The River Exe in England rises at Exe Head, near the village of Simonsbath, on Exmoor in Somerset, 5.2 miles (8.4 km) from the Bristol Channel coast, but flows more or less directly due south, so that most of its length lies in Devon. It flows for 60 miles (96 km) and reaches the sea at a substantial ria, the Exe Estuary, on the south coast of Devon. Historically, its lowest bridging point was the Old Exe Bridge in Exeter, the largest settlement on the river, but there is now a viaduct for the M5 motorway about 2 miles (3.2 km) south of the city centre.
The Exe Estuary from a balloon over Exeter. The M5 motorway is in the foreground, Topsham on the left bank just beyond, and Exmouth at the river mouth opposite Dawlish Warren.
'Exeter as seen from the River'. Watercolour on paper by John White Abbott
The Exe Estuary with Powderham Castle in the background.
'Exeter from Trew’s Weir' circa 1799. Watercolour on paper by Thomas Girtin
Simonsbath is a small village high on Exmoor in the English county of 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 32 square miles (83 km2) but with a population, at the time of the 2001 census, of 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.
The River Barle at Simonsbath
The River Barle upstream of Simonsbath
Simonsbath House in the valley of the River Barle
Sale particulars published in 1818. Somerset Archives.