Come
to Minehead for Sun, Sea, Sand and Moor, Exmoor Minehead
in Somerset is superbly positioned for a variety of family
holidays. Whether you are looking for an active time with
plenty of exercise, a peaceful and relaxing time on the
seaside or visits to sites of historical interest, Minehead
can offer all you could possibly want.
Within the area
around Minehead you can enjoy including:
Exmoor, a beautiful and wild area offering superb walking,
bird-watching, cycling and pony-trekking. Exmoor has
a great range of environments from open heather hills
to quiet wooded valleys. Close to Minehead is Exmoor's
highest point, Dunkery Beacon, and not far away is the
famous Doone Country, immortalised by R D Blackmore
in Lorna Doone. Many Red Deer are to be seen as well
as the tough and shaggy Exmoor ponies. One of the best
ways to enjoy Exmoor is on horseback; there are many
pony-trekking centres in the area with well-trained
horses and professional leaders.
The
West Somerset Steam Railway with its nine old-time stations
will take you on a journey of pure nostalgia ; along
the coast, past Watchet harbour and Blue Anchor Bay
then through the Quantock Hills to Bishop's Lydeard.
Dunster Castle,
only 2 miles from Minehead, is a stunning example of
a fortified castle. It is open to visitors and contains
many superb exhibits from its exciting history.
The village of Dunster
is rightly famous for its many fascinating features
such as the Yarn Market, the Doll's Museum, the Nunnery
and the magnificent rood screen in St George's Church.
Some visitors even go to Dunster just to experience
the range and quality of its tea-shops.
Porlock village,
5 miles to the west of Minehead, has found its own place
in history in the phrase 'a person from Porlock'. The
story is told that Samuel Taylor Coleridge once woke
up with a complete poem clear in his head. He started
to write it down "In Xanadu did Kublai Khan a stately
pleasure-dome decree....". He had written about
50 lines when there was a knock on the door and a person
from Porlock called about some minor matter. When the
man had gone Coleridge sat down to write the rest of
the poem but couldn't remember it, which is why this
great work remained unfinished.
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