Parracombe

The redundant Church of St Petroc is notable for its marvellously unspoilt interior, complete with 15th-century benches, 17th-century box pews, a Georgian pulpit and a perfectly preserved musician’s gallery. Perhaps most striking of all is the unique gated screen between the chancel and the nave, which bears a huge tympanum painted with the royal arms, the Lord’s Prayer, the Creed and the Ten Commandments. We owe the church’s survival to John Ruskin who led the protests against its intended demolition in 1879 after another church was built lower down the hill.

To the north of Parracombe is Woody Bay Station, the operating base for the Lynton & Barnstaple Railway, which offers a mile-long journey across Exmoor in trains drawn by vintage steam locomotives. The trip opens up grand views of the moor, the Bristol Channel and South Wales. There are ambitious plans to extend the line southwards via Parracombe to Wistlandpound and northwards for four miles to Lynton.