In Search of Wild Ponies

Yesterday, yes I'm a day behind, we left Dunster in...Minehead (?), and headed toward Cornwall. The place we stayed last night was situated right next the Yarn Market. In the Middle Ages, Dunster was a sort of a hub of wool trade. The Yarn Market building was built in 1609 by the family that lived in the local castle to promote and continue that trade in Dunster. It's sort of hard to understand looking at something from 400 years ago. It is stone and wood, and has held up remarkably well. We easily  were able to imagine tradesman in the different "stalls" with their yarn and products ready to trade.

This morning, the day of writing, I am exceedingly grateful to not be looking at "bacon".  Please, no lessons on piggery. I'm just saying, I'm a scone and clotted cream girl. 

We left the Minehead area and headed towards Exmoor National Park. Can you believe we found a park here, in another country? Of course you can. :) We did the same last year in Edmonton. #findyourpark

Anywho, Exmoor (pronounced Ex-mer), is situated on the Bristol Channel, and was a perfect day trip for us heading in the westerly direction towards Devon and Cornwall. Entering the park we were surrounded by moorland. Just so you don't have to look it up, a moorland is a habitat in the upland area, with lots of shrubs and grasses. We headed straight for Dunkery Beacon which is the highest point in Exmoor, about 1,700ft. I have no idea why it's a beacon. There was a stick, and a case on the ground with a solar panel, but honestly nothing else! There were great views of the surrounding land, although none of our pictures really show it. We did find evidence of the wild ponies though! 

Off in the distance we could see sheep, and then possibly a herd of ponies. Or cows. We weren't sure, but we decided to go see for ourselves. What's interesting about this National Park, and maybe others in the UK, is that it is not nationally owned. About 75% of the park land is privately owned, and 50% of that is agriculture. But you, as a visitor, are allowed access to the land.  Isn't that contrary to what we experience sometimes in the states where owning land is  big deal?  The park wasn't a park until the 1950s, and of course people had already settled by then, so there may have been concessions on both the part of the country and the private citizen, but it just seems nice and respectful now. I tell you all this because of the following: 

Sorry if the video is sketchy -- the WiFi is not real strong here...

We had quite a long discussion at the gate about what to do. Mom was sure, and she was right, that we could open the gate, drive through, and close the gate. I think she was also sure that she wasn't backing this English car back up the one land road. :)  Opening the gate seemed so wrong! We had the same experience 20 years ago biking a Roman road in central England. Opening a gate to someone's property and driving through... I'm sure you're thinking the same thing I was. And then I saw the dog. Deal breaker! We sat at the gate for a long time, but I did indeed open it, and none of the THREE dogs ate my ankles, and I closed it without issue. Whew!

And so on to the ponies. We had seen fur tufts, and plenty of pony poop, but had yet to see the ponies.  Luckily Mom spotted one out her window. It wasn't like Misty of Chincoteague or anything (I'm such a book nerd), but it was special to see these animals. They are a specific breed to the British Isle, and are classified as endangered, and semi-feral. I guess they are technically owned, but are allowed to roam free, and are not tagged and such.  They are very stocky, built like a donkey, but looked more like a horse, though not quite as tall.

Then we went on towards the Valley of the Rocks, which is the geological wonder of the park. On the way, we had very English type scenery. 

We stopped for lunch in Porlock -- sausage rolls and chutney. Yum!

And then, can  you believe it, more ponies!! Yay! These ones were right off the side of the road, so we pulled over, and sat and watched them for a while like tourists in Cannon Beach gawking at bunnies. ;) But, truly, there are apparently only about 800 of these left, and we saw about 15 of them today. 

Up until this point, we had enjoyed beautiful pastoral views, but had not experience the typical National Park awe. You know the one where you drive around the next corner, and then BAM!

This was a footpath that wound around tall sea cliffs, and ended with this amazing view. 

💕

And then we were on to Cornwall...almost. It's not a true National Park unless there is a stressful driving experience.   :) The road out was a one lane, two way road, with hairpin turns. Thank you Sir Robert.

The road did afford us one of the best views of the day, though our camera didn't come close to capturing the beauty.

And then we were off to Cornwall! Tomorrow I shall show you pictures of our Penrose Burden cottage.