Exmoor

Exmoor is a high, wind-combed plateau of heather and grass moor that stops abruptly at the Bristol Channel, throwing up some of the tallest sea cliffs in England along the way. Straddling the border between west Somerset and north Devon, it covers roughly 267 square miles, which makes it one of the smaller English national parks and one of the easiest to understand on a single visit. You can cross it in an afternoon and still feel you have travelled a long way, because the landscape changes so sharply: bare open moor at Dunkery and The Chains, deep oak-wooded combes where the Barle and the Horner Water run, hedge-banked farmland in the south, and then the sudden drop to the coast.

It is a lived-in landscape rather than a wilderness. Sheep and red Devon cattle graze the commons, beech hedgebanks planted in the nineteenth century march across exposed ridges, and the villages are working places with a shop, a church and a pub rather than resorts. Exmoor still carries the largest wild red deer population in England, and the Exmoor pony, a hardy native breed with a mealy muzzle, grazes the moor in free-living herds. Buzzards ride the thermals above every valley and, in the wooded gorges, you may pick up a dipper working the shallows.

What sets Exmoor apart from busier corners of the West Country is quiet. It was designated an International Dark Sky Reserve in 2011, the first in Europe, and on a clear moonless night the Milky Way is plainly visible from a roadside pull-in. Even in August the interior of the moor absorbs visitors easily, and a mile from any car park you are likely to have the skyline to yourself. That combination of accessible drama and genuine emptiness is the reason people keep coming back.

Top things to do in Exmoor

Exmoor rewards slow exploration on foot, but there is plenty for those who prefer a shorter walk and a good lunch. These are the places most worth building a day around.

• Dunkery Beacon — At 519 metres this is the roof of Exmoor and of Somerset, reached by a gentle twenty-minute pull from the car park at Dunkery Gate. On a clear day the view runs from the Brecon Beacons across the Channel to the tors of Dartmoor.
• Lynton and Lynmouth Cliff Railway — Two water-ballast carriages have hauled passengers up and down the 500-foot cliff between the two towns since 1890, entirely gravity powered. It is a short ride but a genuinely remarkable piece of Victorian engineering, and the views over the harbour are the best in the park.
• Dunster village and castle — A remarkably complete medieval village with a National Trust castle above it, a working watermill, a packhorse bridge and the octagonal Yarn Market of 1609 marking the centre of the old cloth trade.
• Valley of Rocks — A dry hanging valley west of Lynton, ringed by weathered rock stacks with names like Castle Rock and the Devil's Cheesewring, and patrolled by a long-established herd of feral goats. The level coast path from Lynton takes about half an hour.
• Tarr Steps — A clapper bridge of huge stone slabs across the River Barle, probably medieval in its present form and repeatedly rebuilt after floods. The riverside walk upstream through the National Nature Reserve towards Withypool is one of the loveliest in the park.
• Watersmeet — Where the East Lyn River meets Hoar Oak Water in a wooded gorge, with a National Trust tea garden in a former fishing lodge and paths climbing away in every direction.
• Dark sky stargazing — Holdstone Hill, Anstey Gate, Webber's Post and Brendon Two Gates are the recognised viewing points. October to March gives the longest and darkest nights, and the National Park runs an annual dark skies festival.
• Red deer watching — Autumn is the rut, when stags roar and clash antlers on the moor edge above Horner and Cloutsham. Local guides run early-morning safaris by Land Rover, which is by far the best way to see them without disturbing the herds.

Getting to Exmoor

There is no railway station inside the national park, so the practical approach is train to the edge and car or bus from there. Taunton is the best-connected gateway, about one hour and forty-five minutes from London Paddington on Great Western Railway services, with direct trains from Bristol, Birmingham and the north. Tiverton Parkway suits the southern side of the moor around Dulverton and is a similar journey time from London. Barnstaple, reached on the Tarka Line from Exeter St Davids in about an hour, is the gateway for the north Devon side and Lynton.

From Taunton, buses run to Minehead via Williton and Dunster, and in summer the Exmoor Coaster links Minehead with Lynmouth along the coast road through Porlock and Countisbury. The West Somerset Railway, a heritage steam line, runs the twenty miles from Bishops Lydeard to Minehead and is an enjoyable way in rather than a fast one.

By road, the M5 to junction 25 (Taunton) or junction 27 (Tiverton) puts you within forty-five minutes of the moor. The A39 coast road is the scenic route but includes Porlock Hill, a 1-in-4 climb with hairpins that caravans should avoid in favour of the toll road. Interior lanes are single track with passing places and high hedgebanks; allow far longer than a map suggests. Car parks at Dunkery Gate, Tarr Steps, Watersmeet and Valley of Rocks fill by mid-morning in August. Bristol and Exeter airports are the nearest, roughly ninety minutes and one hour by road respectively.

Best time to visit Exmoor

Spring is arguably the best all-round season. April and May bring bluebells through the Horner and Barle woodlands, lambs and foals on the commons, and long clear days before the school holidays begin. Rivers still carry enough water to look their best, and accommodation is easier to secure.

Summer is warm but rarely crowded away from the coast. Lynmouth, Dunster and Porlock get busy in the middle of the day in July and August; the moorland interior does not. Long evenings suit late walks, and the sea is just about swimmable from the pebble beaches.

Autumn is the connoisseur's choice. Heather and gorse colour the moor purple and gold into September, the beech hedges turn copper, the red deer rut runs through late September and October, and the nights lengthen for stargazing. Expect rain and pack for it.

Winter is stark and often magnificent, with frost on the high ground, empty paths and roaring fires in the inns. Some campsites and smaller attractions close from November to March, moorland roads can drift with snow, and daylight is short, so plan modest days and build them around a good lunch.

Where to stay in Exmoor

Dunster is the easiest base for a first visit: a beautiful village with a castle, several places to eat, a National Park Centre and quick access to the coast and the eastern moor. Minehead next door has more choice at lower prices and the widest range of shops.

Lynton and Lynmouth suit walkers and anyone drawn to the coast, sitting where the South West Coast Path meets the Two Moors Way, with the cliff railway between the upper town and the harbour. Porlock and the hamlets of the Holnicote Estate are quieter, with thatch, salt marsh and the wooded Horner valley on the doorstep.

For the heart of the moor, Exford and Winsford are the classic choices, both small villages on the Exe with traditional inns and riding stables, ideal if you want to walk or ride from the door. Simonsbath is more remote still. Dulverton, on the southern edge, is the moor's most sophisticated small town, with independent shops and good restaurants, and it makes a sensible base in winter. Withypool and Brendon appeal to anyone wanting near-total quiet, and self-catering farmhouses and barn conversions are plentiful across the whole park.

Food and drink in Exmoor

Exmoor cooking leans on what the land produces: lamb and mutton off the moor, venison from the red deer herds, beef from native breeds, trout and crayfish from the rivers, and game in season. Cream teas are ubiquitous and, this being the border country, the argument about whether jam or cream goes first is taken seriously.

The brewery to look for is Exmoor Ales in Wiveliscombe, whose Exmoor Gold and Exmoor Stag turn up on hand pump across the park. Local cider is widely poured, and Exmoor Distillery in Winsford produces gin and rum on the moor itself.

Dulverton is the strongest place to eat, with Woods Bar and Restaurant known for its wine list and game, and The Tantivy operating as a long-established family shop, deli and coffee lounge. In Dunster, The Luttrell Arms serves ambitious food in a medieval building, and Reeves has a good reputation in the village. Tarr Farm Inn by Tarr Steps and the Royal Oak at Winsford both do proper country inn cooking. On the coast, Lynmouth's Rising Sun makes the most of local fish and shellfish.

For provisions, Minehead holds a market on Wednesdays and Fridays, Dulverton and Porlock have excellent butchers and farm shops, and the Exmoor Food Fest each February sees dozens of pubs and restaurants offer set menus at reduced prices, which is a good reason to visit out of season.