Climber drops in to open National Trust outdoor centre

A DRAMATIC cliff-top descent marked the official launch of the National Trust's new centre at Cheddar Gorge on Monday - see colour picture on page 39.

The trust's countryside manager Mark Courtiour abseiled from the cliffs behind the centre to deliver a giant key to mark the opening of the organisation's first ever centre for outdoor activities.

The National Trust owns half of Cheddar Gorge and is using the new centre, based in the former TIC building, to showcase its work in the area, and to encourage people to get out and enjoy the great out doors at the numerous sites it manages across Somerset. The centre has a shop selling outdoor clothing and useful equipment including maps and local guides.

National Trust general manager for Somerset countryside Andy Mayled said: "This place is a first for us. We don't sell the tea towels and lavender bags that you would expect to find in a trust shop. Our work in Cheddar Gorge is all about giving people access to open countryside and here we will sell products which help to make that possible.

"This opportunity has come about as a result of the unavoidable closure of the Tourist Information Centre and we are pleased to be given the chance to work closely with Sedgemoor District Council to find a new way to use the building."

Rowena Nokes, the trust's commercial manager for Somerset, explained that one of the most important aims for the new centre is to encourage people to really get to grips with the great outdoors.

"We really want to change people's perception of the National Trust, we are not just about country houses, we look after coast and countryside as well and we really want to encourage people to get out into it," she said.

"Through the new centre, we want to encourage people to use our land and make the most of it. We want people to really get to grips with the land, not just look at it."

A Site of Special Scientific Interest and one of the regions top rock climbing centres, Cheddar Gorge is looked after by the National Trust's Somerset Rangers. The rangers are out and about in the gorge and will be leading a series of walks to help people understand the area, its beauty and the dangers its wild landscape can pose.

Mathew Manning mmanning@bvmedia.co.uk