'Wheels in Spring'
NEVILL WHALL (Hodites)
Handy to the cathedral city of Wells, where the swans in the moat ring a bell for their dinner, rise the green Mendip hills; and on another side lies Cheddar. Ten miles away runs the Cheddar Gorge, with the highest limestone cliffs in the country. Between them, up a wonderful winding road, one may ascend to the summit of the Mendips.
Wookey Hole may lack the stalactites of the Cheddar Caves, but it is more unique because it still has water in it. Three miles south of Cheddar is Wedmore, where Alfred made peace with the Danes in 878. And near Black Down, the highest point of the Mendips, is Charterhouse-on-Mendip, with the remains of Roman lead-mines and amphitheatre.
This is the country that is the background of Nevill Whall 's talk this evening. To cycle over it must be child's play to one who has cycled with zest over the Stelvio Pass-the highest road pass in Europe. The approach of Easter marks the beginning of the cyclists' touring season, and if it is a time when those out of training get ' Easter knees', it is surely the best time to see the country.
Nevill Whall is the Assistant Secretary of the Cyclists' Touring Club, and writes for the C.7'.C. Gazette and for Cycling. His pen-name ' Hodites ' is familiar, and listeners will remember his sports talk last November, ' Cycling in High Places'. '.