Monday 26 July 2010

Exmoor Food Festival 2010

The Exmoor Food Festival is from Saturday 2nd October to Sunday 10th October this year. Everything's just being finalised now and the details should be on http://www.exmoorfoodfestival.co.uk/ very soon, with a brochure coming out shortly afterwards. There's always a great variety of events.

Here at Exmoor House we're doing our Exmoor Tasting Platter lunches again: you can choose from (for example) a selection of our lovely pates and terrines, plus some local cheeses, all served tapas-style with salad, our home-made pickles and breads. There'll be delicious puddings to follow, if you still have room. Our drinks list includes Somerset ciders (of course) and local beers; even some wines from Exmoor.

The tasting platters are served every day of the festival, from 12 to 2, at £9.50 a head; advance booking is essential. On one of the days you'll be able to take a guided walk from Wheddon Cross to work up a good appetite for lunch. More details of this in the next week or so!

Monday 19 July 2010

August special offer

In need of a break? Come and visit beautiful Exmoor National Park, staying in a characterful, award-winning village guesthouse, where everything's designed for maximum comfort, minimum fussiness. Spend a few days walking, exploring, cycling... or just relaxing... and enjoy some fabulous food that combines lovely local ingredients with expert cooking.

Sounds good? It gets better:
We've extended our summer special offer. Book 3 or more nights dinner, bed & breakfast, any weekend in July or August (except for the bank holiday weekend starting Friday 27th August) and pay the same price as the equivalent midweek break. So, for example, a three night stay starts from just £174 per person. This offer is only available for telephone bookings directly with us (see our website for contact details).

See you soon?

Monday 12 July 2010

Happening soon on Exmoor

One of the lovely things about Exmoor is that it never gets crowded (comes of being the 'least visited National Park', I suppose!). It's always very easy to escape, and a haven for walkers and cyclists. Of course, you might not wish to be that active. The whole point of your visit  may simply be to relax, potter around and enjoy some wonderful scenery - for which Exmoor is the perfect place.


However, there's always plenty going on, too. For example, here are just a few events coming up later this month:

Our village hall at Wheddon Cross - just a short walk from Exmoor House - plays host to the National Park's Exmoor Archaeology Forum on July 17th. Pre-booking is essential.


The Tornado, a modern steam locomotive, returns to the West Somerset Railway on July 12th to 16th (and September 13th to 17th).

At Wimbleball Lake, Lakefest 2010 (July 14th - 18th) features a great range of watersports and more.

Dunster Country Fair, at Dunster Castle, includes pony and dog shows, falconry displays and craft stalls. It's on July 28th.

There'll be orchestral and chamber music at a variety of venues during the Minehead and Exmoor Festival (July 25th - 31st).

Don't forget, at Exmoor House we've a July special break offer: more info on our website.

Monday 5 July 2010

Liz Jones vs Hope Bourne?

I was reading an article the other day which suggested that Liz Jones' book about living on Exmoor is still deterring some people from visiting the area. What a shame if that's the case! Exmoor has so much to offer - and is easily the friendliest place we've lived. We feel privileged to be here.

Now, I've read extracts from Liz J's book (which were, it has to be said, obviously chosen to suit the agenda of the articles in which they were quoted), and these were pretty negative about the area. But not having read the whole thing yet, I don't know whether she does get more positive. I read some of her 'Mail' columns during the time she was splitting up with her husband - brave of her to make public so much (wincingly too much) very personal information - but that's by the bye. Will have to read the book and report back!

But if you're looking for a completely different perspective, try what I'm reading now: Hope L Bourne's classic 'Wild Harvest'. It's a manifesto for self-sufficiency in which she shares her life philosophy and paints a loving, warts-and-all portrait of Exmoor in all its moods. I'd recommend her book 'Living on Exmoor' too. What a remarkable woman.