Exmoor

Exmoor is a hilly moorland in west Somerset and north Devon, named after the River Exe. The area once formed a royal hunting forest surveyed between 1815 and 1818. It became a National Park in 1954 and covers 692.8 square kilometres. The park includes valleys, hills and 55 kilometres of Bristol Channel coast. Dunkery Beacon rises to 519 metres, the highest point in Somerset. The landscape contains sedimentary rocks from the Devonian and Carboniferous periods. Cliffs along the coast reach 318 metres at Great Hangman. Exmoor holds Sites of Special Scientific Interest and was named a heritage coast in 1991. It became Europe’s first International Dark Sky Reserve in 2011. Ancient woodland, blanket mire and rare wildlife thrive here. Visitors find small villages like Porlock and Dulverton scattered across the moor. The South West Coast Path begins at Minehead and follows the entire coastline. At Watersmeet, the East and West Lyn rivers meet beneath wooded slopes. The Valley of Rocks near Lynton is a striking dry valley capped by large boulders. Coastal harbours at Lynmouth and Porlock Weir now serve leisure boats and light fishing.