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We live in a secret valley that has been seen by millions of people, yet actually visited by relatively few. Narrow lanes with only the occasional passing place guards our entrance and there is no through road. Here history hangs in the air. A place steeped in stories of ancient times with links to some of the nation’s great events. The surrounding old hay meadows are haunted by barn owls and wild woodlands the realm of badgers and browsing deer. But this has also been the setting for some of the most popular wildlife television programmes, yet relatively few people know its actual location. Even some locals get lost here in the maze of wiggling narrow lanes, especially when high hedgerows limit the view of surrounding countryside. Some tracks even turn out to be dead ends. So how can so many people have visited here? The answer is simple, by television. For many years this deep valley was a secret location for live BBC Springwatch broadcasts and a film location for BBC wildlife documentaries.

Summer comes early in South Devon, especially close to the coast at the foot of high hills. Here the seasons can arrive weeks ahead of the nearby heights of moorland. On a clear day their stark outline easily visible on the horizon. Down here the peak season for wild flowers, birds and bees has a head start. Situated just a couple of minutes from the coast, as a wild Peregrine flies, our weather is more mild than further inland. To the west Dartmoor dominates, rising over 2,000 feet to the wild and wet northern moor. Up here the climate is colder and the seasons peak later than closer to the coast. As a wildlife filmmaker the advantage of having high ground relatively close, gave me easy access to a second chance. A place where a half hour drive can take me back in time, often by several weeks. This gave me more chance to film wild plants and animals at their peak in the best of weather.

Some years ago, when I was Chair of the Devon Wildlife Trust, an elderly friend asked if the charity would like a gift of some wildlife rich land. The offer was situated not far from the famous rock stack of Haytor, a local landmark. This great granite pile dominates the surrounding rugged land and is visible for miles around. The dryer flanks of Emsworthy remain largely hidden in plain sight, tucked into the slope of the moorland valley. Covering nearly 100 hectares it is just a short walk from a winding road. Here an old farm was abandoned in the 1870s. Today the place is renowned as one of Britain’s best and most beautiful natural displays. Most years early June reveals a magnificent carpet of bluebells. A display normally only found in woodland beneath the cover of trees. Because bluebell bulbs need shade to avoid drying out during summer. But here on the slopes of higher ground, they bloom in what appears to be open air. Surrounded only by dry stone granite walls. But this display does not last long. By midsummer the spectacle disappears, swamped by the dense shade of bracken. An ancient fern that elsewhere is often considered to be undesirable. Some people even calling it an invasive thug of a plant. But here bracken provides an important summer service, deep shade, vital for the survival of these special moorland bluebells.