Cheddar



Cheddar is a large village, with the largest gorge and caves in Britain. It has a population of around 5,800 (2011). The village gave its name to Cheddar cheese.

By car
The gorge is best appreciated and approached from the east (i.e., heading west) along the B3371/B3135, i.e., coming into the town. The road seems ordinary at first, then gradually dips down... and down... and the sides become cliffs. Finally the full grandeur of the landscape becomes apparent on entering the gorge.

By bus
The 126 service runs between Weston-super-Mare (about an hour) and Wells (about 40 minutes) via Cheddar hourly during the day Monday to Saturday, and less frequently on Sundays.

By bicycle or coach

 * Otherwise Cheddar is accessible by bike and coach - especially by coach. (Cyclists - see safety note below)
 * Enter slowly and if a non-driver, have a camera ready and poised - some impressive views are easy to photo from a slow moving vehicle but you can't really stop on the road.

Cyclist safety: If you're a cyclist and don't know the gorge, you're strongly advised not to cycle uphill through the gorge proper until you know the road. Instead, plan to arrive downhill (from the West as above), or explore the gorge by foot from the village, or dismount as needed after Cough's cave and walk your bicycle through the gorge for the next 1/2 mile (3/4 km). Going from the west to the east (the other way), the road above Gough's Cave has a severe gradient at times, combined with reduced visibility, reduced maneuvering room, coaches (travelling downhill) and narrow passing points.

Get around
By foot!

Parking is possible in numerous laybys in the gorge; the ones near the attractions are larger but usually not free (or at best only certain times). You can usually pull over there for a bit even so, if you stay by the car "in case", unless it's peak season and busy. Those further up the gorge proper are free. The car parks in the village are pay and display.

There are a range of tickets sold in the gorge's shops, which allow entry to multiple attractions — well worth looking into.

Caves
There are several caves in Cheddar, but the two best known (and largest) are Gough's cave and Cox's cave. These caves are the inspirations for the caves behind Helm's Deep in J.R.R. Tolkien's The Two Towers. There are also several smaller caves that you can climb down into.



Buy
There is a variety of shops around the Gorge ranging from a teddy bear shop to Cider and ale shops. Some of the shops sell an eyecatching range of unusual meads, ciders and other drinks, as well as regional cheeses, and other specialist delicacies.

Drink
In Cheddar Village and at the bottom of the Gorge there are 6 pubs.



Go next

 * Wells, nearby city with famous cathedral and more caves, including Wookey Hole which is different in character to the Cheddar caves.