Exmoor

 

high moorland of the Cornwall peninsula, SW England, comprising much of Exmoor National Park (265 sq mi/686 sq km; est. 1954). Underlaid by slate and sandstone, the rugged region with wooded glens rises to 1,707 ft (520 m) in Dunkery Beacon; the Exe River is nearby. The region is sparsely populated. Sheep and the small Exmoor ponies are grazed on the moorland. Exmoor is a popular tourist attraction and contains many interesting prehistoric earthworks. It was the home of a legendary nomadic group of brigands called the Doones; Doone Valley became more famous after R. D. Blackmore incorporated the legend in his novel Lorna Doone.

Exmoor
National Park of England
National Park (IUCN II)
View of the Porlock Vale over toward Bossington Hill from Porlock Hill
Country	England
County	Devon & Somerset
Area	km² ( mi²)
Highest point	Dunkery Beacon
- elevation	m ( ft)
Lowest point	Sea Level
- elevation	m ( ft)
Animal	Exmoor Pony
National Park of England	1954
Managed by	Exmoor National Park Authority
- location	Dulverton
Website : http://www.exmoor-nationalpark.gov.uk/

Exmoor National Park is a national park situated on the Bristol Channel coast of Devon and Somerset in South West England. The park covers  square miles ( km²) of hilly open moorland and  miles ( km) of coast. Exmoor is one of the first British National Parks, designated in 1954, under the 1949 National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act,^[1] and is named after its main river, the River Exe. Several areas of the moor have been declared a Site of Special Scientific interest.

Prior to being a park Exmoor was a Royal Forest and hunting ground. It was sold off in 1818. Sir Richard Acland, the last warden of Exmoor, took thirty ponies and established the famous Anchor herd, which still exists to this day.

Landscape

Uncultivated heath and moorland cover about a quarter of Exmoor landscape. Some moors are covered by a variety of grasses and sedges, while others are dominated by heather. The moors are supported by wet, acid soil above a mixture of rock types including sandstone, slate, shale and limestone, mostly laid in the Devonian period. The highest point on Exmoor is Dunkery Beacon, at  feet ( m), which is also the highest point in Somerset. The Chains and surrounding high ground is the source for rivers, which flow through steep wooded valleys called combes.

Exmoor has a dramatic coastline including the highest sea cliffs in England. The South West Coast Path passes through these cliffs and was voted Britain's favourite path in 2006.

Although Exmoor is usually associated with moorland, there are also cultivated areas including the Brendon Hills, which lie in the east of the national park. There are also  square miles ( km²) of woodland, comprising a mixture of broad-leaved (oak, ash and hazel) and conifer trees. Horner Woodlands and Tarr Steps woodlands are prime examples. These woodlands are home to lichens, mosses and ferns.

The park was featured on the TV programme Seven Natural Wonders twice as one of the wonders of the West Country.

Coastline

Exmoor has  miles ( km) of coastline to the north, some of the highest coastlines on the British mainland. The highest cliff is Great Hangman, at  feet ( m). The dramatic scenery of rocky headlands, ravines, waterfalls and towering cliffs gained the Exmoor coast recognition as a Heritage Coast in 1991. The Exmoor Coastal Heaths have been recognised as a Site of Special Scientific Interest due to the diversity of species present. This dramatic coastline is an adventure playground for climbers and explorers with huge waterfalls and caves. The cliffs provide one of the longest and most isolated seacliff traverses in the UK. The Exmoor Coast Traverse

Exmoor is special for its coastal woodlands, including  miles ( km) of cliff between Porlock and Countisbury where the trees spread right down to the beach in places. The South West Coast Path, at  miles ( km)the longest National Trail in England and Wales, starts at Minehead and runs along all of Exmoor's coast. Small harbours can be found at Lynmouth, Porlock Weir and Combe Martin. Once important for coastal trade, their primary use now is for pleasure sailing and fishing.

Rivers

There can be up to  inches ( mm) of rainfall per year on the higher ground, due to clouds formed by warm damp air from the Atlantic Ocean. The high ground forms the catchment area for numerous rivers and streams. There are about  miles ( km) of rivers on Exmoor.

Rivers on Exmoor include the Exe, Avill, Barle, Bray, Heddon, East Lyn, Horner and West Lyn.

Wildlife

Sheep have grazed on the moors for more than 3,000 years, shaping much of the Exmoor landscape by feeding on moorland grasses and heather. Traditional breeds include Exmoor Horn, Cheviot and Whiteface Dartmoor and Greyface Dartmoor sheep. Devon red cattle are also farmed in the area.

Exmoor ponies can be seen roaming freely on the moors. They are a race rather than a breed of pony, and are the closest breed remaining in Europe to Wild Horses. The ponies are rounded up once a year to be marked and checked over.

Red deer have a stronghold on the moor and can be seen on quiet hillsides in remote areas, particularly in the early morning.

The famous Beast of Exmoor is reputed to haunt the moor, with many sightings since the 1960s. It is possibly a Cougar or Black Leopard which was released sometime in the 1960s or 1970s after a law passed making it illegal for them to be kept in captivity outside zoos. It has been blamed for many sheep kills over the years.

The moorland habitat is also home to hundreds of species of birds and insects. Birds seen on the moor include Merlin, Peregrine Falcon, Eurasian Curlew, European Stonechat, Dipper, Dartford Warbler and Ring Ouzel. Black Grouse and Red Grouse are now extinct on Exmoor.

Sport

Although the hunting of animals with dogs was abolished by the Hunting Act 2004, the Exmoor hunts still meet in full regalia and there is a running campaign to resurrect the major rural sport of centuries.

For others walking, climbing, and for the pupils of West Buckland School frequent long distance cross moor runs, are equally and much less controversial pastimes.

Places of interest

• Lynmouth, where the East and West Lyn rivers meet, was the site of the 1952 flooding disaster. The cliff railway connects Lynmouth to neighbouring Lynton.
• Porlock is a quiet coastal town with adjacent salt marsh nature reserve and harbour at nearby Porlock Weir.
• Dunster Castle can be found in Dunster. The town has a priory, dovecote, yarn market, inn, packhorse bridge and mill. The West Somerset Railway has a stop here.
• Tarr Steps has an ancient clapper bridge constructed from large unmortared slabs of stone.
• Woody Bay, a few miles west of Lynton, is home to the Lynton & Barnstaple Railway, a narrow gauge railway which connected the twin towns of Lynton and Lynmouth to Barnstaple,  miles ( km) away.
• Snowdrop Valley has a sea of snowdrops in February and, later, a bluebell display.
• Withypool is a picturesque village in the Barle Valley (Exmoor's largest river). It is situated in the heart of Exmoor National park and was mentioned in the Domesday Book. The Two Moors Way passes through the village. The bridge over the river and the Royal Oak public house (17th century), where General Eisenhower planned some of the D-Day landings, are other places of interest.
• Exford, picturesque village at the heart of the Moors, favourite of country sports enthusiasts.
• Brendon, picturesque village in the middle of Brendon Valley noted for the annual Exmoor folk festival .
• Watchet - a historic harbour town. Complete with Marina and home to the largest carnival in the region each July.
• The  miles ( km) Coleridge Way begins in the nearby Quantock Hills and crosses the Brendon Hills and Exmoor before finishing in Porlock.

Exmoor in literature

Exmoor is the setting for the popular 19th-century novel by Richard Doddridge Blackmore, Lorna Doone.

See also

• Exmoor Forest
• Holnicote Estate

References

External links

• Exmoor National Park Authority
• In the Footsteps of the Romantic Poet - The Coleridge Way
• Exmoor at the Open Directory Project

National parks in the UK
England : Peak District • Lake District • Dartmoor • North York Moors • Yorkshire Dales • Exmoor • Northumberland • The Broads‡ • New Forest • South Downs†
Wales : Snowdonia • Pembrokeshire Coast • Brecon Beacons
Scotland : Loch Lomond and the Trossachs • Cairngorms
Northern Ireland : Mourne Mountains†
Areas marked † are proposed. ‡ An area with similar status to a National Park

Coordinates: 51°06′24″N 3°36′41″W / 51.10667, -3.61139

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