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Round trip from Tiverton Blackdown Hills Somerset Levels and Cheddar Gorge
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This route was brought to you by:
RouteXpert Nick Carthew - (MRA Master)
Last edit: 05-03-2021
Beautiful changing landscapes, good roads and very good attractions earn this route 4**** stars.
Animation
Verdict
Duration
7h 39m
Mode of travel
Car or motorcycle
Distance
217.60 km
Countries
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Dunkerswell Airfield viewing area
The start point is easily reached from the major towns and cities in the area. Taunton, Exeter and Barnstaple are just 45 minutes away. This route is essentially a trip to The Cheddar Gorge but it takes in a lot of sights along the way and is a very enjoyable ride. There are no tricky sections barring a few narrow lanes, so the route is suitable for motorcycle riders of all abilities. The route goes through a lot of farmland, and as such, there could be mud on the road in places. Generally, the roads are good and great for riding on.
After filling your tank with fuel at Tesco in Cullompton, 6 miles from the start, the route goes through the Blackdown Hills A.O.N.B. (area of outstanding natural beauty) and onto the WW2 airfield at Dunkeswell. Here, you can have a coffee or snack at the aptly named Aviator Cafe and watch from a very close viewpoint; the private aeroplanes take off and land and sometimes parachutes. The route carries on through the beautiful hilly countryside and then with great contrast, onto the flatlands of The Somerset Levels. The Somerset Levels are a coastal plain and wetland area of Somerset, running north/south from the Mendips to the Blackdown Hills. Here you’ll pass Burrow Mump and have a good view of Glastonbury Tor. Glastonbury Tor needs no explanation but her smaller sister Burrow Mump perhaps does. Burrow Mump: a motte castle, later chapel and associated earthworks. Motte castles are medieval fortifications introduced into Britain by the Normans. They comprised a large conical mound of earth or rubble, the motte, surmounted by a palisade and a stone or timber tower. Burrow Mump survives as a good example of a natural hill utilised in various periods, including as a look-out point in Saxon times, as a Norman castle, and as the location for a later medieval chapel. The survival of burial remains has been confirmed by limited excavations. This monument is a prominent landmark in the area of the Levels.
A view of St. Michael's Tower on top of Glastonbury Tor is next, and I have added a green route point to indicate a good place to stop for a photo.
Just after passing the cathedral city of Wells, you'll enter into the Mendip Hills A.O.N.B. Stretching eastward from the Bristol Channel, the imposing 300 m ridge of the Mendips rises, like a rampart above the Somerset Levels.
The landscape’s distinctive silver-grey crags, gorges, dry valleys and rock outcrops show unmistakably that this is carboniferous limestone country and in fact, Britain’s most southerly example. Sink holes and depressions pockmark the surface and chemical action on the rock has produced spectacular underground caves. The Mendips’ most dramatic landscape is in the centre of the AONB, site of the famous Cheddar Gorge and this is where the route heads next.
Cheddar is a gorge lying on the southern edge of the Mendips and has been a huge tourist draw for hundreds of years.
The maximum depth of the gorge is 137 m (449 ft) with a near-vertical cliff-face to the south, and steep grassy slopes to the north. The B3135 road runs along the bottom of the gorge, the road this route uses. There is a large widening halfway down the gorge that allows you to stop for photos. Towards the bottom are a series of caves, perhaps Gough's Cave being the most famous. The cave is 115 m deep and is 3.405 km long, and contains a variety of large chambers and rock formations. It contains the Cheddar Yeo, the largest underground river system in Britain.
The cave contained skeletal remains of both humans and animals, all showing cut-marks and breakage consistent with de-fleshing and eating. Skull fragments represent from 5 to 7 humans, including a young child of about 3 years and two adolescents. In 1903 the remains of a human male, since named Cheddar Man, were found a short distance inside Gough's Cave. He is Britain's oldest complete human skeleton, having been dated to approximately 7150 BC. A replica of Cheddar Man can be seen in the Cheddar Man and the Cannibals museum opposite the entrance to Gough's Cave. Richard Cox Gough, a retired sea captain did extensive excavation work in the late 1800s, hence the name.
There are a multitude of places for lunch in the gorge or avoid tourist prices and lunch in the village of Cheddar.
After lunch, the route travels through the Avalon Marshes in the heart of the Somerset Levels. The Avalon Marshes is not only one of the finest remaining lowland wetlands left in Britain but is internationally important. Throughout the year the visitor may see marsh harriers, bitterns and great white egrets. learn more by stopping off at Avalon Marshes Visitor Centre.
Another stop off might be at Riders of Bridgewater, a motorcycle shop with cafe. dealers for BMW, Ducati and Harley Davidson.
Next comes The Quantock Hills A.O.N.B. The Quantocks were England's first Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, designated in 1956. These hills, which are largely privately owned, accommodate up to half a million visits a year, mainly from people who live within sight of them. Physically the Quantocks offer great diversity, reflecting the relationship between the geology, slopes, and exposure of the area and the range of past and present human activities and influences. This jigsaw of varied landscapes gives the Quantock Hills a distinctive character that includes its historic and cultural elements, scenic beauty and upland nature and the range of wildlife interest present.
I've suggested a coffee stop here before the route returns you to Tiverton, through some of the nicest countryside that Somerset has to offer.
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View of Glastonbury Tor
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Cheddar Gorge
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Preferably use the route track in your navigation system. More information about the use of MyRoute-app can be found on the website under 'Community' or 'Academy'.
Changes may nevertheless have occurred due to changed circumstances, road diversions or seasonal closures. We therefore recommend checking each route before use.
Preferably use the route track in your navigation system. More information about the use of MyRoute-app can be found on the website under 'Community' or 'Academy'.