I'm a big fan of cheese. I would have it with most meals if I could, but it hasn't always been that way. When I was a kid I would only eat the mildest cheddar cheese available. Even though over the years I've moved towards stronger cheese, cheddar has a special place in my heart. Therefore it seemed only fitting that I went to visit the birth place of cheddar, Cheddar in Somerset. Stuart and I jumped in the car to begin our uneventful 2 1/2 hour drive. Finally we reached the outskirts of Cheddar, and as we approached the small village we were busy glancing at all the tea rooms lining the road when we realised it had become very bumpy. We put this down to old streets but finally we had to pull over, just in case there was something wrong with the car, and, yep, we had a flat tire!
Now, neither Stuart or I had ever changed a tire before, so we didn't know if this whole thing would ruin the day, but after reading the car manual, a bit of teamwork and a couple of helpful locals our spare tire was safely popped on. We were a little behind schedule but luckily we wouldn't have to go to a garage or get the RAC out!
We continued through Cheddar and parked at the top of the village. There was quite a lot we wanted to fit in and our first stop was the Cheddar Caves. There are a few caves around Cheddar and we headed to Gough's Cave. This cave, or system of caves has an awful lot of history in it. There is a cave drawing of a mammoth, thought to be around 13,000 years old and the remains of 'Cheddar Man' Britain's oldest complete human skeleton was found there. And that's just human history. The geolocial history dates much further back.
It is full of stalagmite and stalactites, and as you head deeper into the cave you are greeted by even more spectacular formations.
The highlight for me was the cave named St Paul's Cathedral. My photos don't do it justice and it's difficult to describe but when you walk into the chamber it is easy to image how Richard Cox Gough, who discovered the chamber back in the late 1800's, felt. It's very dramatic, yet serene at the same time. Carved out through thousands of years erosion the whole place is a geologists dream, with beautiful colours lining the walls.
The tickets we brought for Gough's cave also included entrance to other attractions including an open top bus tour, a look out tower and Cox's cave. However I really wanted to walk to the top of the Gorge to check out the view. Luckily the tickets are valid for 10 years (!) which meant we didn't have to rush through everything and could take time to enjoy our cheese picnic.
We brought some of the cave matured cheddar from the gift shop at Gough's cave. This is cheddar that has been matured in Gough's cave for up to a year, and to compliment it we went for some garlic cheddar. The garlic cheddar was lovely but I wasn't blown away by the cave matured cheddar, it was okay but had a bit of a bitter after taste. In fact, later on in the day we popped into another shop, the Original Cheddar Shop, to pick up some cheese to take home, and I much preferred their cheddar. I think there must be some stiff rivalry between cheese sellers in Cheddar as the shop keeper was quick to tell us that they've been selling cheese the longest and are the original cheddar shop in the area. They do not mature their cheddar in Gough's cave but have their own cave they use. Obviously tourists (like myself) like the stamp of trying a cheese that's been stored in a cave I've just visited but if you do visit do try the Original Cheddar Shop, I found it to be much richer, strong but not bitter and a little creamy.
After our picnic of cheese, pickle and pork pies it was time to start our trek up the Gorge. There are two sides to the Gorge. The one with the lookout tower included on your cave ticket or the National Trust side. We decided to go the National Trust way. I am a fair weather exerciser and this was the first nice day we've had this year, so it was my first time really exerting myself and, dear lord, I was knackered. Later in May I am going to try and attempt to walk up Mount Snowdon so this was a small warm up, and I have so much work to do in the next few weeks! It didn't take us too long to get to the top but I was exhausted, however the view made up for all the hard work.
Once at the top, we decided to take the long way down, walking along the top of the Gorge and then, once we reached the bottom, following the main road back to our car. This was a more leisurely walk compared to the hike up the hill and I really enjoyed myself. It was lovely to see blue skies, feel the air on my skin and take in the fresh breeze. The way down was a little muddy, but that just gave me a chance to test out my new hiking boots.
Once we reached the road there was still quite a distance to walk to return to the car, but with lots to see. We saw some of the famous Cheddar wild goats, some with kids, as well as people out with their climbing gear scaling the limestone walls. Finally we arrived back at the car. As we knew it would take us longer to get home with our spare tire we decided to wander round the town before heading off and grab some tea. After a very British day out the only way to end it was with fish and chips (or sausage and chips for me!).
I really enjoyed Cheddar and will be heading back, both to try out the attractions still left on our tickets, and also to see if I can get up that damn hill quicker!
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