Exmoor National Park

Inside Exmoor National Park

It should of been about 3 1/2 hours to get to Lynton from The Lizard Point (see last blog post) but with traffic and taking different routes to try to avoid it, we ended up taking a little over 4 hours. It was LONG.

Map: From Lizard Point to Lynton, Exmoor National Park

But once we entered the national park, I was so excited. I had been wanting to visit Exmoor for so long already, especially this location. I knew before I even saw it that this would be my favorite national park in England that I would have visited so far and it didn't disappoint.

We entered from the Barnstable side and had to drive all the way through to the end at the coast.

Map: Barnstable to Lynton

This place is extremely hilly with sharp turns and narrow windy roads next to huge rocks and steep cliffs. It's kind of scary of you are not careful and with bad weather. But we were lucky to be going in with pretty decent weather.

At the edge of entering Exmoor

So this little part of our travels was a belated Valentine's Day stay. We decided to celebrate the week after since we knew we'd be out this way and decided to pick a romantic hotel. You couldn't get any more romantic than this location and hotel. As soon as we entered the driveway of the hotel we were hit by the amazing view. I knew our room and the hotel itself was in a perfect spot for the most amazing views ever but to read about it and see it in photos was nothing compared to the real thing.

We had such a really amazing time here. The whole place was so beautiful. The hotel and our room was perfect. The service was so personable and the food was delicious. I wish we could of stayed longer and I can't wait to go back.

Description of hotel view from book author of Alice in Wonderland 

Framed photo of hotel in lobby - Lynton Cottage 

Did I say the food was freaking delicious? Oh my god, it was the best! Locally sourced and cooked to perfection. It was unbelievable. Thought I'd only share my main course. But there was still starters and dessert that I am not posting but still yum.

Mussels

Smoked Salmon and Eggs - breakfast

Morning view from hotel

In the morning we had a walk down a public footpath from the hotel along the coast. The path started out on a small road along the cliffs one one side and a few houses and fences with some borders on the other side facing the sea.

As you walked further the fences and borders went away and the side along the cliff to the sea got more steep. The footpath was fine to walk through but I can see someone with fear of heights having a hard time.

A memorial of what looks like a child who died here. Very scary and sad.

 

The wind didn't help because it was pretty strong at some points very mild but then suddenly a strong gush of wind would surprise you. That seemed a bit dangerous and scary to me. But it didn't stop the few people I saw walking further around the cliff side corner. Not me, I decided to play it safe. :) Oh, Steve was even more safe and stayed a little more further back where the trees along the steep seaside cliffs disappeared. :)

The views were no doubt completely beautiful and peaceful, a bit intimidating as well. But oh so well worth the visit.

After our walk we took a drive to the Valley of the Rocks. You could get here from the public footpath we were at before around the cliffs but with the crazy unsettling weather up there, it was definitely much safer to drive there directly. Good decision for when we got there the, weather was much more windy and it started to drizzle a lot, but still another awesome place.

Here is a video of our drive from the hotel to the Valley of the Rocks and a sample of just how windy it was there. 

This place was pretty outrageous. I couldn't believe the wind!! The different shades of colors from the fall and winter and the dead trees permanently blown to the side from the strong winds in the valley were unbelievable. It honestly felt like we were somewhere completely out of this world. These colors, the mist in the air that you can actually being blown sideways and gray overcast sky... you wouldn't dare get all these elements in the summer.  

This is one place I will never forget and would love to return to. We had a blast. I would love to visit in the summer time. It would be be cool to compare the scenery.

There is sooo soooo much to do here in Exmoor and I'm sad we couldn't do it all but that leaves things for us to do during the summer when we return. On the way out, the drive was horrific and very nerve wrecking... the drizzle and the wind stayed... not as windy as in the valley but still enough to make your car shake a little and that with small narrow roads didn't mix at all.

But the views..... Oh the views!

So we made it out and on the main road home... our jeans were soaked from being out there and it was not warming up at all. So we had to stop on the side of the road and change our trousers to prevent ourselves from getting sick. Once dry and warm we felt much much better. As we got closer to home between Yeovil and Dorchester with that long drive behind us we needed a little recharge. And what's better than some hot tea and scones, cream and jam?? Nothing at all!

We found the cutest little garden off the road with a sign that said 'cream tea'. We passed it up but did a u-turn asap and made our way to it. There was a lady outside the fence emptying out her van with some garden stuff. We asked if she was open and she said, "I could be!" :)

The Potting Shed

That was good enough for us. She took us inside the garden gates through the garden to a little shack where there were a couple of tables and a little kitchen area. She really did open just for us. It was pretty damn cool.

She had the most amazing scones and homemade cream and jams and it was oh so cheap. She also had a little menu with soups made with freshly grown veggies from her garden. She was a sweet lady too!

 Just another place to add to our return list for sure. It was the perfect ending to a very fun, exciting, romantic and memorable weekend.