Page 124 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - England's South Coast

122  ENGLAND ’ S SOUTH C O AST REGION B Y REGION

d Exmoor National Park

The 692 sq km (267 sq miles) of this national park offer a
dramatically diverse landscape. Majestic cliffs plunge into
the Bristol Channel along Exmoor’s northern coast. Inland,
rolling hills are grazed by hardy Exmoor ponies and
England’s only wild population of red deer. For walkers,
the park offers 1,000 km (621 miles) of wonderful public
paths, including the South West Coast Path. The moorland
also offers less energetic attractions, including picturesque
villages, seaside resorts, ancient castles and churches.

The Valley of the Rocks
A short walk west of Lynton, the Valley
of Rocks is a dry gorge some 152 m
(500 ft) above the sea. It is home to a
series of sandstone outcrops eroded
into fantastical shapes.

Heddon’s Mouth
A 3-km (2-mile) walk through woodland along the Heddon Valley
leads to the point where the River Heddon meets
the sea. Set between some of England’s Martinhoe Lynton
highest cliffs, it is an attractive spot. Watermouth Heddon Valley
Ilfracombe
KEY
1 The village of Simonsbath is a
good starting point for walkers. Patchole Blackmoor Gate
2 Combe Martin is home to the
Pack O’ Cards Inn (see p148). Arlington
3 Parracombe’s church has a
Georgian interior with boxed pews, a
wooden pulpit and a carved screen.
4 Watersmeet, set in a beautifully
wooded valley, is the spot where the
River East Lyn and Hoar Oak Water join
together in a tumbling cascade. There Brayford
is also a tearoom with a pretty garden. High
5 Oare Church comm emorates the Bray
writer R D Blackmore, whose novel
Lorna Doone (1869) is set in the area.
Great Hangman
6 Culbone Church, a mere 10.6 m At 433 m (1,421 ft), the Great Hangman,
(35 ft) in length, claims to be Britain’s England’s highest sea cliff, lies on the South West
smallest parish church.
Coast Path near the village of Combe Martin.
7 Selworthy is a picturesque
village of thatched cottages.
8 Minehead is a resort built around
a quay. The West Somerset Railway
runs from here to Bishop’s Lydeard.
9 Dunster is a medieval village with
an ancient castle and an unusual
octagonal Yarn Market (c.1609),
where local cloth was once sold. Exmoor Ponies
0 Tarr Steps is an ancient “clapper” A native breed, the sturdy brown Exmoor ponies can be seen
bridge built of stone slabs. roaming freely around the spectacular moors. In spring and
early summer, visitors should look out for the new-born foals.
For hotels and restaurants in this region see p177 and pp188–9

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