Log in
Join travelers community
Your Profile
Logout
Monday 12 September, via Cheddar to Devon
Great Britain 2005 - part XXIV
Elisabeth & Teije2006-08-28 17:58:40
Displayed times (last time: )
The tent is dry this morning so we can quickly pack our things and move on. It also feels a bit warmer than the last few days and in ht esun we drive to the west, towards Cheddar, according to our travel guide a very nice town.
Vaguely we have read something about a gorge but we are not prepared for the beauty of the landscape when we suddenly drive through the gorge. We hadn't expected such mountaineous sceneries, so far to the south of England. Wild goats are climbing the rocks along huge but empty parking lots. The mountainsides rise sometimes more than 100 meters, straight up. Very typical that there is only one gorge like this in the area.
We are surprised by the large parking lots but we are glad they are all empty now. Apparently the holiday is really over now in England and it will be much quieter. But about a kilometer before the village we see more and more cars. And the village itself is crowded, so not as quiet as we hoped. But how busy it must be when it is really in the middle of the season!
Most people will know of Cheddar because of the cheese with the same name (the most imitated cheese in the world, we read), but there are also a couple of splendid caves. We buy a ticket for £ 10,90 each, so that sounds pretty expensive, but with it we can visit 2 caves, do the Crystal Quest, go by bus through the gorge, climb 400 stairs to the top with a watchtower and visit a museum with discoveries from the prehistory in this area. We assure you, it is worth the almost 11 pounds!
We start with a visit to Cough's Cave where we can walk on our own with an audio guide. In the beginning of the cae is a replica of Cheddar Man, who lived in this cave in the prehistory and is now the oldest whole skeleton of Great Britain. DNA-tests have shown that a school teacher in the village is a direct descendant of Cheddar Man.
Normally, not much can live in a cave, but algae flourish with artificial light.
...
See photographs from:
United Kingdom Gallery
