A – Z of Locations: X is for eXmoor

During this year I shall be posting photographs from places around the UK, many of which have not been published before. Where I have previously blogged about a location I will provide a link to the post, though you won’t be able to comment on it as I restrict comments to six months.

X is for EXmoor (I know, a bit of a cheat, but I don’t think there are any places in the UK beginning with X – maybe Cross could be used? I have been to Cross Houses near Shrewsbury, but it’s not a very interesting place and I certainly haven’t got any photos!) 

EXmoor is a National Park in the south-west of England covering both parts of Somerset and Devon. A beautiful landscape of moorland, woodland, coast and rivers. We’ve had a couple of holidays around this region, once staying in the pretty medieval town of Dunster (Somerset) which we used as a base to explore the moor, its towns and villages and the north coast.

Iconic Yarn Market

Dunster itself is well worth visiting with a lovely castle and a working Water Mill and a pretty 15th-century stone Gallox bridge as well as unique shops, a Yarn Market and a hidden secret garden.

Gallox Bridge. This ancient stone bridge – originally ‘gallows bridge’ – once carried packhorses bringing fleeces to Dunster market.
A view towards the Valley of the Rocks on the North Devon coast.

A walk to the Dunkery Beacon at the summit of Dunkery Hill which is the highest point on Exmoor and in Somerset, England is a must from where you have views over the Bristol Channel to south Wales. Just make sure you use the correct track unlike us (we had to double back when we couldn’t find a route through the thick gorse and bracken).

Make your way to the village of Winsford which might be the prettiest in Exmoor Park and does indeed have a ford. With its thatched cottages, two medieval packhorse bridges, a Grade II listed telephone kiosk, a medieval parish church and a picturesque thatched country pub it is a village well worth stopping off in to explore. West of the village is The Punchbowl, a geological hollow created by glaciation during the last Ice Age.

One of the fords over the River Exe
The Royal Oak in Winsford

Tarr Steps is another great place to go when looking to explore Exmoor National Park. You can head straight there, utilising the on site car park and toilet facilities, with just a gentle walk down to the ancient clapper bridge.

The Tarr Farm Inn

Or there are several walks in the surrounding countryside including a circular walk from Dulverton.

Tarr Steps is a 17 span clapper bridge (Tarr Steps is an example of a ‘clapper’ bridge (the term being derived from the Latin ‘claperius’, meaning ‘pile of stones’) and is constructed entirely from large stone slabs and boulders.), the longest of its kind in Britain.

The coastal region is very beautiful too, with extraordinary views.

Porlock Bay
Porlock Weir
Lynmouth and Lynton
The Parish of Saint John the Evangelist Countisbury (between Lynmouth and Porlock)

And sheep and Exmoor ponies.

Exmoor foal
A very woolly sheep

If you would like to read more about North Devon then please click here.

Exmoor landscape

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Heyjude

I have lived in the UK for most of my life, but when young I definitely had wanderlust and even ended up living in South Africa for several years which was a wonderful experience. I now look forward to a long and leisurely retirement doing what I like most - gardening, photography, walking and travelling.

37 thoughts on “A – Z of Locations: X is for eXmoor”

    1. We originally wanted to move to north Devon, back in 2008, but circumstances changed and then we needed to be closer to the m-i-l in Shropshire. Transport links are pretty dire there too. It is a lovely region, not sure how quiet it is nowadays. If we move again and out of Cornwall it will probably be towards the Somerset/Wiltshire border so that we are more central for family.

  2. A lovely Devon showcase. And a county I should get to know better. By the way, your second photo won’t display for me.

    1. Oops! Sorry about that. For some strange reason I used a photo from one of my other old blogs that is private so I guess only I could see it. Altered it now so hopefully all is good. It is a fab bridge btw. And yes, Devon is well worth a look with both Exmoor and Dartmoor being extraordinary places.

  4. You have convinced me, Jude. Exmoor is on the must-visit list. What a stunning landscape! Porlock Bay looks splendid so deserted.
    Warm greetings from the east coast,
    Dina & co

  5. Ah….I’m having a lot of memories…Dunster, Dulverton, Tarr steps, Lynton and Lynnouth….etc etc

  6. You’ve opened up the possibility for an enterprising town in England to rename itself something beginning with an X, then make a bid for tourism with a campaign promoting the fact that it’s the only place in England whose name begins with an X.

    1. That would be interesting. A bit like Westward Ho! which is the only place in the British Isles with an exclamation mark.

  7. I think you can easily get away with EXmoor for your X offering, especially as you have such a lovely collection of photos! It’s very many years since I was in this area so it’s great to be reminded of just how beautiful a part of the country it is 😀

        1. I thought so. Actually I didn’t like Exeter much, but it was a damp day so maybe I wasn’t seeing the best of it.

  8. I have visited Exmoor many times, and Dunster is one of my favourite spots in England. We spent a lovely day there exploring the beach with Julie’s daughters whilst staying at Minehead in 2002.
    Best wishes, Pete. x

  9. Yes it’s (sort of) cheating but worth it to showcase this beautiful area. The closest I would have been able to get is a village called Cross-In-Hand in the Sussex Downs or maybe the X-Ray Department at Tunbridge Wells Hospital. I’ve visited both, unfortunately!

    1. Mmm… I think I have driven through Cross-in-Hand, but certainly not visited the X-ray dept at TW. I did visit a local one recently, but no photos. And not a very exciting place to visit.

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