Best Waterfalls in Devon
Written by UK Hidden Gems Editorial
Updated 5 August 2026
The best waterfalls in Devon are Venford Falls, Speke's Mill Mouth Waterfall, Canonteign Falls, The Clovelly Waterfall, Sherrycombe Waterfall, Lydford Gorge, Shavercombe Falls and Becky Falls.
Devon runs from the granite heart of Dartmoor to a wild, cliff-bound coast, and its waterfalls hide in both. On the moor, the River Lyd carves the deep wooded chasm of Lydford Gorge, Becka Brook threads down boulders through oak woodland at Becky Falls, and smaller streams drop into hidden pools at Venford and Shavercombe, reached by rough scrambles over open ground.
On the eastern edge, a Victorian landowner turned a leat into the tall ribbon of Canonteign Falls, one of the highest in England, if a made one. Along the north coast the water meets the sea, spilling over the cliffs at Speke's Mill Mouth, at the harbour village of Clovelly, and down the steep combe at Sherrycombe below the highest sea cliffs on the coast path.
Some sit in paid woodland parks with laid trails; others are remote spots for hardy walkers with no signs at all. From the moor to the coast, here are eight waterfalls to seek out across Devon.
Venford Falls
Photo: Guy Wareham via Geograph.org.uk
Venford Falls is a waterfall on Venford Brook in southern Dartmoor, just below the dam of Venford Reservoir. It runs down a wooded valley and is reached by an unsigned, steep and often slippery scramble from the reservoir road, which is why it is mostly known to photographers rather than casual visitors.
The reservoir above offers an easier circular walk of about a mile, with the falls a rougher add-on for those who seek them out.
Speke's Mill Mouth Waterfall
Photo: Lewis Clarke via Geograph.org.uk
Speke's Mill Mouth is a waterfall on the wild north Devon coast, about a mile south of Hartland Quay, where a stream drops down the cliff toward the sea in a series of tiers. The main fall, said to be around forty-eight metres over its steps, is one of the highest on this coast, plunging into a pool before smaller cascades carry the water on to the rocky beach below.
It is reached on foot along the South West Coast Path from Hartland Quay, past the grassy dome of St Catherine's Tor, on a stretch of dramatic, folded cliffs.
Canonteign Falls
Photo: Lewis Clarke via Geograph.org.uk
Canonteign Falls is a tall man-made waterfall in a wooded valley on the eastern edge of Dartmoor, near Christow. It was created in the late Victorian era, when the lady of the Canonteign estate had water from a leat diverted to pour over a high natural crag, giving work to miners left idle when the local mines closed.
The result is a slender ribbon dropping some seventy metres down the rock face, one of the tallest waterfalls in England, though a made one. It sits in a landscaped park of lakes, woodland walks and smaller falls, now a private attraction with an admission charge, with paths climbing beside the falls to viewpoints.
The Clovelly Waterfall
Photo: Richard Croft via Geograph.org.uk
The Clovelly Waterfall is a modest cascade that drops over the cliff onto the pebble shore just beyond the harbour at the village of Clovelly, on the north Devon coast. The stream falls over mossy rock and soaks away into the pebbles, running full after rain and often only a trickle in dry weather.
It is reached by walking down Clovelly's well-known steep, cobbled main street to the harbour and then along the shore. The village is privately owned, with an entry charge at the visitor centre, and its car-free cobbled street tumbling down to the sea is the main draw.
Sherrycombe Waterfall
Photo: Lewis Clarke via Geograph.org.uk
Sherrycombe Waterfall drops down a steep, wooded combe toward a hidden rock-and-pebble beach on the Exmoor coast, between Combe Martin and the Heddon valley in north Devon. A stream tumbles over a cliff of some thirty feet to the shore below, which cannot be reached from the falls themselves.
The combe lies right beneath Great Hangman, the highest point on the South West Coast Path and one of the highest sea cliffs in England, so reaching it means a hard walk on the coast path with a steep drop into the valley and a stiff climb out the far side.
Lydford Gorge
Photo: Michael Dibb via Geograph.org.uk
Lydford Gorge is a deep, wooded river gorge on the western edge of Dartmoor, cut by the River Lyd and looked after by the National Trust. Its two great sights are the Whitelady Waterfall, a thin thirty-metre fall at the lower end, and the Devil's Cauldron, a churning pothole reached down narrow steps to a platform where the river appears to boil through the rock.
Trails run along the gorge, steep and slippery in places, with a tea room and bookshop near the entrance. It is often called the deepest river gorge in the south-west, and entry is paid.
Shavercombe Falls
Photo: Tony Atkin via Geograph.org.uk
Shavercombe Falls is a small, secluded waterfall in a tiny sheltered valley on the southern moors of Dartmoor, on the Shavercombe Brook near where it feeds toward the River Plym. The water drops into a deep pool in a narrow, ferny gorge, a green and hidden spot amid the open moor.
It is deliberately remote, reached only by a long walk in over rough ground, past old warren and tor country, so it is a place for hardy walkers rather than a set attraction. It runs at its fullest after heavy rain.
Becky Falls
Photo: Martin Bodman via Geograph.org.uk
Becky Falls is a natural waterfall on Dartmoor, near Manaton, where Becka Brook tumbles down a jumble of huge granite boulders in old oak woodland. The water threads and drops between the rocks in a series of falls, altogether around twenty metres, gentle in dry weather and thunderous after rain when the brook is full.
Ferns, moss and ancient oaks crowd the sides of the little gorge, and paths wind up and down beside the water over roots and stone. The falls sit within a woodland park with a gate and admission, which has laid out trails through the woods around them.
FAQs
How tall is Canonteign Falls in Devon?
Canonteign Falls, near Christow on the eastern edge of Dartmoor, drops some seventy metres, making it the tallest waterfall in Devon and one of the tallest in England, though it is a made fall created in Victorian times by diverting a leat over a crag. On the coast, Speke's Mill Mouth falls around forty-eight metres over its tiers.
Which waterfalls in Devon are easy to reach, and which are hard?
In Devon, Lydford Gorge, Canonteign and Becky Falls have laid-out trails, though all charge for entry. Others, such as Venford, Shavercombe and Sherrycombe, are remote and unsigned, reached by rough scrambles or long coastal walks, and better suited to well-prepared walkers.
Do Devon's waterfalls run all year?
Many of Devon's waterfalls depend on rain. The coastal falls at Clovelly and Sherrycombe and the moorland brooks at Venford and Shavercombe run full after wet weather and can drop to a trickle in dry spells, while gorge falls like Lydford and the fed cascade at Canonteign hold up better.
Conclusion
Devon's waterfalls show both faces of the county, the granite moor and the wild coast. On Dartmoor, Lydford Gorge cuts deep to the Devil's Cauldron, Becky Falls slides through boulder woods, and Venford and Shavercombe reward a rough walk to their hidden pools.
On the eastern fringe, Canonteign pours in a tall Victorian ribbon down its crag. Along the north coast the streams meet the sea at Speke's Mill Mouth, at Clovelly's harbour, and down the fierce combe at Sherrycombe below Great Hangman.
Some are easy stops in paid parks, others long walks over open ground with no signs, so check the going and the weather before you set out. These are the waterfalls to seek out across Devon.
