Fodor's Expert Review Symonds Yat and King Arthur’s Cave

Six miles south of Ross-on-Wye, outside the village of Symonds Yat (a local dialect word for "gate"), the 473-foot-high Yat Rock commands superb views of the River Wye as it winds through a narrow gorge in a great five-mile loop. It's best approached from the south on B4432, and from there, it's a short walk. A small, hand-pulled ferry takes passengers across the river from the Saracens Head pub (£1.20). About a mile northeast of Symonds Yat is King Arthur’s Cave, although any link to the legendary monarch is, well, just a legend. Several important Paleolithic finds have been made in the cave, including flint tools and the bones of a woolly mammoth and a saber-toothed cat. Today, it is home to a colony of bats. To find the cave, take the exit marked Symonds Yat West from the A40. Park at the rest area just before Downard Park campsite, and follow the path a short way into the woods.