Here are just a few events on Exmoor in 2010...
* Coming up soon (30th January to end of February) is Snowdrop Valley: don't miss it! We'll be opening our tearoom most days in February, and are offering our special breaks packages too - they're now even better value.
* If you're taking part in the half Ironman triathlon at Wimbleball Lake (20th June) then you should book your accommodation soon: it will sell out very quickly. Exmoor House is the ideal base; Wimbleball is easily accessible from here. We'll be doing a high-carbohydrate dinner for Ironman competitors - featuring our home-made pasta - on the evening before the event.
Exmoor House is also a great place to stay if you're doing a recce or practise before the event.
* The West Somerset Railway's Spring Steam Gala is on 20 & 21 & 25 to 28 March and will form part of the 'GWR 175' celebrations.
* The North Devon and Exmoor Walking Festival takes place from 29th April to 7th May. There'll be a range of fabulous (and varied) guided walks.
* This year's Golden Horseshoe endurance ride, which starts a few miles down the road at Exford, is from 16th-18th May.
At the moment it's very snowy here, with more forecast. It looks beautiful...
Friday, 8 January 2010
Saturday, 5 December 2009
Snowdrop Valley
Snowdrop Valley always used to be one of Exmoor's best-kept secrets; it's a bit more well known now. Definitely worth a visit - the snowdrops look wonderful. In 2010 the park & ride from Wheddon Cross will run from 30th January until 21st February. You can walk down to the valley too, of course, via a pretty winding path.
At Exmoor House we'll be opening our dining room as a tearoom most days during Snowdrop Valley time, from 11.00am to 3.00pm. We serve lovely homemade rolls with a choice of fillings, nice hot soup, cream teas, cakes and so on, and of course a good choice of hot and cold drinks (alcoholic and non-alcoholic).
We're usually open for dinner in the evenings, too - advance booking is essential for this.
And if you like the idea of a late winter break to see the snowdrops, just give us a call!
At Exmoor House we'll be opening our dining room as a tearoom most days during Snowdrop Valley time, from 11.00am to 3.00pm. We serve lovely homemade rolls with a choice of fillings, nice hot soup, cream teas, cakes and so on, and of course a good choice of hot and cold drinks (alcoholic and non-alcoholic).
We're usually open for dinner in the evenings, too - advance booking is essential for this.
And if you like the idea of a late winter break to see the snowdrops, just give us a call!
Friday, 20 November 2009
Red deer viewing on Exmoor
Some of our recent guests were very lucky to spend 2 hours watching a herd of red deer on the Exford side of Dunkery. 'Compulsive viewing!' they said. There were 2 stags, vying for the attention of about 20 hinds, and a 3rd stag who managed to abduct 2 of the females. As a bonus, our guests also saw Exmoor ponies.
We retraced their steps the other day, but alas the deer were nowhere to be seen. It was exceptionally windy, so they were probably sheltering in the combe. We did see ponies, though, now with their winter coats well growing in.
We walked into Stoke Pero, had a look round the tiny ancient church and got screamed at by the resident guinea-fowl at the nearby farm (better at raising the alarm than geese, I reckon!).
Sometimes people are surprised at how 'cultivated' parts of Exmoor are, as it doesn't maybe fit with their vision of a moor; but when you get up around Stoke Pero it's wilder countryside. Lovely for a bracing walk on a windy day, and all part of Exmoor's charm - we're so privileged to have such a fantastic variety of scenery on our doorstep.
We retraced their steps the other day, but alas the deer were nowhere to be seen. It was exceptionally windy, so they were probably sheltering in the combe. We did see ponies, though, now with their winter coats well growing in.
We walked into Stoke Pero, had a look round the tiny ancient church and got screamed at by the resident guinea-fowl at the nearby farm (better at raising the alarm than geese, I reckon!).
Sometimes people are surprised at how 'cultivated' parts of Exmoor are, as it doesn't maybe fit with their vision of a moor; but when you get up around Stoke Pero it's wilder countryside. Lovely for a bracing walk on a windy day, and all part of Exmoor's charm - we're so privileged to have such a fantastic variety of scenery on our doorstep.
Friday, 13 November 2009
Food intolerances and special diets
More and more people seem to be developing intolerances or allergies to more and more foods at the moment... with my complementary therapist hat on, I'm sure that there's a connection with the highly-processed diet, loaded with artificial additives, that has become so common.
At Exmoor House we try and cater for particular dietary requirements: vegetarian of course, and wheat-free/dairy-free diets for example (although, being out in the sticks, we do need a bit of notice to ensure we can get the right type of milk substitute, flour, etc, in). If you're coming to stay with us, please do let us know any strong dislikes in the food line too, so that we can plan accordingly - we really want the meals to be a highlight of your time here!
The other week, out of 10 guests staying with us, 5 couldn't eat wheat/gluten or dairy, and two couples had multiple allergies which meant we had to plan the menus very carefully indeed. This tested Frank's culinary ingenuity - it's good to be kept on your toes! - and we learnt some useful recipe variations (e.g. using coconut milk to make a white sauce).
Gluten-free baking involves slightly different techniques and we have had some things that didn't turn out as they should (concrete scones, anybody?) - but we've discovered some great recipes like a delicious carrot cake and a squidgy dark chocolate-almond cake... Maybe there needs to be another name for gluten-free bread, though, as it's not like 'real' bread in texture - more like crumpet, often. Not unpalatable, just different.
But as a friend of ours says: 'I think about what I can eat, rather than what I can't'.
At Exmoor House we try and cater for particular dietary requirements: vegetarian of course, and wheat-free/dairy-free diets for example (although, being out in the sticks, we do need a bit of notice to ensure we can get the right type of milk substitute, flour, etc, in). If you're coming to stay with us, please do let us know any strong dislikes in the food line too, so that we can plan accordingly - we really want the meals to be a highlight of your time here!
The other week, out of 10 guests staying with us, 5 couldn't eat wheat/gluten or dairy, and two couples had multiple allergies which meant we had to plan the menus very carefully indeed. This tested Frank's culinary ingenuity - it's good to be kept on your toes! - and we learnt some useful recipe variations (e.g. using coconut milk to make a white sauce).
Gluten-free baking involves slightly different techniques and we have had some things that didn't turn out as they should (concrete scones, anybody?) - but we've discovered some great recipes like a delicious carrot cake and a squidgy dark chocolate-almond cake... Maybe there needs to be another name for gluten-free bread, though, as it's not like 'real' bread in texture - more like crumpet, often. Not unpalatable, just different.
But as a friend of ours says: 'I think about what I can eat, rather than what I can't'.
Tuesday, 3 November 2009
Thinking about Christmas and New Year
Yes, it seems to be creeping up quite fast: it's November already, you know...
Have you decided what you're doing yet? How about a house party at Exmoor House? Over Christmas and New Year we're open solely for house parties.
The deal is that you get the whole place to yourselves for a stay of at least 2 nights, on a full board basis. We can take up to 12 people, in our 5 rooms (1 double, 3 double or twin, 1 family room sleeping up to 4).
It's a great opportunity to spend some quality time with family and/or friends, just eating, drinking, chatting by the fire, taking a stroll in the fabulous Exmoor countryside if you feel like it. A real escape, and totally relaxing.
We'll tailor-make a package for you - so prices will vary - depending on what you'd like in the way of food. A traditional turkey & Christmas pudding type feast with the Exmoor House touch? A sumptuous buffet? Something a bit different (a selection of delicious curries perhaps) - or all of the above?
If you're tempted, do get in touch with us to discuss. In order to plan everything, we'd need to have bookings confirmed before the end of this month.
Have you decided what you're doing yet? How about a house party at Exmoor House? Over Christmas and New Year we're open solely for house parties.
The deal is that you get the whole place to yourselves for a stay of at least 2 nights, on a full board basis. We can take up to 12 people, in our 5 rooms (1 double, 3 double or twin, 1 family room sleeping up to 4).
It's a great opportunity to spend some quality time with family and/or friends, just eating, drinking, chatting by the fire, taking a stroll in the fabulous Exmoor countryside if you feel like it. A real escape, and totally relaxing.
We'll tailor-make a package for you - so prices will vary - depending on what you'd like in the way of food. A traditional turkey & Christmas pudding type feast with the Exmoor House touch? A sumptuous buffet? Something a bit different (a selection of delicious curries perhaps) - or all of the above?
If you're tempted, do get in touch with us to discuss. In order to plan everything, we'd need to have bookings confirmed before the end of this month.
Friday, 23 October 2009
Walking from Exmoor House: some of our favourite walks
We've discovered some great walks from our door over the last year or so. The most well-known is up to Dunkery Beacon and back, which you can do several different ways (e.g. via Luckwell Bridge or Snowdrop Valley) and make into a very long walk if you want to. On a clear day, the views from Dunkery Hill are absolutely stunning.
Some of our other favourites are to follow part of the Coleridge Way towards Luxborough, then turn off for a different route back to Wheddon Cross. Or you can walk through Cutcombe, then cut across the fields to East Wood, go down to Sully's Corner and back via Putham Lane.
The autumn colours are coming along nicely now so the woods are looking wonderful.
Many of the footpaths and bridleways follow old sunken lanes and former drover's roads - amazing to think that centuries ago these would have been the equivalent of motorways.
Some of our other favourites are to follow part of the Coleridge Way towards Luxborough, then turn off for a different route back to Wheddon Cross. Or you can walk through Cutcombe, then cut across the fields to East Wood, go down to Sully's Corner and back via Putham Lane.
The autumn colours are coming along nicely now so the woods are looking wonderful.
Many of the footpaths and bridleways follow old sunken lanes and former drover's roads - amazing to think that centuries ago these would have been the equivalent of motorways.
Friday, 16 October 2009
Food Fest a great success
The Exmoor Food Festival went really well this year, by all accounts. We certainly had a good number of people in to try our lunchtime tasting platters. Definitely worth doing again in 2010. We might do something similar to the tasting platters - somebody suggested we have tasters of puddings too - or maybe we'll have something different. We'll be promoting it here and on our website, as well as in our newsletter and via the Festival publications, of course.
If you thought about coming over for lunch but didn't make it, do remember that we can usually provide lunches for groups of 4 or more people, when booked at least 48 hours in advance (menu to suit - we'll discuss your requirements with you). And we're open most evenings for dinner - again, booking is essential.
If you thought about coming over for lunch but didn't make it, do remember that we can usually provide lunches for groups of 4 or more people, when booked at least 48 hours in advance (menu to suit - we'll discuss your requirements with you). And we're open most evenings for dinner - again, booking is essential.
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