Whemin one

Verified Slow Way

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A nice, short, but tough in parts route to finish the Saltash to Minehead trail.

Well marked and easy to follow on the app map. Probably the best marked route in all of the Slow Ways we took up from Saltash.

The route has a couple of sharp climbs not for the faint-hearted, and not accessible for wheeled users. At the moment there are forestry works going on im the woods above Wooton Courtney, and there are diversions as a result.

I’d like to know who managed to walk this 8 mile trail in 2hrs 2min! We are very fast walkers and we were more like 2hrs 20min. If you take into account the stiff climbs involved, averaging 4mph over this trail would require some running to make up the time, I’d say…

Take a minute to take in the view down to Minehead from the top of the wood outside Wooton Courtney. On a clear day like we had, you can see right up the coast to the North-East, and all the way over to Wales too. Stunning.

The walk starts at Wheddon Cross, the highest village on Exmoor at 300m above sea level. It has a shop (plus post office services and petrol station), pub, village hall and cattle market. The free car park has toilets and there is a very limited bus service from Minehead to Wheddon Cross (the 198 run by Atwest).
The walk starts by heading down the main road. Take care as it is a busy road with no pavement or verge. Thankfully you are only on it for a short distance. After the sharp bends take a path on the left signed to Dunkery then, at the bottom of the hill, go through a gate on the right signed Drapers Way. The path through the woods is lovely but can be very muddy. Keep an eye out for the painted blue squares and the path is easy to follow. Cross the path with the snowdrop sign (snowdrop Valley is nearby and worth a detour at the right time of year) and cross the minor road to follow the track to Ford Farm. There is a sign to avoid the farmyard. Go ~20m up the track then it is signed back right to rejoin the path behind the farm house. It is permitted to go through the farmyard but this felt more polite and was well signed and no extra effort.
Follow the blue painted squares steeply uphill. At the third field, officially the path is in the sunken lane next to the field but there were some fallen trees in that and the lane is not fenced off from the field so it was as easy to walk up the grass field edge.
At the top of the hill is a lovely stand of trees to rest and admire the view back to where you started across the valley. Continuing on the path divides – left to Porlock (signed Dunkery) and right to Minehead (signed Wootton Courtenay). Following the latter you cross a large grass field to the far right corner to pick up the rough track of Spangate lane. Follow this all the way to the minor road then another, even rougher, track signed Ford (Digland lane) is walked to another minor road where, immediately left, is a third rough track to the hamlet of Ford. Crossing the ford (there is a small stone footbridge) follow the minor road uphill out of the hamlet and, at the top of the hill, there is a path on the right signed Wootton Courtenay. This path crosses a couple of fields with stiles and dog passes (up to this point all the accesses have been via gates). At the playing fields the path is in the right hand far corner (it is easy to miss) and crosses a sunken lane to enter the village of Wootton Courtenay (village shop and post office)
Walking through the village ignore the first sign to Wootton Hill and Minehead and instead, pass the village stores and church and look out for a sign on the left just as you get to a bend in the road leaving the village.
There is then a very steep and long uphill section through the woods. There are lots of paths and forestry tracks here but keep following the yellow finger posts and painted squares to stay on the correct route. At the top of the hill follow signs for Dunster initially then pick up a Restricted Byway sign to Minehead. Follow this downhill to the road and a popular car park. Follow the road downhill and cross the busy A39 with care.
Immediately opposite is a footpath between houses to Hopcott close. At the bend in the road there is a footpath on the left through to Paganel Road. Directly opposite is a path signed Hopcott Path to Poundfield Road. Turn right on Poundfield Road and then turn left on Cher/Bampton Street and there is a pavement all the way into Minehead.
This is a lovely and well signed walk, mostly off roads, but does have some very steep up and downhill sections.

Lovely Exmoor edge walk, well signposted and easy to do by taking the splendid 198 bus from Minehead to Wheddon Cross. The paths are rocky in places, but the route is straightforward, with chances to spot red deer, and fine views over towards Dunkery Beacon.

A fine, typical Exmoor walk climbing two hills and descending into two valleys on the way. Pastures, bridleways, streams, pretty woodland north of Wheddon Cross and some forestry tracks. Many views around, including across to Dunkery Beacon to the west, and maybe some red deer leaping away.

Expect steep or long hill climbs and some rough stony bridleways. Mostly gate access with stiles on the footpaths around Wootton Courtenay.

For safety I would strongly recommend a short v-shaped detour into and out of Cutcombe using the lane and the Coleridge Way at the Wheddon Cross end to avoid using the main road as plotted on the map. It is curvy here and there is no footway or verge. Not great.

If walking towards Minehead it is easy to miss the post and little yellow sign for the small onward path up to the top of hill when you reach the first track crossing in the forestry north of Wootton Courtenay (at SS 943436 ish). It is tucked in a bit and you can’t see it on the approach. I got very confused the first time I came this way.

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