Beaches on Exmoor

Not many national parks can offer wild woodlands, heather covered moor, a jagged coastline and sandy beaches all in one package. Exmoor national park offers all of the above in a spectacular fashion.

The beauty of Exmoor is having the best of all worlds in the morning you can be packing up the tent in Dunster forest and hours later swimming in the crystal clear sea looking out to Wales. From Spring onwards the moors come out of hibernation, the shops and pubs open as the days get longer and the sun gets hotter. Directly on the Exmoor coast you have the beaches of Porlock, Dunster, Minehead, Lynton and Lynmouth and Combe Martin.

Follow the spectacular geological formations around the coast and see how the golden sands move onto shingle, pebbles and boulders. The coast of Exmoor offers constant intrigue from the valley of the rocks to the petrified tree graveyard of Porlock beach. If adventure sports is what you are after the beaches at Lynmouth are great for surfing for those with high confidence, for an easier surf you are best off heading around the coast to Woolacombe where there is a 3 mile long, golden sand beach perfect for all surfing abilities.

There are many spots to go kite surfing, kayaking and rock climbing around the coast but always be aware of the Bristol channels unpredictable tides that can change at the drop of a hat so please stay safe. The coast of Exmoor conjure ideas of shipwrecked galleons being robbed for barrels of rum and loot and once you see the jagged rocks and the series of coves, caves and tunnels you will realise why sailors were and still are at so much of a risk.

So whether you want to stroll on the sand at dusk, kayak around to find a private bay or surf all day you are never far from any of this in Exmoor national park.
Please be aware -Minehead and Combe Martin are the only beaches that do not allow dogs on the beach in the summer.

The Exmoor White Horse  is a great base to visit all of the above places

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Traditional Exmoor Sloe Gin Recipe

The Sloe is an ancestor of the Damsons and Plums we see today. Its sharp and unpalatable fruits cling to the spiky branches of the Blackthorn that grows in hedges and on coastal paths all over Exmoor.

Although Sloes are absolutely disgusting to eat people have been brewing their berries in gin and sugar for hundreds of years to yield a delightful liqueur. Be make sure to wear a long sleeved shirt, trousers and some thin gardening gloves as Sloes tend to grow around nettles, blackberries and have nasty spines themselves.

Once you have collected the Sloe berries freeze them as once they have been frozen it is easier to pierce the skin of the fruit.

  Ingredients:

300g Sloe Berries

4tbsp Brown Sugar

1 litre of Gin or Vodka

Take the Sloes out from the freezer and slice each one and put it into a sterile litre glass bottle.

Once you have added the 300g of Sloes,  add the sugar.

Now add the alcohol and leave a space of around one and a half inches at the top of the bottle.

Shake the mixture vigorously (with the lid on the bottle) as this helps the sugar dissolve.

Leave the bottle in a dark cupboard, for the first two weeks shake the bottle daily and leave the Sloe gin to mature for at least three months before drinking.

The perfect time to make Sloe gin is in August/ September when the Blackthorn has succulent fruits. The tree will carry on fruiting past the first frosts, this can make the piercing job easier as the frost softens the skins. By making the liqueur in September you will have a lovely bottle of Sloe Gin in time for Christmas. So keep an eye out on your country walks and plan ahead on where you are going to find your fruit.

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Top Gear, A Brief Encounter The Exmoor White Horse Inn

On a cold dark nignt back in February, the 23rd to be precise, four guy’s from Top Gear Magazine (Motoring Editor Oliver Marriage, Art Director Owen Norris, Photographer John Wycherley and Driver Mauro Calo) created more than a little stir when they arrived at The Exmoor White Horse to do an article and photo shoot on three very prestigious sports coupes. “The Goldilocks Enigma” (as described on page 147 of this months edition of Top Gear Magazine) is based on three truly stunning cars.

Their spec reads like the cast line up from a grown up version of the “Fast & The Furious” with marques like the Nissan GT-R  3799cc, twin-turbo V6,  boasting an incredible 542bhp, rivalled by the Jaguar XKR-S, it is matched by the 542bhp, 5000cc, supercharged V8, supported by the Porsche 911 Carrera S, 3800cc, flat-six, 395bhp. I’m sure that many, who like me had parked their pride and joy in the front car park, felt more than a little intimidated in the presence of greatness.

Whilst chatting with the guy’s that evening, I was able to offer a few suggestions for locations. From a photographers perspective, we talked about the possible locations which could be used as a visual foil for these remarkable cars & Exmoor’s capacity for throwing up the most unpredictable weather conditions .

Valley of the Rocks and Countisbury Hill near Lynton and Lynmouth were obvious favourites, along with Dunkery Beacon and Webbers Post, between Exford and Porlock. We also talked about the stretches of open moorland between Simonsbath and Watersmeet and the amazing scenery close to Lanacre Bridge.

Armed with this information, only the weather could dictate the eventual outcome of what was going to be a fascinating duel between the sheer power of bhp and the raw power of nature. I think reading the article and seeing the pictures, it’s fair to say that it was pretty much an even contest, with mist, rain and sunshine complimented by the dynamics, exquisite good looks, brawn and sheer muscle.

After a hearty Exmoor breakfast, the guy’s bid farewell and lined the vehicles up outside the Exmoor White Horse Inn for the first photo shoot of the day.

I was lucky enough to be given the opportunity to photograph them before they left.

I can only imagine the sheer joy they must have had driving across open moorland that day – we have since discussed our favourite roads which traverse the moors and the thrill of driving which they never fail to provide, but to experience the thrills and spills of Exmoor behind the wheel of any one of these cars must, I’m sure, have been spectaular and an experience we lesser mortals can only dream of !!!

Peter Hendrie

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The bar at Exmoor White Horse Inn has recently been refurbished under the close eye of owner Linda Hendrie who also runs her own Interior Design business Avid Design.

Linda had commissioned a series of drawings by the artist Igor Lukyanov. The drawing of a horse was the key drawing in the series of animal artworks . Have a look at more of his drawings here Arabian Horse Drawing.

Igor has also produced a video showing him drawing

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