A Few Days in the Forest of Dean, April 2016
At the end of April we had a few days away in the Forest of Dean . It was our fourth visit and, as always, there was plenty to see. Whilst there is much of the forest that we have not yet explored, we have a few favoured locations, around Cannop, Woorgreens, Wenchford and RSPB Nagshead. The landscape is a complete contrast to the gentle fields and curves of East Angia, extremely hilly and very rugged. Much of the Forest is Forestry Commision land and is given over to pine plantations, however there are many areas of beautiful old deciduous woodland as well. There are areas of clearfell, full of brackens, gorse and saplings which provide a rich heath type habitat and there are also disused quarries, which nature has gradually reclaimed and that are full of vegetation. From the days when there were mining works, there are quite a few water habitats, from lakes created to power watermills to various natural ponds and streams throug...