Exmoor National Park upholds excellent Rights of Way record

The surveys are carried out by volunteers, following nationally agreed criteria showed that, for the 10th year in a row, Exmoor National Park Authority’s (ENPA) Rights of Way and Public Access team have either met or exceeded a 90 percent score.

Dan Barnett, Access and Recreation Manager for the National Park Authority says: “This is a great effort by our team. Our Rangers and Field Services Team have been working hard to uphold our high rating and the result shows this, despite challenges faced in the last few years.  We know things aren't all perfect and keeping up with vegetation cutting this year has been especially difficult, but we are working hard to find new ways of doing things and keeping standards high.
We are also very grateful to our fantastic volunteers, who help us to survey the paths, report back an issues and help out in practical ways too. Our rights of way network is one of the special features of Exmoor and is key to unlocking the immense potential for outdoor recreation within the National Park.  Along with our Access Land and permitted access, it offers unrivalled access on foot, horseback or bicycle for everyone to enjoy.”
The public rights of way network is managed and maintained by Exmoor National Park Authority, which has delegated powers from Devon and Somerset County Councils. This means that most maintenance duties, signing and surface repairs are undertaken by Exmoor National Park Authority.
The Exmoor National Park Field Services Team, who look after 1000km of public paths and bridleways across Exmoor, also locally make gates, stiles and iconic signposts seen across Exmoor, from wood grown and processed at Exford depot in its own tree nursery and local timber operation.

In ENPA’s 70th anniversary year there have been some notable further improvements to the Exmoor public right of way network including:

Enhancements to six popular Devon and Somerset sections along 36 miles of Exmoor South West Coast Path as part of the King Charles III England Coast Path. Walkers can now enjoy revived ancient paths and more scenic views following the coastline more closely between Minehead and Combe Martin, at spots such as ‘Hurlstone Point’, Cobbler’s Park, ‘North Hill’ and ‘Glenthorne’.

The construction of Great Bradley Bridge Due for completion by October 2024 in time for Exmoor Day and ENPA’s official birthday, the Great Bradley Bridge crossing the river Barle will provide a secure, sustainable route along the Two Moors Way between Tarr Steps and Withypool. It will also offer better protection to local wildlife and offer a boost to tourism in the area.
For more info on the Great Bradley Bridge project 
More advice and information on the huge range of walks to enjoy on Exmoor

Accessibility Improvements
Using special ‘Access for All’ funding from DEFRA we are completing a variety of improvements to assist people with a disability to get the most from our public path network including better information and improvements to surfaces and gates in some locations.