This autumn, Exmoor National Park, the Quantocks AONB and The British Horse Society are launching the newly researched and re-vamped Exmoor Riding Routes. Covering some of the most breathtakingly beautiful countryside in the UK, these new circular routes - reaching across Exmoor and the Quantock Hills - will offer horse owners the opportunity to enjoy a horse holiday of a lifetime!

Exmoor National Park offers 265 square miles of some of the best riding in the UK – known as ‘the riding playground of England’. There are literally hundreds of miles of bridleways and forest tracks to discover and explore.

The Terrain
Exmoor offers varied and challenging terrain and is perfect riding country to invigorate and refresh your horse. Not only is there great scope to build fitness for both horse and rider, but Exmoor riding is the perfect tonic for myriad ‘behavioural’ problems – many a nappy, fed-up horse has rediscovered its zest for life after a spell on Exmoor.

You’ll find miles of open moorland, interconnected with large areas of idyllic forest tracks and woodland, picturesque river valleys and, just when you thought it couldn’t get better, the vista will open onto a stunning seascape.

The Wildlife
There is an abundance of wildlife on Exmoor – the herds of beautiful red deer can often be spotted when out riding, as can herds of wild Exmoor ponies. In October, it is the rutting period and a wonderful time to watch the magnificent stags with their gravity defying antlers. There are also some 240 species of birds, including buzzards and skylarks.

A Rider's Paradise
With a choice of peaceful forest tracks offering excellent going, wide open space for exhilarating gallops, meandering trails alongside flowing rivers and steams, wooded valleys for strengthening hill work and rolling pastureland for relaxing hacking – Exmoor is quite simply, a rider’s paradise.

The New 2005 Exmoor Riding Routes!
This year, it’s definitely going to get even better, as Exmoor National Park and The British Horse Society have been working hard to research, revamp and relaunch TWELVE fabulous circular riding routes on Exmoor and the Quantock Hills.

This spring, you’ll be able to read about the routes and the area here on www.equinetourism.co.uk and, you’ll be able to purchase the smart folder containing laminated route maps and information - which is being produced by Exmoor National Park and The British Horse Society.

Plan Your Perfect Horse Holiday on Exmoor
While you’re deciding which enticing trail to ride first, you can check out www.equinetourism.co.uk’s Exmoor Accommodation Providers and Horse Holiday sections, which offer a wide range of places to stay en-route.

Facilities range from comfortable stabling and turout for your horse to full livery establishments offering a week of tuition, partnership-building, adventurous escorted out-riding and training - who will even start your youngster or work through problems you are having with your horse. See Horse Holidays.

Photography (above right) by Sue Baker

The Equine Directory (listed on the Home page) will give you details of suppliers, services and businesses, so you can get everything you need while you’re here. And, why not take a trip to one of the many equestrian centres, cross country courses, try a JumpCross day – or book some instruction with one of the area’s many excellent instructors. Every area of equestrian discipline is catered for – from racing trainers, show jumping, dressage and eventing professionals – to natural horsemanship instructors and centres.

The Events and Shows section is full of the many activities, workshops, demos and talks taking place this year in Exmoor and the rest of the South West.

In short, when you bring your horse on holiday to Exmoor – you can have the holiday of your dreams, whether it’s an action-packed week full of adventure, tuition, discovery and training, or simply a well-earned relaxing break for you and your horse, enjoying some of the best scenery and outriding in the world.

There are some ‘watering holes’ for horses along the route, but other than at Simonsbath and Exford facilities for riders are not so plentiful. Riders are advised to take their own food and drink.

Points of Interest on Route 5...
• It is possible to start Ride 5 from either Simonsbath or Exford. However, it is worth noting that Ashcombe car park at Simonsbath is larger than the car park at Exford, and has public toilet facilities, including disabled toilets. There is also an information board providing you with details on Exmoor’s rights of way and bridleway network and new Open Access Land.

• Ashcombe car park is situated down a dirt track, on the right hand side past the church as you come into Simonsbath on the B3223 and B3224 from Dulverton and Exford respectively.

• Simonsbath itself is a quiet nineteenth-century village created by the Knight family, who bought the area from the Crown as part of the former Royal Forest of Exmoor. It is a popular starting point for walks and picnics along the River Barle.

• The route initially takes you up the B3223 a short way before heading off up onto farmland. As you climb up above the River Exe the farmland gives way to high open moorland and views of the distant hilly grasslands known as Exmoor Forest. The area is characterised by tussocks of purple moor-grass which turns white in the winter months.

• Skylarks are easily distinguished by their glorious song as they hover overhead, whilst meadow pipits can be easily seen flitting around in low vegetation.

• As you come off the moorland and begin your decent to Exford, you ride through an series of tunnel-like Beech Tree Hedgerows that over hang the road. This is a typical feature of many country lanes on Exmoor and impressive for the way in which they distort the light.

• At Hillhead Cross being on a horse is an advantage as you can see over the immediate bank out across beautiful rolling countryside.

• Exford is an attractive village set around a green. It acts as a service centre for central Exmoor and is a favourite riding location for locals and visitors alike. Being roughly half way round it is a great place for a lunch stop. Services and facilities here include, a choice of pubs and restaurants, tea rooms, shop, post office, newsagents, car park, garage, ENPA Local Information Point and accommodation.

• Travelling along some of the most peaceful country lanes on Exmoor, you come to Pennycombe Water where you will find a picturesque little ford and welcome refreshment for your horse.

• In the summer the moorland and farmland are alive with the sounds of grasshoppers and flitting butterflies. There are many wild flowers and plants to admire, including fox glove, heather and gorse and ????

• On an impressive natural knoll in the Barle valley are the remains of Cow Castle, an Iron Age hillfort, built between 2000 and 3000 years ago. The traces of the enclosing ramparts - an impressive bank and ditch - can still be traced around the hill.

Having completed your 16 mile ride, why not take a break and relax in Simonsbath. Services and facilities include a pub, tea rooms, shop, car park and toilets, 2 Exmoor National Park Authority (ENPA) Local Information Points and accommodation.

All you wanted to know about Beech trees...
Beech trees grow at greater altitudes on Exmoor than anywhere else in Britain. The country's highest beech wood is at Birch Cleave at Simonsbath, with trees growing up to 350 metres (1200 ft) above sea level. In hedgebanks they grow up to 490 metres (1500ft) above sea level.

Beech was one of the last trees to reach Britain after the Ice Age and before the English Channel was created. There is a debate as to whether it reached Exmoor on its own or was introduced. It seems to have been on the edge of Exmoor in prehistoric times and continuously since the Romans arrived but was mostly introduced in the 19th century. Anyway, this lowland tree seems particularly suited to the relatively mild climate of upland Exmoor.

West Somerset Bridleways Association Organised Picnic and Trail Rides...
Exmoor has some of the best riding in the country, if not the best. There are glorious views as you ride along paths through the heather. You will see few other people around as you cross abundant open moorland and streams where your horses can take a drink, and look about for red deer. This equestrian paradise is wonderful for both locals exercising their horses and for equine tourists who wish to ride across the moor from farm to pub or whatever.

The West Somerset Bridleways Association exists to try and ensure that the bridleways are all open and that new ones are established where the current network is deficient. The Association organises a dozen summer picnic rides to promote riding on the moor. Riders bring their own lunch, which is then transported from the meet to the lunch stop by the support/safety vehicle. The riders then ride across the moor for about 3 hours to the lunch spot, avoiding almost all roads and going through as few gates as possible. After lunch with wine, we ride back by a shorter route. The last picnic ride afternoon did not touch a road or go through a single gate in two hours of riding.

We also organise triangular 3-day rides, staying in B&Bs around the moor and covering about 20 miles a day, again with a support vehicle as back up and to carry the lunch. The third day of the 3-day ride does not go near a single inhabited house all day and barely touches a road. These 3 day rides have been over-subscribed and the last picnic ride was large enough to be split in two for the viewers and the canterers. Even the viewers though we moved on well. We have seen red deer on almost all of our rides and on the last one, several herds with stags were seen close by. We have also seen a merlin, buzzards and numerous other species of bird.

Why not come and ride with us next summer and appreciate the joys of riding on Exmoor yourself?

For more information contact: Chris Binnie, Chairman, West Somerset Bridleways Association on 01643 841212.
Please remember to mention equinetourims.co.uk

www.exmoor-nationalpark.gov.uk
Visit Exmoor website: www.visit-exmoor.info

Exmoor Pony section