Cheddar

The Gorge is the largest Gorge in Britain. It is made up of limestone. Around 500,000 people visit the Gorge and Caves each year. It was also named the second greatest wonder in Britain, in 2005.

This cave is 90 metres deep and 2.135 km long. It contains the Cheddar Yeo, the largest underground river system in Britain. In 1903, Britain's oldest skeleton, dated to around 7150 BCE.

A shimmering brilliantly coloured underground sanctuary with fantastic calcite sculptures, dancing fountains, mirror pools and music evocative of a more spiritual world. Decked out as a children's adventure cave. A striking contrast to Gough's Cave. Kids love to follow the Crystal Quest and meet the Lord of Darkness and his evil dragon.

There are around 350 official graded rock climbing routes on the 27 cliffs that make up the Cheddar Gorge.

The gorge clifftop is fully accessible and makes a good 1.3 mile (2 km) walk; the views and air at the clifftop are well worth the steep gradient of the walking path that may be encountered here and there. The easiest way up is via "Jacobs Ladder" (in reality easy-to-walk steps with regular resting places) which is paid entry to walk up and free to walk down, at the top turn left and head uphill. At the far end the path eventually turns into a gentler downhill walk through bluebell woods (in the Spring anyhow!) and back to the main road. It's free to walk up from this end but hard to find the pathway! (The other, North, side of the gorge is also walkable. It comprises a more grassy embankment with more of a woods-and-fields character in comparison.)
Safety info: There are quite a few points where the cliff edge can be approached and these require care. That said, the top and its walking routes are extremely wide and feel very "safe", much like a hill walk anywhere else; there is no need to go anywhere near it at all or do anything more than enjoy a nice hill walk, unless you want to. Keep an eye out on kids and pets, though! The map marker indicates the start of the walk in the gorge.

Museum of prehistoric humanity and cave findings. Interesting.

A nine-mile (14-km) walking and cycling route along a disused railway trackbed. From Cheddar it heads north through Axbridge and Sandford to Yatton. A high resolution map of the line can be downloaded here.

Artificial reservoir built in the 1930s, holding over 6 million m³ of water intended to supply the expanding population of North Somerset with drinking water. There is a pedestrian and cycle path loop around the reservoir that is accessible for recreational purposes. The reservoir is a Site of Special Scientific Interest in the UK for the waterfowl wintering on the reservoir.