Our verdict
Exmoor at its bleakest and best — a moody pond in the middle of a peat bog that R.D. Blackmore borrowed for Lorna Doone. The walk up is short; the atmosphere is enormous.
A dark little lake dug by Victorian labourers high on The Chains, the boggy roof of Exmoor where the Exe and the Barle both rise. Reached by a squelchy track from Goat Hill Bridge.
Open access land under the Countryside & Rights of Way Act. You're free to roam on foot beyond the paths. Dogs on a short lead 1 March to 31 July and around livestock.