A feast for all at the Exmoor Food Festival 08

THE Exmoor Food Festival, an eight-day extravaganza to celebrate the area’s finest local food, starts on Saturday with the Porlock Tea Party and a produce market at Dulverton Carnival.
On Sunday, television wildlife celebrity Johnny Kingdom will be launching the Lyn Food Fest, a day devoted to sampling the great tastes of the moors.
During the festival, visitors can treat themselves to stunning views over Porlock Weir and equally stunning local produce at Andrews on the Weir.
They can relax and enjoy a pamper treatment as well as fine farmhouse fare at Hindon Organic Farm, and they can enjoy tasty treats cooked up by Minehead café Cream with fresh produce straight from Minehead Farmers’ Market.
Or, visitors can glean top tips from the chef at Dunster’s Yarn Market Hotel to take home and try in their own kitchens.
There is an opportunity to learn how to catch and cook wild food at Wimbleball, or to try Morrocan evenings in Minehead, or sample a mouth-watering meal from the award-winning Hidden Valley of the Pigs, in Barbrook, followed by an amble to see the animals at Alta Lyn Alpacas.
The food festival should include something on the menu for anybody’s taste.
Festival organiser Naomi Griffith said: “There is a great variety of venues and events across Exmoor during the festival.
“People can talk to local food producers to get the inside story on what makes Exmoor’s food the best in the world.
“We specialise in fresh local produce from the moors which has been beautifully cooked and presented.
“Customers return year after year and are always delighted to find something new and exciting on the menu.
“Dulverton Carnival, farmers markets, food fayres, and a feast of events across Exmoor make this festival must for food fans across the South West.”
The food festival runs from October 4 to 12, and programmes are available at Tourist Information Centres and at www.exmoorevents.co.uk, or by calling 01643 821425.

• Our photographs show (TOP) Keith Wicks, of the Whortleberry Tea Room, in Porlock, (MIDDLE) celebrity guest Johnny Kingdom, and (BOTTOM) a sample dish from the festival. Photos submitted.

Council offers exclusive 'walk on the wild side' for Exmoor visitors

AN exclusive weekend getaway for people wishing to ‘walk on the wild side’ is being launched on Exmoor.
Visitors will experience a red deer and Exmoor pony safari led by the National Trust, and can also enjoy an otter and bird walk in the stunning scenery of Hawkridge with the Somerset Wildlife Trust.
Exmoor National Park will lead a bee and butterfly walk over the moors, while Porlock’s unique coastal and inland flora and fauna will be explored with former park ranger Brian Pearce.
Blue Motor’s vintage Exmoor coach will transport visitors to the locations.
The weekend break is being organised by Porlock Tourist Association and Exmoor Events, and numbers are limited to 30 places.
Visitors are offered a choice of bed and breakfast accommodation in the stunning Vale of Porlock.
Lunches at the Lorna Doone Hotel and at the Anchor Hotel, overlooking picturesque Porlock Weir, are programmed into the action-packed weekend and included in the price.
In the evening, the Home Cook will be serving a three-course meal made from delicious local produce.
Exmoor Events organiser Jill Homewood said: “This is a fantastic, one-off opportunity to for people to experience many aspects of Exmoor and its wildlife.
“The walks and safari are led by experts so it is a great chance for people to learn what makes Exmoor so special.
“Places are strictly limited, so we are advising people to book early.”
The weekend break starts with guests arriving on Friday, July 4, and staying until Sunday, July 6.
The break, including all events, costs £195 per person. Accommodation is allocated on first-come, first-served basis.
To book, contact Porlock Visitor Centre on 01643 863150 or email porlockci@somerset.gov.uk.
For more information visit www.porlock.co.uk.
The new initiative to promote Exmoor has received financial support from Exmoor National Park’s sustainable development fund, provided by DEFRA and SWRDA.
It was organised by in conjunction with the Exmoor Events project, which is funded by the West Somerset Strategic Partnership and supported by West Somerset Council.

• Our photographs show (TOP) an Exmoor pony overlooking Bossington Bay, at Porlock, (MIDDLE) a view of Porlock Weir, (BOTTOM) a group of young red deer stags and hinds. Photos submitted.

F1 chance for karting champ Beresford

WEST Somerset kart racer Beresford Mandley (pictured, centre) is to compete in a race of champions at Wembley Stadium for the title of BP’s Ultimate Karter.
Beresford received confirmation this week that he had set a fastest lap time at a qualifying event held at Team-Sport, in Cardiff, which was a new track record of 27.145 seconds.
Thousands of drivers have been taking part at 20 participating tracks around the UK and those with the fastest lap times qualify for the Wembley final later this year.
Beresford and several members of the Somerset Karting Club, which he co-founded, had travelled to various venues in the hope in setting the fastest lap times, but he was the only one to do so.
Beresford, who is 2006-07 National Karting Association Champion, is currently looking for local businesses and motor sport enthusiasts to be a part of a two-year sponsorship deal to help him compete in the Formula 100 series and in more British championships.
Due to lack of sponsors last year, he was unable to raise the £2,500 funding which was needed to compete in that series.
Beresford funds most of his karting activities himself, but previous sponsors Andrew and Sarah Dixon, of Andrews on the Weir, at Porlock Weir, came to his rescue with a sponsorship boost which enabled him to qualify for major competitions such as the BP Ultimate Karter, where he can prove his racing abilities.
He is also waiting for confirmation of a qualifying lap time set in January, which is a competition to find the next F1 star.
Event management company So World Ltd, the Daily Star newspaper, and broadcasters Channel 5 have come together to organise this 12-round championship, starting with karts up to Formula One.
The final two drivers will battle it out in an F1 car to see who will win a contract with a recognised racing team.
The Somerset Karting Club has been operating for more than a year with more than 40 members aged 16 to 80 who can enter the Somerset Karting Club Super series.
Prizes will be awarded for overall series champion, best newcomer, most improved member, best female driver of the year, and the brand new weight classes.
Membership is free and members can learn new driving techniques, race craft, and find their own driving abilities in a safe environment.
Depending on interest from younger members, there could be a juniors’ championship set up for ages eight to16 years.
More information can be found at www.somersetkartingclub.co.uk.

Exmoor village's Pubwatch scheme aims to tackle troublemakers

LICENSEES in Porlock are working closely with local police to help make the village a safer place.
Seven public houses in and around the village have signed up to a Pubwatch scheme which will help police to deal with those involved in anti-social behaviour and drink-related crime.
Anybody involved in violence, criminal damage, or causing alarm and harassment to other pub-goers, will face a six-month ban from all of the venues.
And any assaults on licensees or staff will see them banned for life from all the premises.
The move comes nearly a month after an outbreak of violence and assaults in the otherwise sleepy village which have all been linked by residents to one particular ‘problem’ family.
Police are continuing with an investigation into the New Year troubles, which included an early evening incident where a gang of hammer-wielding youths smashed every High Street window of the Ship Inn while customers were eating and drinking inside.
Sgt Andy Whysall, who heads the Dulverton area’s ‘Safer, Stronger Neighbourhood Team’, said: “Porlock is a picturesque village on Exmoor, where the local residents enjoy a peaceful way of life - we want to keep it that way.
“If somebody is ejected from one pub for being a nuisance, they will be banned from there for the night, the other premises will be informed, and that person may find themselves banned from all the venues in the village for the rest of the evening.
“Persistent troublemakers face being banned from every local pub for at least six months, something we hope will make people reform their behaviour.
“This is another example of the local community working together in partnership with the police to build a safer, stronger neighbourhood.”
The scheme includes the Royal Oak, the Lorna Doone Hotel, Castle Hotel, Ship Inn, Anchor Hotel, and the Ship Inn, at Porlock Weir, and the Culbone Inn, at Oare.
Pubwatch and the ‘banned from one, banned from all’ scheme has already been introduced successfully in many towns and large villages across the Avon and Somerset Police area.

• Our photograph shows the Lorna Doone Hotel, in Porlock, which is one of the premises taking part in the Pubwatch scheme. Photo submitted.