Top 100 climbs 5 Dunkery Beacon
This corner of Exmoor is hill-climbing heaven, with a pleathora of nasty roads to grind up and fly down. It's a job to single out one climb that sets itself apart from all the others, but the road heading away from Luccombe up to the Beacon is a beast. Leave the crossroads and head into thick forest. Ramping up straight away at 17% and winding across a steep cattle grid, the road heads upwards under the trees. With the opening stretch over, your legs will already be burning by the time the gradient affords you a brief rest. And then it climbs again - if you thought the first part was a trial, think again. A perfect stretch of unrelenting 17% gradient cuts its way through the gorse, turning left then right, steeper at each turn, before delivering you to the finale. Ahead, the road winds like a streamer dropped from a tall building, kinking left and right, left and right, steep all the way. You'll finish, consumed by fatigue, adjacent to a small stone car park.

Katherine Moore

March 16, 2020

Phew, you've reached the top of Dunkery Beacon on the road!

Best tackled from the coastal northern side near the quaint village of Porlock, this 2 mile (3.2 km) climb is a real beast, ramping up to 17% gradient for much of the ascent.

It's steep and tough climbs like these that make Exmoor a mecca for cyclists of all types, with a gravel track from here up to the beacon summit more suitable for mountain bikers and gravel cyclists.

When you reach the top, or even on the way up, don't forget to pause to take in the magnificent sea views over the coastline of Somerset and North Devon, across to South Wales.

Neil

September 4, 2023

The easier ascent of Dunkery Beacon

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Details

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Distance 3.31 km

Uphill 330 m

Downhill 0 m

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Saturday 25 October

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Max wind speed: 27.0 km/h

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Take Me There

Location: Cutcombe, West Somerset District, Somerset, South West England, England, United Kingdom

Other Popular Places to Check Out

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View from Dunkery Beacon

Dunkery Beacon Climb from Luccombe

1. Dunkery Beacon & Simonsbath loop from Lynton — Exmoor National Park

2. Dunkery Beacon & Wimbleball Lake loop from Taunton — Exmoor National Park

3. Porlock Toll Road – Valley of Rocks loop from Barnstaple

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