The beach at Minehead

Minehead is a superb location to spend a holiday, offering not only sea and sand, but the perfect base from which to explore Exmoor, Somerset and parts of Devon. The name of the town Minehead is from the Welsh word mynedd, which means mountain, and probably that refers to North Hill, which can be seen for miles around and all along the coast to the east. North Hill is in the Exmoor National Park, yet it is just a short walk from the centre of town, which means that you don’t need to go far for the chance to see Exmoor ponies or red deer and it’s an ideal place to watch the sunset.

You can get part of the way there at the beginning of a circular tour of the Minehead. This begins at Wellington Square, by the statue of Queen Anne in front of St Andrew’s church, walk along Parkhouse Road for 200yds until you come to Parks Walk, which was once a strip of wasteland, but has now become a pleasant walk, planted with trees and shrubs. As you walk through the park you pass over two little bridges and when you reach Periton Lane, turn right.

Cross the main road and at the top of the of steps there turn right again into Whitecross Lane, which is on the lower slopes of North Hill, and as you continue into Vicarage Road you will see Church Steps, which is one of the most famous landmarks in Minehead. Some say the small house at the bottom of the steps was a prison, but it was more likely to have been a workhouse.

Climb Church Steps, passing between pretty cob-walled cottages, and at the top is Minehead’s Parish Church of St Michaels, parts of which date back to the 14th century. St Michaels has many interesting sculptures and features, which include a rood loft with a window in which in times gone by a light was kept burning all night to guide ships into the harbour, and also to show people on Exmoor the way back to the town. Outside the church you have a view of old and new Minehead spread out below, with the beauty of Exmoor in the distance behind it.

Carry on along St Michael’s Road until you come to the War Memorial. Up to the left of here is something that looks like a castle, but is actually Elgin Towers, which it’s thought was built to be a copy of Elgin Towers in Scotland.
From here there is a choice of paths to take. On the left, Burgundy Road leads to a path that meanders through the woods and gives views down to the harbour, but this route could become slippery in wet weather and there’s an easier way along Church Path.

Whichever way you go, you will arrive down on the quay near to a row of little cottages. In days gone by there was another row on the side of the road nearer the sea, which made this a very narrow little lane. Nearby you can see the Old Custom House and Mother Leaky’s cottage, by which time you’ll have reached the harbour.

Minehead was once a very important fishing port for herring, as well being used by the wool and coal trades in the area.

Next to The Old Ship Aground pub is a third church, called St Peter on the Quay, which was once a coal and timber store. It was a gift to the town by a mariner, Robert Quirke, after he’d been saved from a storm at sea. The lifeboat station just behind the church welcomes visitors to look around. Now walk back, turn right at coastguard cottages and carry on along Blenheim Road or detour through Blenheim Gardens, which is just off the main shopping area and has beautiful flower beds and borders. On weekends through the summer there are band concerts here and deckchairs are available. The original park band stand is now a café.

The walk through the park will bring you back to the Parade, at a point opposite The Old Priory, which is early Tudor in origin and was once the court house. Carry on walking to your right to Market House Lane and turn right into it. You will pass Quirke’s Almshouses, another of Robert Quirke’s good works. In 1630 he had them built to house needy people in Minehead, and today they are still in use, thanks to an anonymous donation that pays for their restoration.

At the northern end of the almshouses is a bell-cot, the bell in it being said to be from one of Robert Quirke’s ships, and you can also see the stump of the Old Market Cross. To complete this circular tour of the town, just walk back to the Parade and turn right.

Shops are plentiful in Minehead, many, varied and thriving. Walk from the seafront along The Avenue to find all the main banks, passing shops and eating places all along the way and several good charity shops, book shops, antique and craft shops for browsing, as well as shops to meet most other shopping needs.

The Regal Theatre, also in The Avenue, is Minehead’s only live theatre. Run and supported by volunteers, it offers a wide ranging programme of entertainment, including drama, throughout the year. The theatre bar is open before all performances and during intervals.

There’s a range of clothing and accessories shops, interestingly different from the usual High Street names, and every Friday, whatever the weather, the Farmers’ Market is open in The Parade from 8.30am to 2.30pm, selling local produce which can include such goodies as quails’ eggs, trout pate, cakes, pies and quiche, bread, cheeses, pasties, fresh fruit, jams, fresh eggs, cream, chocolates, ham, soup and more, as well as organic or free range meats, chickens, Aberdeen Angus beef, Gloucester Old Spot pork, wild boar, fresh vegetables, and fish.

Minehead has a mile of esplanade and mostly sandy beach, which becomes more pebbly at the harbour end. At the harbour there is an old stone pier, from which you may, if you wish, board one of the paddle steamers Balmoral or Waverley for your choice of a day, afternoon, or evening cruise along the Bristol Channel On these cruises you may visit such places as Ilfracombe, Lundy island, the Avon Gorge, or cruise along the rivers Avon, Severn and Wye. Local fishing trips are also available from this pier.

At the opposite end of the esplanade from the harbour is the Butlins holiday camp, where day visit tickets are available, allowing you to enjoy the activities on offer, such as the flumes in the sub-tropical waterworld, a traditional funfair and adventure playgrounds.

Minehead Railway Station is just across the road from the beach, at the end of The Avenue. It is the Northern terminal of the West Somerset Railway, which uses vintage steam and deisel engines and runs along the coast for 20 miles. Even if not travelling, you can go on to the quarter of a mile long platform here to take some photos of the
locomotives and have a look in the Buffer Stop Shop, which stocks specialist books, DVDs and magazines for railway enthusiasts, and a range of Hornby and Bachmann Railway sets and accessories for modellers.

They also sell warm clothing items, local interest books, videos, postcards, and postage stamps and many souvenir items, and for younger visitors there’s Thomas the Tank Engine merchandise The shop is open from 9:30am to 5:30pm on the days when trains are timetabled, and when no trains are timetabled the hours are Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 10:30am to 3:30pm. On the platform, Readers Halt second hand book stall has a wide range of second hand books, videos, cd’s and dvd’s, and the funds from the sale of these go to pay for the maintenance of Minehead Station, which is carried out by the Friends of Minehead Station.

The Turntable Café offers a good choice of hot or cold foods and snacks, with mugs of freshly made teas and coffees. Their food is locally sourced where possible and you can eat in or take food away. Toilet facilities for both able and disabled passengers as well as baby changing facilities are available on the station.

The Turntable was installed in the station in 2008. The locomotive, which can weigh 165 tonnes, has to be carefully balanced on a central pivot which can be manually rotated by just one man.

The Station is laid out in such a way that visitors can stand on all sides of the turntable to see how this is done, the benefit of having this turntable being that the station is able to turn and service incoming steam charter trains from the National Network, and send them back again.The Turntable is used on selected days, for instance, during special events and galas. A day ticket for the trains may be purchased at the station booking office and provides an excellent day out with no driving, as you hop on and off the train as often as you wish at any of the ten stations along the route.

From Minehead railway station, turn left across the car park to find the Minehead EYE, a youth and community centre, where the facilities include a multi-purpose hall with skatepark and BMX park, a modern cafe with a viewing balcony, internet IT suite with WIFI access, a pool table and table football. There are regular music events and special courses and activities are available. Under 16 year-olds need parental permission. The skate park is suitable for all levels of ability, from beginner to expert.

Part of what makes Minehead the ideal centre for a holiday is that from here buses run to many of the other towns you might wish to explore. Taunton or Dunster, to name just two, or there’s the open top bus service which runs along the coast, providing sweeping coastal and moorland views on the journey from Minehead to Lynton and Lynmouth, and in the summer on as far as Ilfracombe! To explore Exmoor there’s a an open top bus service on which you can see some of the moor’s most beautiful areas.

Minehead is also one of the best places to choose as the centre for a walking holiday. Walks from here include a 5 mile walk to Dunster, from where if you wished, you could come back on the train, or there’s the 3.5mile walk to Selworthy, or for something a bit longer, carry on from Selworthy to complete the 10 mile Minehead to Porlock Weir walk.

Another good walk is to the top of North Hill, which is a circular walk of approximately 4 miles and takes in some beautiful views and possible wildlife sightings, but it does involve some steep climbing in places.

Minehead is at one end of The South West Coast Path, which stretches 630 miles around the coast to as far as Poole Harbour in Dorset. The path begins on the quayside in Minehead and the start is marked by a huge sculpture of a pair of hands holding a map. Walking the entire distance would be a whole holiday in itself, but you can only imagine the scenery and wildlife that you might encounter!