Lower White Tor

The walk up Lower White Tor from Tavistock takes about 40 minutes if you're moving at a decent pace, and the views across Dartmoor are genuinely worth the huffing and puffing. It's not technically difficult - rough moorland paths, some boggy patches if it's been wet - but it climbs steadily and exposes you properly to the elements once you're above the tree line.

What strikes you at the top is how much moorland spreads out in every direction. Lower White Tor itself is modest as Dartmoor peaks go - granite outcrops, a bit of scrambling if you fancy it, nothing that will frighten experienced walkers or deter reasonably fit families. The real draw is the isolation and the 360-degree perspective on the National Park.

It works brilliantly as a morning walk if you're based in Tavistock or camping nearby in Dartmoor National Park. The rock formations are good for kids to clamber about, and the exposed position means you catch the weather changing in real time - dramatic when the mist rolls across, honestly rather bleak if the rain's coming in. Allow three to four hours door-to-door if you're taking photographs and eating a packed lunch up there.

Winter can be grim - navigation gets trickier, wind picks up properly - so spring through autumn makes sense. The moorland changes character through the seasons, but Lower White Tor's appeal is the walking itself and the moorland solitude rather than any particular feature at the summit.