The Exmoor National Park straddles West Somerset and North Devon, stretching from the North Devon Coast, near Ilfracombe, towards the Quantock Hills - creating a vibrant collection of varied and inspiring landscapes, punctuated by delightful villages and hamlets. The Exmoor National Park encompasses over 265 square miles of coastal land, hills, moors and woods, which provides excellent hiking opportunities across wild landscape and among the stone circles and ruins of ancient inhabitants.

The park lies on top of a huge sandstone plateau split by deep 'coombes', or wooden valleys, creating some of the most varied and beautiful scenery in England. This is an area where you can enjoy peaceful, open spaces, clean air, heather-clad moors, ancient forests, deep valleys, sparkling rivers, dramatic coastline, pretty villages and towns and a friendly welcome. The unique and rare breed of Exmoor pony and large herds of red deer freely roam the area. In the sky, you will invariably see buzzards soaring overhead and in the evening you can stalk deer, watch bats or seek out badgers at sunset.

The moors contain large deposits of peat, which form bogs due to the high rainfall. Mist and fog can descend very quickly in Exmoor, so a compass is a must for walkers. The peat moors give way to heather uplands, replete with a variety of grasses and plants, such as gorse and whortleberry.

Large portions of Exmoor are controlled by the National Trust, notably the Holnicote estate, containing Dunkerry Beacon, the highest point in Exmoor. The National Trust maintaining over 100 miles of walking paths within this vast (12, 500 acres) estate, alone. The Trust publishes a leaflet detailing 14 walks around Dunkerry. Pretty villages dot the Park, such as Dunster and Selworthy, a favourite of postcard and calendar photographers.