A full day with a visit to Cheddar where cheddar cheese has its origins. Cheddar also boasts a gorge and two beautiful caves. We spent the day with Andrew and Helen Wallace’s two daughters, Laura and Hannah, and they were our tour guidles in Cheddar. We toured the gorge which was gorgeous and then spent a couple of hours visiting two caves: Gough’s Cave and Cox’s Cave. Both were beautiful and for me Gough’s Cave was exceptional. The cave had stunning color and formations and the cave itself is absolutely huge with numerous passageways. We also went to a very good museum about pre-historic man (a 9,000 year old skeleton was discovered in Gough’s Cave). We had a picnic lunch and then visited the Cheddar Gorge Cheese Company where they produce authentic cheddar cheese. We saw the cheesemaker practicing his craft and watched an excellent video on the whole process. Samples were provided at the end of the tour and the cheese is not only delicious, it is world famous in cheese making circles. We ended the day back at the Wallace abode and then went to out to dinner.
We depart Taunton tomorrow and while it is great seeing Andrew, Helen, and their children (Laura, Tim, and Hannah) it is always a bit sad to leave. They are great company and for me epitomize the good humor and hospitality of the English.
This photo does not due justice to Gough’s Cave, the formations were stunning.
The Cheddar Gorge Cheese company ages some of its cheese in Gough’s Cave between 6 and 16 months. The aging cheese is shown in this photo.
Another cave formation complete with a mirrored pool.
David & Alex donned pre-historic man garb and weapons outside of the Cheddar Museum.
After our picnic, Laura is on the far left and Hannah is next to her.
The Cheddar Gorge Cheese Company also ages cheese on site, and it tastes different than the cheese aged in Gough’s Cave.
Dinner at the World’s End Pub. We had a terrific meal but the boys and I agree that the two meals Helen cooked for us (lasagne and chicken curry) get the nod for best dinner. From left to right: Alex, Laura, Hannah, Helen, Andrew, Tim, and David.
