Wigtwizzle - Norman Smith's Travel Blog.: November 2025

Webbers Poat and Dunkerly Beacon

Dunkery Beacon at the summit of Dunkery Hill is the highest point on Exmoor. It is also the highest point in southern England outside of Dartmoor. There has been some debate about the origin of the name "Dunkery" and its predecessors "Duncrey" and "Dunnecray". It has been suggested that it comes from the Welsh din meaning hillfort and creic or creag meaning rock

The sandstone hill rises to 519 metres and provides views over the surrounding moorland, the Bristol Channel and, reportedly hills up to 86 miles away which I presume refers to The Brecon Beacons in Wales and The Malvern Hills.

If you walk up from Horner Woods, I should imagine it is a pretty tough walk but there are a number of car parks high on the moors which make a visit very easy. The gradient doesn't get much steeper than in the first two photos. Due to my walking problems, I had to let Sal go up on her own whilst I went and discovered the delights of the Webbers Post area of Horner Plantation. I then met up with her back at the main Horner Woods car park and she was pretty shattered.

No visit to Horner Woods would be complete without a visit to the cafe and enclosed garden and we duly called in before heading off to Dunkery Hill. One of the nicest days of our holiday.

Path to Dunkery Beacon

Exmoor

Above Horner Woods

Webbers Post Signpost

Above Horner Woods

Lane to Horner Vilage

Horner Woods

Luccombe Plantation

Horner Plantation

Exmoor Ponies

From the times of Woolly Mammoths and Sabre Tooth Tigres, ponies existed in the UK. Originally, ponies were well distributed across the land. However, around 10,000 years ago, environmental and other changes resulted in ponies moving to the hills and moors. People started to tame and domesticate them, introducing new bloodlines to their liking. However, Exmoor remained well off the beaten path until relatively recent times. This preserved their ancient lineage, hence reference to the Exmoor Pony as one of the oldest known breeds.

Numbers of Exmoor ponies dwindled to almost nothing around the time of the second world war. During this time, troops used Exmoor as a training ground. Stolen for their meat and ready target practice for soldiers, as few as 50 ponies survived the war. Following the war, a small group of breeders made efforts to preserve the population. Exmoor ponies increased in popularity, with small herds established in various parts of England, even exported to the US and Canada. Presently, although numbers have increased, they are given “endangered” status by the Rare Breeds Survival Trust. This indicates estimated numbers at less than 500 in the UK.

It is always a special moment when you come across them on the moors. These photos were taken on the moors above Tarr Steps and on Bossington Hill which overlooks the Bristol Channel and is about five miles out of Minehead in Somerset. Bossington Hill offers a fantastic view down the South Somerset/North Devon coastline and is renowned for its sunsets.

Moorland Magic

I had visited this moor on the outskirts of Bradford a few times but never in summer when the heather was in bloom. I do think I caught the back end of it with this visit, maybe I should have gone there a few weeks earlier. Even so, it was still spectacular. The sun played ball and me; eventually making an appearance which really made the colours pop.

The varid history of Harden Moor goes back to the Bronze Age and this is evidenced by the cairns on the moor which can date from anywhere between 2000-700BC and are examples of Bronze Age burial mounds. The moor originally started at Bingley and spread as far as Cullingworth and included St Ives Estate. The Brigantes, who occupied the territory before the Roman invasion, used a gritstone outcrop that overlooks Bingley as an altar in what is believed to be a form of Druidism. Cup and also ringlet marks have been found carved in Altar Rock (also popularly known as Druid's Altar). Also, due to finds of coins and other artifacts, it is believed that the Jacobite army of 1745 passed over Harden Moor in November of that year en route to Preston. As with other neighbouring moorlands, Harden Moor was used for military training during the Second World War. Empty shell casings and tail fins from mortar rounds have been found scattered across these moors.

Quarrying has been prominent on the western edge of what is now Harden Moor for over 300 years, with many of the quarrymen residing in the nearby hamlet of Ryecroft. The sandstone from these quarries (Yeadonian, which is rough rock and rough rock flags) was used to construct the iconic buildings in Saltaire and other local towns and villages. That is the area where all the photos were taken and you can see the remains of the quarries in them.

Many tracks and bridleways cross the moors which makes it very popular with walkers and horse riders. A few years ago I did hear a cuckoo on the moors.