Looking east along the coast from Porlock Weir.

Porlock Vale has some of the most amazing landscapes of the Exmoor National Park. It stretches from Dunkery Beacon, to the shoreline on the Bristol Channel in one direction, and between Bossington Hill, to the east, and Porlock Hill to the west.

Dunkery Beacon is four miles inland from the sea, and is the highest point on Dunkery Hill, the whole of which turns a deep purple colour with heather each summer. There is a footpath to the top from which you have spectacular views. Some areas are wooded and you may see wildlife that includes Exmoor ponies, red deer, and birds such as skylarks, snipe, woodpeckers, to name only a few. Near to the summit there are also several Bronze Age burial mounds.

Nearby, Horner Woods has many ancient varieties of trees and several UK bat species, including barbastelle and Bechstein’s bats and is recognised as an important wildlife location, as is Porlock Marsh, a flooded, lagoon-like area behind the shingle bank which runs the length of Porlock Bay. This marsh area is home to some rare plants and attracts many types of sea birds, occasional visitors being Little Egrets, Spoonbill, Hen and Marsh Harrier, Osprey and Snow Buntings, among others. A memorial has been erected on the marsh, commemorating the American airman killed when a B24D liberator bomber crashed here on 29th October 1942. Also near to Porlock, Hawkcombe Woods, a National Nature Reserve, is another of the most ancient examples of English woodland. It is an important habitat of heath fritillary butterflies, red wood ant colonies, dead wood invertebrates, many kinds of mosses, and fungi, and 182 species of lichen. These three areas, Horner Woods, Porlock Marsh and Hawkcombe Woods are part of the North Exmoor Site of Special Scientific Interest.

Sheltered by the hills on each side, Porlock Bay enjoys warm and gentle climate and offers a range of holiday accommodation including Exmoor cottages, hotels, stays in farmhouses, or camping and caravanning sites, and is the perfect place to stay if you want to walk or ride on Exmoor. Whether you bring your own bike or hire one, there are miles of trails to cycle or walk on Exmoor

Regular shoots are organised close to the village by the National Trust and others, or, if you prefer to fish, Porlock offers sea fishing from the Weir, while for inland fishing there are the reservoirs and rivers of Exmoor within a short drive. There are, as well, several golf courses on the edges of Exmoor, the closest one being 7 miles away

The actual village of Porlock is some way inland from the sea, on the A39, and has a long history of previous settlement. Stone age remains have been found a short distance away. The High Street has a variety of shops to supply most needs, and plenty of pubs, restaurants and pasty shops. Porlock Visitor Centre is reputed to be one of the friendliest and most helpful Visitor Centres in the South West and they are happy to help visitors to find out about
walking, cycling, or whatever type of pursuit they are looking for in the area. Also in the visitor’s centre there is a reconstruction of The Porlock Aurochs (Bos primigenius), the extinct species of cattle which are the ancestors of nearly all present day domestic cattle. Some bones of these cattle were found in silt layers that were exposed after storms in 1996 moved the shingle ridge along Porlock Bay. Dating from about 1500BC, just the pelvis, a few ribs and some of the backbone had survived from what is thought to be a ten-year old bull. In August, 2002, a model of an aurochs was built by local people and holiday makers, under the guidance of Wendy Dacre, who specialises in Highly Unusual Giant, Enterprises (HUGE), and the resulting reconstruction was part of the Porlock carnival in September that year.

Along the village street colour-washed houses make for a picturesque setting, and there’s plenty of parking space in the three car parks. If you follow signs to the shore they bring you to a footpath which runs alongside open fields looking across to the bay, and once you reach porlock Marsh you can follow the South West Coast Path towards Porlock Weir, 1.5 miles west of Porlock.

Porlock Weir is a small and very pretty harbour area around which are clustered the old stone buildings and thatched cottages of the village. Behind the beach of large pebbles there is ample parking if you’ve chosen to drive here from Porlock, and you’ll find a couple of good hotels and the 15th century Ship Inn to offer refreshment. Also there are a small and varied number shops selling Exmoor glass among other things, and the aquarium adds even more interest

Behind the shops and the Anchor Hotel is a steep path upwards, which at first passes through some open fields with a good view of Porlock Bay but then most of the way is through Culbone Wood. Part of the path is along a very short stretch of the Porlock to Worthy Road with some steep sections that have steps, but it is basically an easy walk, and leads to Culbone and St. Beuno’s. This is smallest church in England’s still to hold services. Only accessible on foot and two miles from Porlock Weir, The church is a tiny 35ft long, but it has a grassy churchyard and a yew tree, all surrounded by a hedge. The main structure dates back to the 12th century, but records show that the site has been in use at least since 430 AD and there has probably been a church on the site since around 635 AD.

When leaving Porlock to continue on your travels you have a choice of routes. One is along the stretch of the A39 known as Porlock Hill, which is very steep with a gradient of 1 in 4 and has several hairpin bends, just to add to the excitement. The other way is to take the much less steep, 1 in14, toll road which was built in the 1840s to provide an alternative and less steep climb. This route twists its way through woodland to the toll house, where a modest fee is charged, and then as the trees thin out you have a wonderful view of the coastline below before the road continues, through open moorland covered in heather and gorse, towards Lynton. Because of it’s gentler incline, walkers and cyclists also use this road to enjoy the panoramic views and take advantage of the stopping places and the picnic area.