Holdstone Hill from Heddon Valley

This beautiful climb is like riding all of Exmoor in one go. Leaving Hunter's Inn, the first third of the climb is through dappled oak woodland, which recedes to reveal gorgeous views of the inland valleys to your left, before cresting alongside the turquoise Atlantic in the final section. The gradient is constant, rarely dropping below 7％ or above 10％, meaning that you can settle into a steady tempo. Traffic is occasional, but the road is wide enough for it not to be a problem. The road surface does contain significant potholes in the lower kilometre or so, so if you're coming down this way, or as i did through the village of Trentishoe, go very carefully.

One of the "easier" climbs out of the dramatic Heddon valley. Gradients are never too steep and you can get into a good rhythm. Lush tree cover at the bottom and moorland with sea views at the top. Road surface is pretty bad in areas. Until the end of 2025 the bridge at the bottom is closed meaning this is a dead end road until then hence the traffic is almost no existent but it's a struggle to access the climb unless you go down and up or ride the gravel tracks. A popular area in the summer so traffic might be a minor issue