Exmoor Local Area

About Exmoor

Exmoor is without doubt one of the most diverse and beautiful places to visit in England or Europe, From the heather coated moorland hills where you can hear the call of the Sky Lark, the shrill cry of a Buzzard soaring high on warm thermals and our integral piece of living history, the Exmoor Pony. From these wide open spaces you can make your way down to the luscious wooded valleys of the rivers Barle and Exe where you can see Dippers, Kingfishers and perhaps our Red Deer. If you're walking quietly there is the chance you could see Badgers, Fox, Herons or even one of a pair of the resident Otters.

Come and enjoy our unspoilt peaceful countryside. Walk through the Bluebell Wood at the top of Winsford Hill in Spring and enjoy seeing groups of Exmoor ponies. Enjoy nature at its best.

The Exmoor Pony

The Exmoor Pony is as much a part of Exmoor as the moorland themselves. When watching a herd of Exmoor ponies you are literally watching history in action, the Island of Gotland in the Baltic, southeast of Sweden hosts an ancient race of pony. The Gotland-Russ pony has lived on the island since at least the third millennium BC, usually standing at around twelve hands high and brown in colour.

It is thought that they migrated there in the wake of the retreating glaciers at the end of the last glacial period of the Pleitocene ( current ) Ice Age. But even further back in history, according to recent fossil records is the Exmoor Pony, dark brown in colour and on average maybe a little smaller than the Gotland-Russ. The Exmoor Pony has survived with little or no detectable changes for over one million years! It may be that the Exmoor Pony is a descendant of the Alaska Pony, due to having the same jaw structure.

Exmoor Activities

The Exmoor National Park is the ideal place to explorer the great outdoors by:

1. Walking
2. Cycling
3. Horse Riding

1. Climbing
2. Canoeing

1. Fishing
2. Shooting

1. Exmoor Visitor Map

 

Places to Visit in and around Exmoor

There are many beautiful town and villages to visit around Exmoor

1. Porlock
2. Exford
3. Luxborough
4. Dulverton
5. Lynton
6. Dunster

1. Snowdrop Valley (Wheddon Cross)
2. Tarr Steps
3. Brendon Valley
4. Withypool
5. Doone Valley

1. Heddon Valley (National Trust)
2. Holnicote Estate (National Trust)
3. Watersmeet (National Trust)

 

Fishing on Exmoor

There are a number of companies offering fishing excursions, tuition and information for the local Exmoor area. We don't have the space to mention them all but two of the best that we have used in the past are:

We offer wonderful fishing for all ages throughout the year and our shop carries our complete range of smoked products as well as fresh fish.

For all your fishing needs during your stay on Exmoor.

Fish for wild brown trout, sea trout, Salmon and lake rainbows. I can offer the following services:

1. Fly fishing instruction
2. Tackle hire
3. Guide and Ghillie service
4. Day tickets on the Barle, Exe and Catherines Brook
5. Private training pool, stocked with rainbow trout
6. Tuition by the hour, half and whole day
7. One, two and three day courses. With tuition and guidance tackle is provided free of charge.

Tel: Robin on 07814 243991

For more information please visit 'Fly Fishing in Somerset'

Make sure you have the correct equipment for fishing on Exmoor, visit Lance Nicholson Fishing and Guns.

 

Eating Out

We recommend a visit to the Thai Restaurant, Tongdam is a definite must