Exmoor Club: It’s your story

We are delighted to welcome Itsyourstory as a partner to Exmoor Club which will be launched next week with brilliant offers and deals across Exmoor.

IYS logo small

Itsyourstory, based in the Exmoor village of Selworthy, would be delighted to offer Exmoor Club members a 15% discount across its range of books, clothes and cards. The company sells high-quality photo-personalised gifts for children. There are over twenty books to choose from for children aged one up to ten, each incorporating the child’s face into the illustrations and weaving information about them into the storyline. Check out the popular Dressing Up Box books, where the child is transformed into different characters or the SuperSox book for budding Superheroes of the Fairy Girl book for all fairy lovers. Visit www.itsyourstory.co.uk to find out more.

Club Card holders please email info@itsyourstory.co.uk for your unique voucher code entitling you to a 15% discount (excluding postage).

Getting the Swing of it!

301 Exmoor Adventures RockClimbing Honeymoon

 

Congratulations to newlyweds Owen & Karen who enjoyed a morning of Rock Climbing with Exmoor Adventures whilst on Honeymoon on Exmoor, before the rain came down!

A Poser in the Garden

203 Nigel Hester Owl

 

This Tawny Owl regularly visits Nigel Hester’s garden on the NT Holnicote Estate.

 

Living on the Edge

102 Exmoor Adventures On the Rocks

 

If you’d like to experience the same view, then have a chat with Dan at Exmoor Adventures.

Girl Power

101 NT Arlington Court Girl Power

Meet Melody, Princess and Edwina who live at NT Arlington Court!

You can find out more about NT Arlington Court on their website:

Intriguing Regency house and impressive horse-drawn vehicles set in picturesque gardens

Arlington Court is an unexpected jewel on the edge of Exmoor, a complete family estate held by the Chichester family for over five hundred years. The collection consists of treasures for all tastes, from model ships to shells, all collected by the Chichesters’ over several generations. The house itself, built in 1823 and extended in 1860, has an austere facade. However, inside the cosy rooms give the house a homely, family atmosphere.

The Carriage Museum in the stables has a vehicle for every occasion from cradle to grave. Currently on loan from the Houses of Parliament is the Speaker’s State Coach, a glorious, gilded carriage with over 300 years of history.

Offering incident and contrast, the nineteenth-century formal garden is a perfect place to explore, picnic or play. The conservatory rebuilt in 2012 gives the garden a focal point and allows colourful and exotic planting. The walled kitchen garden provides fruit and vegetables for the tea-room and flowers for the house.

The tranquil estate with over 20 miles of footpaths is abundant with wildlife including an ancient heronry. Two species of bat roost in the cellars of the house whilst the bird hide is a quiet space to view nature at its best.

Keeping Arlington alive:

  • Jacob sheep and Red Devon cattle graze the estate and provide seasonal dishes for our menu

  • Our popular lake walk, just under two miles, tours the wider grounds including the man-made lake and bridge piers of an unfulfilled Victorian dream

  • Our stables are alive with carriage horses, giving the real smell and sound of working stables

  • Every visitor to the house is invited to ring the door bell, so they can be welcomed as a guest.

  • With our bat cam you can spy on the bats in our cellars and attics everyday

 

Dulverton Middle School get involved in bird monitoring as part of their Exmoor Curriculum

Ice Bells

209 Will Bowden Ice Bells

Hopefully the last icicles on Exmoor this spring…. Photo by Will Bowden

Highland Cattle at Lynton Cross

 

Photos by Tim Pryor

When the night falls….

The sun sets over the Valley of the Rocks. Photo by Will Bowden (www.exmoorcentre.co.uk)

The sun sets over the Valley of the Rocks. Photo by Will Bowden (www.exmoorcentre.co.uk)

Starry, starry night….

104 Dan James Dark Skies on Dunkery Beacon

Photo by Dan James

 

 

To find out more about stargazing on Exmoor and its status as First International Dark Sky Reserve in Europe, go to the Exmoor National Park Website. There you can read the fully story and find out where to hire a telescope to make Exmoor’s starry nights an unforgettable event:

Exmoor’s Dark Skies


Exmoor National Park has been designated the first International Dark Sky Reserve in Europe! Click here for the full story 

To help you get the most from Exmoor’s dark skies we have produced a new Dark Skies Pocket Guide   –  download it  here or pick up a copy from one of our National Park Centres.

Exmoor National Park is home to some of the darkest skies in the country so it’s a great place to gaze at the stars. Good spots are Holdstone Hill, County Gate, Brendon Two Gates, Webbers Post, Anstey Gate, Haddon Hill and Wimbleball Lake.

On a clear night the night sky of Exmoor is simply stunning when many astronomical sights can be seen through the naked eye and even more can be discovered through a telescope or binoculars.

Look out for events that will help you discover more! Our National Park Centres stock planispheres and guides to the night sky, whilst the BBC StarGazing Live website has audio guides and star charts to download to help you enjoy the night sky.

New for 2013 –  Why not hire a telescope to help you explore Exmoor amazing dark skies. Contact one of our National Park Centres to find out how.

Exmoor Astro-timelapse video by www.vfilms.co.uk.