The south side of the gorge is privately owned by Cheddar Caves & Gorge and forms part of the Longleat Estate. It is not Open Access land under the CRoW Act (2000), unlike the National Trust owned land on the north side of the Gorge. Cheddar is unique in the fact that many of the crags are directly above a busy road which forms part of a major tourist attraction in the area. Unlike many crags, where a dropped piece of gear or rock is unlikely to have any impact on a member of the public, in Cheddar it has far greater potential to injure a visitor or damage a car.
Because of this, for climbing on the south side the year is split into three seasons according to the number of visitors to the gorge. During the busiest periods, all crags on the south side are closed, during the moderately busy periods only the restored routes (which have been cleared of loose rock as far as possible) on the south side are open, and during quiet periods all routes are open. These seasons are based on school and public holidays so change slightly every year.
Anyone climbing on the south side of Cheddar Gorge must carry civil liability cover of at least £10 million. This comes as standard with BMC or MCofS membership or can be organised separately. BMC/MCofS membership cards or details of your individual policy must be carried as proof of cover whilst climbing on the south side of the Gorge and the climbing warden and CC&G staff carry out frequent checks. Civil liability is also recommended for anyone climbing on the north side of the Gorge, but is not a requirement.
The BMC Cheddar Gorge Access Map has full details of which areas can be accessed during which periods. This should be considered required reading for any climber visiting the Gorge, regardless of which side or area you plan to climb on. A trial for 2019 allows additional access to some areas so check the map before you visit as new year round access is available on three crags, but climbers need to demonstrate an ability to follow the agreed restirctions to make this a permenant lifting of restrictions.
The latest guide to the Gorge - 'Cheddar Gorge Climbs' (M. Crocker, 2015) – has a definitive list of restored routes on the south side as well as routes on the north side. It is available from The Gorge Outdoors shop in Cheddar village, as well as other climbing and outdoor shops in the area.
The latest guide to the Gorge - 'Cheddar Gorge Climbs' (M. Crocker, 2015) – has a definitive list of restored routes on the south side as well as routes on the north side. It is available from The Gorge Outdoors shop in Cheddar village, as well as other climbing and outdoor shops in the area.
It has been reported that there is some confusion or misunderstanding of the use of the terms "restored" and "unrestored" routes in relation to access. Restored routes are trad routes that were cleaned and equiped with lower off bolts, and sport routes that were bolted or rebolted and equipped. This work was carried out as part of the Cheddar Gorge Climbing project between 2003 - 2005. All these routes are described in the current guide book - Cheddar Gorge Climbs by Martin Crocker. The access agreement for 2019 only includes routes found in this guide. Some restored routes in the guide remain as winter only routes. This includes most of the multi pitch routes in the gorge. Full details are in the guide. The climbs on the South side listed in previous guide books and not found in the current book, including the previous CC guides are winter access only - 1st October -- 15th March.
Annual loose rock removal carried out by the landowners has nothing to do with access changes for climbers and has no bearing on on the climbing access agreements. It is carried out entirely in the interest of safety for visitors to the gorge.
Dates: 16 March to 30 September
Reason: Public Safety
Due to the proximity of Cheddar's cliffs to the road and tourists below, there are complex access restritions which vary depending on the time of year and section of cliff on the south side of the Gorge. These restrictions are fully detailed in the BMC's Cheddar Gorge Access Map, including the 2019 trial of an extension to year round access for certain crags.
Please ensure you follow the access agreements detailed on the map to ensure that future access is able to continue. It is imperative that climbers self police otherwise access permission may be withdrawn by the landowner Cheddar Caves & Gorge.
West Country Climbs , Cheddar Intermediate , Cheddar Road To 7a Ruins , 100 Best South West Mid Grade Routes , Becky's ticklist , The Cheddar Nose , The post lockdown local list , All multi-pitch sport routes (England and Wales) , 6Bs with stars near Bristol , Somerset Sufferfest
User | Date | Notes | ||
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Steve Bartle | 7 Oct, 2023 |
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βeta: Final peg before top out is not to be trusted in my opinion. I pulled the draw once I'd clipped it and it definitely flexed/moved. Would strongly advise some small/medium nuts and or medium can if you've come sport climbing to feel 'safe' | βeta? | |
Show beta
βeta: Final peg before top out is not to be trusted in my opinion. I pulled the draw once I'd clipped it and it definitely flexed/moved. Would strongly advise some small/medium nuts and or medium can if you've come sport climbing to feel 'safe' |
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Brianthemessiah | 28 Aug, 2023 |
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βeta: Too much friction to pull the rope down if you rap off the stakes at the top. | βeta? | |
Show beta
βeta: Too much friction to pull the rope down if you rap off the stakes at the top. |
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jwtbids | 1 Jul, 2023 |
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βeta: Stunning climbing - be careful of abseiling off two spikes at top of last pitch, too much friction meant we had to prusik back up the rope and ask a third party to chuck it down after. | βeta? | |
Show beta
βeta: Stunning climbing - be careful of abseiling off two spikes at top of last pitch, too much friction meant we had to prusik back up the rope and ask a third party to chuck it down after. |
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boreal187 | 3 Jun, 2023 |
Show βeta
βeta: Really great route. The last pitch is now mostly bolted. I only saw 2 pitons. A bit run out towards the end by the second peg so moves feel a bit committing. Back it up if you can. The bolts lead to a solid tree we used for the abseil (there's also two metal stakes in the ground). It looked like you could easily walk off and join the trail above the gorge, we came down in three abseils, one to the start of the last pitch (utopia terrace), one to an isolated belay station 20 metres below the terrace and final one to the bottom just right of the start. | βeta? | |
Show beta
βeta: Really great route. The last pitch is now mostly bolted. I only saw 2 pitons. A bit run out towards the end by the second peg so moves feel a bit committing. Back it up if you can. The bolts lead to a solid tree we used for the abseil (there's also two metal stakes in the ground). It looked like you could easily walk off and join the trail above the gorge, we came down in three abseils, one to the start of the last pitch (utopia terrace), one to an isolated belay station 20 metres below the terrace and final one to the bottom just right of the start. |
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beardy mike | 1 Jun, 2023 |
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βeta: Third pitch pegs. After the traverse left, there are two bolts, then two pegs and another bolt just before the rim if you climb left. I'd say the pegs are reasonable. I mean they're pegs not bolts, so might feel a bit sketchy but it's OK? The climbing is fine on that part, maybe 6a as opposed the stopper move after the traverse. | βeta? | |
Show beta
βeta: Third pitch pegs. After the traverse left, there are two bolts, then two pegs and another bolt just before the rim if you climb left. I'd say the pegs are reasonable. I mean they're pegs not bolts, so might feel a bit sketchy but it's OK? The climbing is fine on that part, maybe 6a as opposed the stopper move after the traverse. |
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nlonsdale | 26 May, 2022 |
Show βeta
βeta: Wish I had read the feedback before the top of the last pitch. I used the rusty pegs in without gear to back it up. The last section is a relatively easy slab after the probable crux traversing on to it. You can abseil from the hoops at the top of the 1st/2nd pitch (at 45m) with a 70m rope | βeta? | |
Show beta
βeta: Wish I had read the feedback before the top of the last pitch. I used the rusty pegs in without gear to back it up. The last section is a relatively easy slab after the probable crux traversing on to it. You can abseil from the hoops at the top of the 1st/2nd pitch (at 45m) with a 70m rope |
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Angus Smith | 27 Apr, 2021 |
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βeta: Don’t be put off by talk of poor pegs; the climbing at the top is steady and they can easily be backed up by a wire and size 2 or 3 cam, and even without gear the fall with failed pegs would be safe, albeit long. | βeta? | |
Show beta
βeta: Don’t be put off by talk of poor pegs; the climbing at the top is steady and they can easily be backed up by a wire and size 2 or 3 cam, and even without gear the fall with failed pegs would be safe, albeit long. |
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Dickie91 | 5 Sep, 2020 |
Show βeta
βeta: The final piton blew when I stupidly slipped off the top out. There is only 1 piton past the last bolt. It is very run out, take trad gear to protect!! Go steady!! | βeta? | |
Show beta
βeta: The final piton blew when I stupidly slipped off the top out. There is only 1 piton past the last bolt. It is very run out, take trad gear to protect!! Go steady!! |
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olliee | 15 Jun, 2020 |
Show βeta
βeta: you can't quite reach the ground from the second abseil station, even with an 80m rope, so don't try! | βeta? | |
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βeta: you can't quite reach the ground from the second abseil station, even with an 80m rope, so don't try! |
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martinfindlay | 7 Sep, 2019 |
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βeta: There are still two pegs on pitch 4 (just difficult to find) and they've put a new bolt in, so the top section is now fine. | βeta? | |
Show beta
βeta: There are still two pegs on pitch 4 (just difficult to find) and they've put a new bolt in, so the top section is now fine. |
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simonsnake77 | 1 May, 2019 |
Show βeta
βeta: P4 only has one peg left on it, you need small cans and wires to protect last 8M. | βeta? | |
Show beta
βeta: P4 only has one peg left on it, you need small cans and wires to protect last 8M. |
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Grade: 6b+ ***
(Cheddar Gorge South)