Wild Hawkridge and Tarr Steps: An Exmoor Walk Through Wind, Rain and History
- Martin Hesp
- Jul 3
- 5 min read
Discover one of Exmoor's highest villages on a dramatic circular walk from Hawkridge to Tarr Steps, passing ancient woodland, legendary huntsmen and one of Britain's oldest clapper bridges.
"I will go to the highest, wildest, windiest place I know and I shall feel the sting of the rain upon my cheeks, rather than the tears of self-pity."
Into Exmoor's Wild Heart
Villages don't come much higher, wilder or windier than lonely Hawkridge, perched 900 feet up in the vastness of Exmoor's ancient Forest. If Heathcliffe hadn't haunted Bronte Country's Wuthering Heights, then this would have made an ideal location for his brooding shenanigans.
On a winter's day when the rain is coming off the Atlantic horizontally, nowhere is more grim. The car shook in the teeth of the gale that lashed its way down what passes for the hamlet's main street. My camera refused to raise itself off its lowest setting: a 30th of a second at an aperture of f2.8.
Darkness at midday.
"Oh Jesus," I thought, peering out at the squat black tower of St Giles hunched against the storm. "Do I really have to get out and walk?"
That was when I felt the shame of it. The wimpishness of a modern-day purveyor of words. You see, down the centuries Hawkridge has been famed for its tough hunting parsons, and I could feel them mocking me across that forlorn, windswept churchyard.
Parson Boyse, the Reverend Joseph Jekyll and my favourite—the mellifluously named Rev. D.S. Sweetapple-Horlock—not one of them would have given a toss about a full-blown blizzard, let alone a dampish gale.
Putting on my stiffest upper lip, I vacated the trembling car. Five minutes into the hike, I was damn well glad to be out of doors, breathing the finest, purest air in Europe, exciting the blood corpuscles in an ecstasy of activity and kicking the sleepy, but observant, parts of the brain into a rapture of countryside.
If you are enjoying this hike, take a look at some of our other Exmoor articles here
St Giles Church and Exmoor's Hunting Parsons
Almost at once I was stopped short by the bolted door of the church. It is a sad sign of the times when isolated temples such as this have to be locked against the long arm of crime.
Anyway, I did see the gravestone of Ernest Bawden—a man who most certainly would have shrugged off this little hurricane with the merest contempt. Ernest was a legendary huntsman who would sometimes ride with his hounds until long after the moon had ascended into cold Exmoor skies.
Whether you agree with the sport or not, there is something swashbuckling about the art of venery—or at least the way it was practised in days of yore. On one memorable occasion Bawden's hounds followed a stag over the sea cliffs at Culbone. They disappeared in the pale light of a new moon and the stag, together with a handful of hounds, were never seen again.
Each of the parsons mentioned above was crazy about hunting. Sweetapple-Horlock even used to attend sermons wearing riding boots beneath his cassock. It is therefore a little ironic that the church in this village of venery should be dedicated to the saint who saved a hind from hounds.
Walking from Hawkridge to Tarr Steps
A hundred metres to the left of the church gate, a lane leads north-west towards Hawkridge Cross. Follow it for about a minute until a footpath heads due north across the fields.
This section forms part of the Two Moors Way and skirts Hawkridge Common above the upper slopes of Great Cleave Wood.
After a while the woodland on your right becomes Row Down Wood, where the path reaches the end of a surfaced lane. A former RUPP continues downhill through the trees towards Penny Bridge, but I continued straight ahead through woodland to Parsonage Farm.
There are several paths here, but continue east around the hillside before descending across fields towards one of Exmoor's best-loved landmarks.
Tarr Steps: Exmoor's Ancient Clapper Bridge
I have written about Tarr Steps before, so let me simply remind you that this remarkable 180-foot-long, 17-span clapper bridge is widely believed to date from medieval times.
Occasionally floods carry away the enormous stone slabs—what the writer Richard Jefferies called the "stone planks"—but today each slab is carefully numbered so National Park workers can rebuild the bridge after major floods.
A Welcome Stop at Tarr Farm
Just across the bridge stands Tarr Farm, one of Exmoor's finest places to pause for refreshments.
On a winter's day the roaring log fire provides a glorious refuge from the Atlantic gales. While enjoying a bowl of soup you might reflect on the remarkable story of George Williams, born at nearby Ashway Farm, who went on to found the Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA).
Returning to Hawkridge
To complete the circular walk, cross back over Tarr Steps.
The surfaced lane—which enters the ford beside the bridge (do not attempt this in anything other than a four-wheel-drive vehicle, and avoid it altogether in winter)—heads south-west past Tarr Steps before rejoining the River Barle on its journey towards Penny Bridge.
Road and river curve gently south-east as the valley widens beneath Marshclose Hill.
This is one of the loveliest stretches of Exmoor National Park and, when open, riverside footpaths continue all the way to Dulverton.
Our own route, however, climbs steadily for about a mile back to Hawkridge.
It's a proper hill.
No matter. You return to the car with that delicious mixture of aching legs, rosy cheeks and complete contentment.
"I feel sorry for you lot," I crowed to my family when I returned.
"Here you are stuck in this stuffy cottage while I—father, husband and earner of crusts—have been out to wild Hawkridge to breathe the pure air of the hills."
They gave me a withering look.
Not for a single moment did they envy my adventure.
But I know that you, dear readers, are made of sterner stuff.
Walking Information
Hawkridge to Tarr Steps Circular Walk
Starting Point: Hawkridge, between Dulverton and Withypool
Distance: Approximately 4 miles (6.5 km)
Difficulty: Easy to moderate
Terrain:
Woodland paths
Moorland tracks
Some muddy sections after rain
One sustained climb back to Hawkridge
Highlights
Hawkridge village
St Giles Church
Hawkridge Common
Great Cleave Wood
Two Moors Way
Tarr Steps
River Barle
Tarr Farm
Map
Ordnance Survey Explorer OL9 – Exmoor National Park.
Before You Go
Walking boots are recommended.
Expect mud in winter.
Check weather forecasts before setting out.
Rivers can rise rapidly after heavy rain.
Please follow the Countryside Code and keep dogs under control around livestock.
