QUAD BIKE HUMS
0:39:38 > 0:39:42Every autumn, all the ponies on Dartmoor are rounded up, or drifted,
0:39:42 > 0:39:46to be counted, health-checked and in some cases sold.
0:39:49 > 0:39:53Records of the pony drift date back to the 11th century.
0:39:53 > 0:39:55Thanks to Charlotte's efforts,
0:39:55 > 0:39:59the next generation of drifters are set to keep the tradition alive.
0:40:03 > 0:40:05You'll see a lot of children out today
0:40:05 > 0:40:07and the reason I invite all the children
0:40:07 > 0:40:09is because I need them to learn.
0:40:09 > 0:40:12And if they learn this bit, then they will be addicted
0:40:12 > 0:40:15and they will help me to continue to conserve the ponies on the moor later on.
0:40:15 > 0:40:17It's like a drip-drip effect.
0:40:22 > 0:40:24There's a pony right on the brow of the hill over there.
0:40:26 > 0:40:29Charlotte's job is to make sure everyone is in the right place
0:40:29 > 0:40:30at the right time.
0:40:31 > 0:40:36Not an easy task when the whole moor is under a blanket of fog.
0:40:37 > 0:40:39(That's probably his cattle.)
0:40:44 > 0:40:45I can't see.
0:40:45 > 0:40:47It's too foggy.
0:40:50 > 0:40:52We'll just have to wait.
0:41:06 > 0:41:09QUAD BIKE HUMS
0:41:14 > 0:41:18- There they are, look.- Oh, there's... Oh, yes, I can see them now!
0:41:20 > 0:41:22Wow!
0:41:23 > 0:41:25Just out of nowhere they came.
0:41:34 > 0:41:36- There's another rider.- Yeah.
0:41:36 > 0:41:40Up there, coming in. That'll be my son. That's Thomas.
0:41:40 > 0:41:42- Flying across the...- Yeah.
0:41:48 > 0:41:50'Charlotte's 14-year-old son Tom
0:41:50 > 0:41:54'has been riding with the drift since he was ten.
0:41:54 > 0:41:58'This year, he's joined by his friend Heli.'
0:41:58 > 0:41:59So, Tom, how was that?
0:41:59 > 0:42:02I just saw the horses come through. Is it fun? It looks...
0:42:02 > 0:42:05It's brilliant fun, yeah.
0:42:05 > 0:42:07- We got lost in the fog on the moor. - HELI AND DENISE LAUGH
0:42:07 > 0:42:09I was thinking that could be quite challenging,
0:42:09 > 0:42:11on a day like this when it was very, very foggy.
0:42:11 > 0:42:13We couldn't see anything.
0:42:13 > 0:42:16All the horses know where they are more than we do, to be honest.
0:42:16 > 0:42:18You've just got to let go of the reins
0:42:18 > 0:42:21and they're going to walk in some direction, they'll eventually find a road.
0:42:21 > 0:42:24And it's just something that, I guess, is part of the family.
0:42:24 > 0:42:26I mean, I was obviously spending time with your mum
0:42:26 > 0:42:29and she's been telling me so much, but, you know, the fact that
0:42:29 > 0:42:31you guys are out here...
0:42:31 > 0:42:33Been doing it from quite a young age
0:42:33 > 0:42:35and just all really enjoy it.
0:42:38 > 0:42:42But getting the ponies OFF the moor is only half the job.
0:42:42 > 0:42:44MAN YELLS AT PONY
0:42:44 > 0:42:46PONY WHINNIES
0:42:46 > 0:42:49So, Charlotte, what's happening now? What's the next stage of the process?
0:42:49 > 0:42:51What we're doing now, as you'll see, the group...
0:42:51 > 0:42:54All the ponies that we've brought in are just down here, OK?
0:42:54 > 0:42:56And the gentlemen now are all splitting them out
0:42:56 > 0:42:58as to who owns what.
0:43:00 > 0:43:01Once the ponies are identified,
0:43:01 > 0:43:04they're coaxed back to each owner's farm...
0:43:04 > 0:43:06PONY NEIGHS LOUDLY
0:43:06 > 0:43:08..where they'll be health-checked
0:43:08 > 0:43:11before returning to the moor or sold.
0:43:11 > 0:43:13- So, I've got my stick in hand.- Yeah.
0:43:13 > 0:43:15What am I going to do with that?
0:43:15 > 0:43:17- Well, you sort of knock it on the ground...- Yeah.
0:43:17 > 0:43:18And that should...
0:43:18 > 0:43:21That should persuade them to go in the general direction you want.
0:43:21 > 0:43:22It'll make you feel braver.
0:43:22 > 0:43:25OK, I feel like I've got the power in my hands, anyway.
0:43:25 > 0:43:27- You've got the power in your hand. - BOTH LAUGH
0:43:27 > 0:43:29'That's the plan!'
0:43:29 > 0:43:31- Oh, so, there's some coming.- Yeah.
0:43:31 > 0:43:33- WOMAN YELLS:- Right!
0:43:33 > 0:43:36- And they're going right.- So, they're going right.- Going right!
0:43:36 > 0:43:38'But has anyone told the ponies?'
0:43:38 > 0:43:40- OK.- Right!- So, do we need to...
0:43:40 > 0:43:43- And then we follow them on up. - We follow them up.
0:43:43 > 0:43:46- So that they don't want to go back and join the others.- Yeah.
0:43:46 > 0:43:48So, they know that they need to go right?
0:43:48 > 0:43:50WOMAN YELLS AT PONIES
0:43:50 > 0:43:52MAN AND BOY SHOUT AT PONIES
0:43:52 > 0:43:54- Move! MAN:- Yah!
0:43:54 > 0:43:56- Well done, Olly! - CHARLOTTE CHUCKLES
0:43:58 > 0:44:01- Which way?- Which way, Anne?
0:44:01 > 0:44:05- HORSE NEIGHS - That's it, little fella.- OK.
0:44:19 > 0:44:24It's about 50 miles from the middle of Dartmoor to my next secret,
0:44:24 > 0:44:27but it feels a lot further.
0:44:36 > 0:44:39Small country roads wind through farmland
0:44:39 > 0:44:41and picture-postcard villages...
0:44:46 > 0:44:48..until finally we hit the sea again.
0:44:51 > 0:44:55This is Devon's spectacular north coast.
0:45:06 > 0:45:09Just look at those granite outcrops,
0:45:09 > 0:45:12they stretch out from the cliffs into the Atlantic
0:45:12 > 0:45:15like giant prehistoric fingers.
0:45:15 > 0:45:18The coastline is completely different to the south,
0:45:18 > 0:45:22but from here you can really see what Devon is made of.
0:45:22 > 0:45:25SEAGULLS CRY
0:45:25 > 0:45:26What you might not know, though,
0:45:26 > 0:45:30is that buried in the middle of all that granite is a precious metal.
0:45:31 > 0:45:34While today, north Devon's coastal towns and villages
0:45:34 > 0:45:38are associated with summer tourists, ice cream and fudge,
0:45:38 > 0:45:40this wasn't always the case.
0:45:42 > 0:45:48This is the stunning, sleepy seaside town of Combe Martin.
0:45:48 > 0:45:51It's hard to believe that THIS was once at the centre
0:45:51 > 0:45:53of a thriving silver-mining industry.
0:45:53 > 0:45:56Over there is a whole series
0:45:56 > 0:45:59of hidden tunnels and caves.
0:46:01 > 0:46:05The last working mine in Combe Martin closed in 1890,
0:46:05 > 0:46:08but for the previous 600 years
0:46:08 > 0:46:11it was at the centre of England's silver industry.
0:46:14 > 0:46:16The silver extracted from these mines
0:46:16 > 0:46:20was crucial to the wealth of England during the Middle Ages.
0:46:20 > 0:46:24It paid for those soldiers used in the long war against France.
0:46:24 > 0:46:29It was said that the battles of Crecy, Poitiers and Agincourt
0:46:29 > 0:46:31were won in the shafts of Combe Martin.
0:46:37 > 0:46:41This secret history of the village might have been lost forever...
0:46:42 > 0:46:46..were it not for a group of local enthusiasts who decided
0:46:46 > 0:46:48to dig up the village's past...
0:46:48 > 0:46:50quite literally.
0:46:50 > 0:46:52And what is it about this place, then?
0:46:52 > 0:46:55- Well, I just...- It's different. - I'm more of an outdoors person.
0:46:55 > 0:46:57I can't sit at home, like, and play the Xbox,
0:46:57 > 0:46:59I've got to come out and, well... do things like this.
0:46:59 > 0:47:02'While the average age of the group is over 50,
0:47:02 > 0:47:07'teenagers Sam Boyce and James Found are by far its youngest
0:47:07 > 0:47:09'AND most enthusiastic members.'
0:47:11 > 0:47:15So, I must admit... I like to get out in the fresh air,
0:47:15 > 0:47:17I'm not necessarily that keen on going underground.
0:47:18 > 0:47:21- Yeah, it's worth it.- Is it? - SAM AND JAMES:- Yeah.
0:47:21 > 0:47:23- CHRIS SIGHS - What, squeezing through gaps?
0:47:23 > 0:47:25There's one squeeze, really, then...
0:47:25 > 0:47:28Yeah, but I'm a lot... fatter than you two.
0:47:28 > 0:47:31Oh, you'll be fine. There's bigger people have gone down.
0:47:31 > 0:47:32CHRIS LAUGHS
0:47:32 > 0:47:36'For them, a journey down the mine is exciting.
0:47:36 > 0:47:38'For me...not so much!'
0:47:38 > 0:47:39Have I got my light on?
0:47:39 > 0:47:42Oh, no, if you just look at mine, there's a black button on the side.
0:47:42 > 0:47:44- Right.- So just there. If you just press that one.
0:47:44 > 0:47:46- One.- That's it, yeah. Press it again. Again.
0:47:46 > 0:47:49- That's it. Three settings. - That's the brightest?- Yeah.
0:47:49 > 0:47:51- Yours on? You've got yours on. - So, you get that.
0:47:51 > 0:47:53- That's really bright. - That should be the brightest.
0:47:53 > 0:47:54- I can't see now.- Sorry about that.
0:47:54 > 0:47:56- That's all... - CHRIS LAUGHS
0:47:56 > 0:47:58- In we go?- Yeah, let's crack on in. - Come on.
0:47:58 > 0:48:01- So, if you just go down there after Sam...- Yeah.
0:48:01 > 0:48:03..and I'll open it up for you.
0:48:04 > 0:48:07- Where d'you want me? - If you just stand just there.
0:48:07 > 0:48:08- Just go round there.- Here?
0:48:08 > 0:48:10- Yeah, if you stand just there you can...- OK.- ..see.
0:48:10 > 0:48:13So, I'll just open it up for you...
0:48:19 > 0:48:21Oh, my goodness!
0:48:22 > 0:48:24So, that's the shaft.
0:48:25 > 0:48:27CHRIS LAUGHS
0:48:27 > 0:48:30- I can't even see the bottom. - It's a long way down.
0:48:32 > 0:48:38Well, the bottom, at the minute, is 160-ish feet down.
0:48:38 > 0:48:40So, that's about the height of the church over there,
0:48:40 > 0:48:43as you see, on the other side of the hill.
0:48:43 > 0:48:45- Yeah.- That's 90ft, it's about how far down we're going.
0:48:45 > 0:48:46Oh...
0:48:48 > 0:48:50- CHRIS INHALES DEEPLY - Is it worth it?- It is.- It is, yeah.
0:48:50 > 0:48:53- Definitely.- It'd better be...
0:48:55 > 0:48:58When the mine was closed, it was filled in.
0:48:58 > 0:49:00You know, like, when you're rock climbing,
0:49:00 > 0:49:02- you don't want to look down?- Yeah.
0:49:02 > 0:49:05- I don't want to look up, it's... - CHRIS LAUGHS
0:49:05 > 0:49:07I don't want to know how deep I'm going.
0:49:10 > 0:49:14'The volunteers have dug out over 1,000 tonnes of rubble
0:49:14 > 0:49:19'to reveal a network of man-made tunnels, hidden for over a century.'
0:49:21 > 0:49:23- I'm going on the next ladder, mate. - Good.
0:49:23 > 0:49:28'To get there, I have to clamber down seven vertical ladders.'
0:49:28 > 0:49:30I was rather hoping that was the last ladder.
0:49:32 > 0:49:35It's a bit of an awkward one, that one.
0:49:35 > 0:49:38OK, you can come on that next one.
0:49:38 > 0:49:42It seems to be getting more and more damp.
0:49:42 > 0:49:44'Finally, we're at the bottom.
0:49:44 > 0:49:47'Time to see just how much the dig has unearthed.'
0:49:48 > 0:49:51What we're going to do is crawl through this little hole
0:49:51 > 0:49:54and then it'll open up into a larger area.
0:49:55 > 0:49:57- I'll do it. - Just mind your head a bit.
0:49:57 > 0:49:59It's quite a tight squeeze, to be honest.
0:50:01 > 0:50:04Is it nice and open and comfortable in there?
0:50:04 > 0:50:06- Oh, yes.- It'd better be.
0:50:07 > 0:50:09- Come on, big boy.- I'm coming, Sam.
0:50:09 > 0:50:10Come on, then.
0:50:11 > 0:50:13- I'm here, I'm up.- Well done.
0:50:13 > 0:50:15- Cheers.- Right.
0:50:16 > 0:50:18We're going to have to squat on these.
0:50:18 > 0:50:20I think I'll squat next to my new friend.
0:50:21 > 0:50:23- It's a bit tight in here, isn't it? - CHRIS WHEEZES
0:50:23 > 0:50:24It's all right.
0:50:24 > 0:50:26Can I just say, what's wrong with a game of golf?
0:50:26 > 0:50:28Or a game of tennis?
0:50:28 > 0:50:30It's not nearly as exciting, is it?
0:50:30 > 0:50:33You come down here every weekend and pretty much something different's happened.
0:50:33 > 0:50:37Like, they've got further with the dig, or they've found something else.
0:50:37 > 0:50:40What do you know about the history of this mine?
0:50:40 > 0:50:44We know... We've got records dating back to the 1200s, like,
0:50:44 > 0:50:46so we know that's when it was mining.
0:50:46 > 0:50:50Um... Obviously, a lot of the silver that came out...
0:50:50 > 0:50:53all the silver in the Crown Jewels comes from Combe Martin.
0:50:53 > 0:50:55The Lord Mayor of London has got a cup
0:50:55 > 0:50:58that is pure Combe Martin silver as well.
0:50:58 > 0:50:59- Is that right?- Yeah.
0:50:59 > 0:51:01What do your mum and dad think about you coming down here?
0:51:01 > 0:51:03When I first came down, my mum was like,
0:51:03 > 0:51:05"I need to speak to them to see if it's OK...
0:51:05 > 0:51:07"Is it safe for them?" First time I did it, she was like,
0:51:07 > 0:51:09- "Oh, yeah, it's fine, you can just..."- Yeah.
0:51:09 > 0:51:11She's happy that I do it and not sit at home.
0:51:11 > 0:51:14- I just come out, actually do something and achieve something. - Yeah.
0:51:14 > 0:51:16- So, d'you want to follow me up? - Yeah.
0:51:16 > 0:51:19- So, now, if you think this is claustrophobic in here...- Yeah.
0:51:19 > 0:51:22- ..imagine it...- Yeah. - ..if they were smoking.
0:51:22 > 0:51:24- Oh, my...- This way.
0:51:24 > 0:51:27- Yeah.- So, imagine that, if there's smoke and all the smoke fumes.
0:51:27 > 0:51:29- Yeah, thanks(!) - CHRIS LAUGHS
0:51:29 > 0:51:32- And it'd be a... It'd be a lot worse, wouldn't it? - They used to smoke down here?
0:51:32 > 0:51:35They used to smoke here, yeah. So they used to have their pipes.
0:51:35 > 0:51:38They'd start about this long. They'd snap and get shorter and shorter.
0:51:38 > 0:51:40Oh, my goodness. Are you all right there? Oh, what's this?
0:51:40 > 0:51:43That's the old cable ladder, how they used to get up and down.
0:51:43 > 0:51:45See where we are now, this is the old workings,
0:51:45 > 0:51:47- where they used to come in and out. - Yeah.
0:51:47 > 0:51:49So, if you carry on up here, we'll miss out a few ladders.
0:51:49 > 0:51:51That goes right up to the surface, does it?
0:51:51 > 0:51:53Not right to the surface, up to the ladders sort of stages.
0:51:53 > 0:51:55- Goes up to the sixth fathom level. - Yeah.
0:51:55 > 0:51:59- CHRIS CHUCKLES - But you can see the way that they have just worked this, haven't they?
0:51:59 > 0:52:00- Yeah.- Yeah.
0:52:00 > 0:52:03I mean, I must admit, I'm coming round to your side,
0:52:03 > 0:52:04- it is fascinating.- Yeah...
0:52:04 > 0:52:07'It's a labyrinth down here.'
0:52:08 > 0:52:11'The boys have taken me as far as they can,
0:52:11 > 0:52:14'but who knows how much further the tunnels go?'
0:52:15 > 0:52:20'There are rumours that some of them might stretch halfway to the coast!'
0:52:21 > 0:52:23'And with Sam and James's enthusiasm,
0:52:23 > 0:52:26'I'm sure they'll get there...
0:52:26 > 0:52:29'even if it takes until they're 50.'
0:52:29 > 0:52:32SEAGULLS CRY
0:52:32 > 0:52:38Devon's two coastlines have made it a place where adventures begin.
0:52:38 > 0:52:41Drake left from the south coast to help defend the nation
0:52:41 > 0:52:44against the invading Spanish Armada,
0:52:44 > 0:52:48and he returned here to Hartland on the north coast.
0:52:50 > 0:52:53Drake built the quay here at Hartland to land the treasure
0:52:53 > 0:52:55from his travels.
0:52:55 > 0:52:57It's been a place of legend ever since.
0:53:00 > 0:53:05Hartland was famously a place of shipwrecks and shipwreckers.
0:53:05 > 0:53:09Local people would lure ships onto these dangerous rocky waters
0:53:09 > 0:53:12and wreck the vessels, then take the loot.
0:53:12 > 0:53:17But today's thrill-seekers are less likely to be wreckers than surfers.
0:53:18 > 0:53:21Andrew Cotton is a legend amongst surfers.
0:53:21 > 0:53:24He grew up on the north coast of Devon,
0:53:24 > 0:53:27but like Drake, he's travelled the world in pursuit of adventure,
0:53:27 > 0:53:31including waves like this 60-footer in Portugal.
0:53:35 > 0:53:37Andrew, Devon born and bred.
0:53:37 > 0:53:40What was it that got you into surfing?
0:53:40 > 0:53:42Well, if you live in north Devon, I think, you know,
0:53:42 > 0:53:45it's such an amazing coastline and loads of nice beaches, and...
0:53:45 > 0:53:48it's just a great way to spend the weekend, I suppose.
0:53:48 > 0:53:51What are the chances of me getting your secret surf spots out of you?
0:53:52 > 0:53:55- HE CHUCKLES - Ah... Pretty slim.
0:53:55 > 0:53:57- You hold them close to your chest, do you?- Definitely, yeah.
0:53:57 > 0:53:59That's why they're secret. But, no, like...
0:53:59 > 0:54:03No, surfers are really always protective about, you know, their spots, you know?
0:54:03 > 0:54:06I think every surfer in the UK will have their special place, but...
0:54:08 > 0:54:11You know, even my best mates don't always tell me
0:54:11 > 0:54:13where they're going to surf.
0:54:13 > 0:54:15Wow! A secretive world.
0:54:15 > 0:54:19'If I'm going to get any information out of Andrew,
0:54:19 > 0:54:21'it's going to take some persuasion.'
0:54:22 > 0:54:26For me, I spend a lot of time on jet skis and, for me,
0:54:26 > 0:54:29that's a good way that I check a lot of spots.
0:54:29 > 0:54:32So, we can... We can get the ski out
0:54:32 > 0:54:34and we can check a few beaches out and see what you think.
0:54:34 > 0:54:36Awesome. Sounds good.
0:54:37 > 0:54:40- Shall I get on there now? - Yes, get on! Let's go!
0:54:40 > 0:54:42I've never done this before, you know.
0:54:42 > 0:54:44ELLIE GROANS
0:54:44 > 0:54:45- Hey!- We're on.
0:54:45 > 0:54:48'Agreeing to take me out on the jet ski is, I think,
0:54:48 > 0:54:51'the closest I'm going to get to Andrew's secrets.'
0:54:51 > 0:54:52Like that?
0:54:52 > 0:54:56- I was just going to say, might get a little bit wet.- OK.
0:54:56 > 0:55:00- But...don't be scared to hold on tight, cos it...- OK, thanks.
0:55:00 > 0:55:02D'you know what I mean, like?
0:55:08 > 0:55:10It's like a motorbike, wow! ELLIE LAUGHS
0:55:13 > 0:55:14Wow.
0:55:19 > 0:55:20ELLIE YELLS
0:55:22 > 0:55:23Whoa!
0:55:28 > 0:55:32ELLIE LAUGHS I've never known anything like it!
0:55:35 > 0:55:36Oh, come on!
0:55:38 > 0:55:42'Andrew uses his jet ski to reach the most inaccessible
0:55:42 > 0:55:45'and, by their very nature, secret surf spots.'
0:55:46 > 0:55:47That is nuts!
0:55:50 > 0:55:53So, like, as we were coming round, obviously, this is all Saunton
0:55:53 > 0:55:56and then you come around, this is, like...Downend Point.
0:55:56 > 0:56:00- Right!- And this actually gets, like, quite good waves along here.
0:56:00 > 0:56:04It has to be low tide, and, like, a certain swell...
0:56:04 > 0:56:07- Yeah, it gets quite good. - Again, it's a bit rocky, though.
0:56:07 > 0:56:11- Yeah, but sometimes that makes the best waves.- Oh, OK.
0:56:11 > 0:56:15So, like, points like this are really fun places to surf.
0:56:15 > 0:56:18- But it's just...- Not for the amateurs, I shouldn't think.
0:56:18 > 0:56:21No, no. I would say, like, intermediates to advanced, I reckon.
0:56:21 > 0:56:24HE LAUGHS
0:56:24 > 0:56:28- Is this one of your favourite spots around here?- Yeah. Definitely, yeah.
0:56:29 > 0:56:33'If only I could, it would be amazing to surf one of the spots
0:56:33 > 0:56:35'that Andrew has shown me.
0:56:35 > 0:56:38'But I have my own secret.'
0:56:38 > 0:56:41How many surfers would kill me right now to get a lesson with you?
0:56:41 > 0:56:45'I don't even know the front from the back end of a surf board.'
0:56:58 > 0:57:02Paddle, paddle, paddle! Good.
0:57:02 > 0:57:06'Andrew promises he can get me standing up in one lesson,
0:57:06 > 0:57:09'but he does admit it might take a bit more practice
0:57:09 > 0:57:12'before I'm ready for one of his secret surf spots.'
0:57:24 > 0:57:25Paddle!
0:57:25 > 0:57:26Ooh!
0:57:32 > 0:57:36- Whoo!- Whoohoo! Yeah!
0:57:39 > 0:57:43Well, what an exhilarating way to end our travels,
0:57:43 > 0:57:46which began on a secret island off the south coast,
0:57:46 > 0:57:48came all the way across Dartmoor and has ended here,
0:57:48 > 0:57:53searching out the best secret surfing spot on the north.
0:57:53 > 0:57:55Devon may be a county of two coastlines,
0:57:55 > 0:57:59but it's certainly a place of many different faces.
0:57:59 > 0:58:02There's more to Devon than cream teas, you know.
0:58:04 > 0:58:06Next time we're in Northern Ireland.
0:58:08 > 0:58:12That is such a view! Oh! How wonderful!
0:58:12 > 0:58:15- You were at Sydney in- 2000. Yes.
0:58:15 > 0:58:19This is as big an occasion and you're not treating it as. You need to get focused, woman!
0:58:19 > 0:58:23- Oh!- Oh! Too much! Aah!
0:58:24 > 0:58:26And we've got the moon shining above as well.
0:58:26 > 0:58:30- And the sun's coming up! - Yeah, it's getting close.