located_in_the_administrative_territorial_entity blackmoor gate
Blackmoor Gate , the western gateway to Exmoor ___MASK87___ , sits on the watershed between tributaries ___MASK59___ the rivers Yeo and Heddon nearly 305 m ( 1000 ft ) above sea level . It has long been a crossing ___MASK59___ tracks -- an ancient ridgeway following the former moorland ridge from the heights ___MASK59___ Exmoor down to the sea at Mortehoe . The road from Lynton to Barnstaple crosses here at a low point ___MASK59___ the ridge , as did the former Lynton & Barnstaple Railway . The former station is now ' The Old Station Inn ' - a licensed restaurant . Until the middle ___MASK59___ the 19th century , open moorland ran to the east ___MASK59___ the road between here and Parracombe with a gate onto the moor at this point . The name comes from that ___MASK59___ the Blackmore family who owned this and much more land elsewhere around Parracombe . R . D . Blackmore , author ___MASK59___ the famous Exmoor book Lorna Doone , stayed in the area during his childhood . His grandfather was rector ___MASK59___ Combe Martin . Exmoor is loosely defined as an area ___MASK59___ hilly open moorland in west Somerset and north ___MASK33___ in South West England . It is named after the River Exe , the source ___MASK59___ which is situated in the centre ___MASK59___ the area , two miles north - west ___MASK59___ Simonsbath . Exmoor is more precisely defined as the area ___MASK59___ the former ancient royal hunting forest , also called Exmoor , which was officially surveyed 1815  1818 as in extent . The moor has given its name to a National Park , which includes the Brendon Hills , the East Lyn Valley , the Vale ___MASK59___ Porlock and ___MASK59___ the Bristol Channel coast . The total area ___MASK59___ the Exmoor National Park is , ___MASK59___ which 71 % is in Somerset and 29 % in ___MASK33___ . ___MASK57___ is a county in ___MASK44___ West England which borders ___MASK58___ and ___MASK13___ to the north , Wiltshire to the east , ___MASK92___ to the south - east and ___MASK33___ to the south - west . It is bounded to the north and west by the Severn Estuary and the ___MASK13___ Channel , its coastline facing southeastern Wales . Its traditional border with ___MASK58___ is the River Avon . ___MASK57___ ' s county town is Taunton . The ___MASK13___ Channel is a major inlet in the island ___MASK59___ Great Britain , separating South Wales from ___MASK33___ and Somerset in South West England . It extends from the lower estuary ___MASK59___ the River Severn to the North Atlantic Ocean . It takes its name from the English city ___MASK59___ ___MASK13___ , and is over 30 miles ( 50 km ) across at its widest point . The ___MASK42___ Exe in ___MASK67___ rises at Exe Head , near the village ___MASK59___ Simonsbath , on Exmoor in Somerset , from the Bristol Channel coast , but flows more or less directly due south , so that most ___MASK59___ its length lies in ___MASK33___ . It flows for 60 miles ( 96 km ) and reaches the sea at a substantial ria , the Exe Estuary , on the south ( English Channel ) coast ___MASK59___ ___MASK33___ . Historically , its lowest bridging point was at Exeter , though there is now a viaduct for the M5 motorway about south ___MASK59___ the city centre . Moorland or moor is a type ___MASK59___ habitat found in upland areas in temperate grasslands , savannas , and shrublands and montane grasslands and shrublands biomes , characterised by low - growing vegetation on acidic soils . Moorland nowadays generally means uncultivated hill land ( such as Dartmoor in South West England ), but includes low - lying wetlands ( such as Sedgemoor , also South West England ). It is closely related to heath although experts disagree on precisely what distinguishes the types ___MASK59___ vegetation . Generally , moor refers to highland , high rainfall zones , whereas heath refers to lowland zones which are more likely to be the result ___MASK59___ human activity . Porlock is a coastal village in ___MASK57___ , ___MASK67___ , west ___MASK59___ Minehead . It has a population ___MASK59___ 1 , 440 . The Brendon Hills are a range ___MASK59___ hills in west Somerset , England . The hills merge level into the eastern side ___MASK59___ Exmoor and are included within the Exmoor National Park . The highest point ___MASK59___ the range is Lype Hill at above sea level with a secondary summit several kilometres to the southeast at . Both points are marked by Ordnance Survey trig points and are located within enclosed farmland . Early versions ___MASK59___ the name include " Brunedun " and " Brundon " reflecting an original name ___MASK59___ " Bruna " or " Brune ", meaning ' brown one '. " Dun " is a common Old English word for a fairly flat and extensive hill . This name is not connected with the village ___MASK59___ Brendon in ___MASK33___ , the name ___MASK59___ which has a different origin . ___MASK33___ ( archaically known as Devonshire ) is a county of England , reaching from the Bristol Channel in the north to the English Channel in the south . It is part of South West England , bounded by Cornwall to the west , Somerset to the northeast , and Dorset to the east . The City of Exeter is the county town ; seven other districts of East ___MASK33___ , Mid ___MASK33___ , North ___MASK33___ , South Hams , Teignbridge , Torridge , and West ___MASK33___ are under the jurisdiction of ___MASK33___ County Council ; Plymouth and Torbay are each a part of ___MASK33___ but administered as unitary authorities . Combined as a ceremonial county , ___MASK33___ ' s area is and its population is about 1 . 1 million . ___MASK44___ West England is one ___MASK59___ nine official regions ___MASK59___ England . It is the largest in area , covering and the counties ___MASK59___ Gloucestershire , Bristol , Wiltshire , Somerset , Dorset , ___MASK33___ and Cornwall , as well as the Isles ___MASK59___ Scilly . Five million people live in ___MASK44___ West England . Simonsbath ( pronounced " Simmonsbath ", with short i ) is a small village high on Exmoor in the English county ___MASK59___ Somerset . It is the principal settlement in the Exmoor civil parish , which is the largest and most sparsely populated civil parish on Exmoor , covering nearly but with a population , at the time ___MASK59___ the 2001 census , ___MASK59___ 203 in 78 households , reducing to 156 at the 2011 Census . The River Exe rises from a valley to the north , and the River Barle runs through the village and is crossed by a triple - arched medieval bridge that was extensively repaired after floods in 1952 .