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  • Stay
    • Accessible Accommodation
    • Bed & Breakfasts
    • Camping
    • Caravans, Campervans & Holiday Parks
    • Glamping, Lodges & Cabins
    • Holiday Cottages
    • Hostels & Bunkhouses
    • Hotels
      • Boutique Hotels
    • Pubs & Inns
    • Self-Catering
      • Serviced Apartments
    • Themed Accommodation
      • Accommodation with Hot Tub
      • Accommodation with Swimming Pool
      • Eco Friendly Accommodation
      • Family Friendly Accommodation
      • Group Friendly Accommodation
      • Hen & Stag Accommodation
      • Dog Friendly Accommodation
      • Stay on a Farm
  • What's On
  • Things To Do
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      • Adventure & Extreme
      • Canoeing, Kayaking & Watersports
      • Climbing
      • Cycling & Mountain Biking
      • Food & Drink Experiences
      • Shooting & Archery
      • Golf
      • Nature & Wildlife Experiences
      • Arts & Crafts
      • Walking & Hiking
    • Attractions
      • Beauty Spots & Visitor Sites
      • Castles & Ruins
      • Cinema & Theatre
      • History & Heritage
      • Museums & Galleries
      • Nature & Wildlife
    • Walking
      • 12 Easy Walks
      • Guided Tours
      • The Forest of Dean Sculpture Trail
      • The Wye Valley Walk
      • Good with the Dog
      • The Offa's Dyke Path
      • Accessible Walks
      • Other Walking Routes & Trails
    • Cycling
      • Cycle Trails
      • Family Cycling
      • Bike Hire
      • Mountain Biking & Downhill
    • Dog Friendly
    • Family Friendly
      • Young Families
      • With Tweens & Teens
    • Group Friendly
    • Rainy Days
    • Tours & Trails
      • Walking Tours & Trails
      • Cycling Tours & Trails
      • On the Water
      • Driving Routes
      • Film & TV Trail
      • Myths & Legends Trail
      • Market Towns Trail
      • Heritage Trails
    • Shopping
      • Local Food & Drink
      • Farm Shops & Delis
      • Towns & Villages
      • Online Gift Guide
    • Wellbeing & Spa
  • Food & Drink
    • Afternoon Tea
    • Cafes & Tea Rooms
    • Dog Friendly Places to Eat
    • Farm Shops & Delis
      • Shops Offering Home Delivery
    • Family Friendly Places to Eat
    • Local Produce
    • Picnic Sites
    • Food & Drink Experiences
    • Private Chefs & Group Catering
    • Pubs
      • Beer Gardens
    • Restaurants
    • Takeaways & Deliveries
    • Vegetarian & Vegan
  • Explore
    • Getting Here
    • Getting Around
    • Maps & Guides
      • 2020-2021 Visitor Guide
    • Nature & Wildlife
      • Wildlife
      • Boar
      • Birds
      • Deer
      • Flora
      • Bluebells
      • Daffodils
      • Trees
      • Severn Bore
    • History & Heritage
      • Forest of Dean
      • Industrial Revolution
      • Freemining
      • The Wye Tour
      • Fascinating Facts
      • Hidden Heritage
      • Agincourt
      • Myths & Legends
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      • Charles Rolls
      • David and Robert Mushet
      • The Man of Ross
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      • Harry Potter
      • Star Wars
      • King Arthur
      • TV Programmes
      • Doctor Who
      • Merlin
      • Atlantis
      • Sex Education
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      • Newent
      • Cinderford
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      • Usk
      • Ross on Wye
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      • Abergavenny
      • Tintern
      • Symonds Yat
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      • Abergavenny Excellence
      • Beer and Boutique
      • Newent Retreats
      • Rural Monmouthshire
      • Severn Valley Touring
      • The Heart of the Dean
      • Tintern Treats
      • Wye Valley Perfection
    • Escape the Everyday
      • Escape the Everyday at Home
    • Family Holidays
    • Rainy Day Ideas
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      • Autumn: Leaf Peeping the Vibrant Colours
      • Winter: Cosy Escapes and Seasonal Delights
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  1. Visit the Forest of Dean and Wye Valley

You are here: Explore > Nature & Wildlife

Nature & Wildlife

From the 20 million trees in the Forest of Dean to the 58 mile long Wye Valley AONB, our natural beauty, dramatic landscapes and plethora of flora and fauna are what make our area so unique. You can walk for miles along glorious paths and see a wide range of local plants, trees and animals. You can spot unusual birds in a number of reserves, hear the most divine dawn chorus, see deer and boar if you're lucky, and in fact you may even see some of our resident wildlife from your holiday accommodation. Nature is at the heart of the Forest of Dean and Wye Valley and in these pages we hope you will learn a little more about what makes this area so special.

About the Forest of Dean

The Forest of Dean was recorded as The Forest in the 'Domesday Book' (1086) and as Dene or Dean after the Old English Denu for valley. In medieval times it was a royal hunting forest, before becoming a source of timber for the navy's Tudor warships. By Victorian times it was a major site of industry, with coal mining and tramways punctuating the landscape. In 1924 it was transferred to the Forestry Commission and in 1938 it was designated as the first National Forest Park in England. Today, it is still a working forest and Forestry England manages it sympathetically and sensitively while liaising on conservation matters with the main conservation bodies.

The forest is bound by the rivers Wye to the north and west, and the Severn to the south and east. Around the forest are rolling hills, farms and vineyards and many interesting villages and towns. These ancient woodlands and its variety of wildlife hold many surprises just waiting to be discovered.

About the Wye Valley

The Wye Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty is an internationally important protected landscape and straddles the border between England and Wales, from Hereford in the north to Chepstow in the South where the Wye meets the Severn. It is one of the most dramatic and scenic landscapes in Britain. The River Wye is the fifth-longest river in the UK at 134 miles but the area designated as an AONB covers 126 sq milies. The Wye Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) was first designated in 1971. Having the same level of protection as a National Park, the purpose of the AONB is to conserve and enhance the outstanding landscape of the Wye Valley, so that we, and future generations, can enjoy it. The Wye Valley offers a varied and contrasting geographical landscape, from the flatter Herefordshire valley with a winding river, to dramatic limestone cliffs with nesting peregrine falcons.

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Find Your Freedom

  1. Wildlife
  2. Birds
  3. Flora
  4. Nature & Wildlife Activities
  5. Boar
  6. Bluebells
  7. Trees
  8. Deer
  9. Severn Bore
  10. Nature & Wildlife Attractions

Explore Our Highlights

SOUTH INDIAN TAKEAWAY SPECIALS at Harts Barn Cookery School
SOUTH INDIAN TAKEAWAY SPECIALS
Resilient Woodlands Retreat
Resilient Woodlands Retreat
Forest Barn Falconry
Forest Barn Falconry
Lydney
Lydney - Gateway to the Forest
Usk
Usk
The Lamproom Cafe at Clearwell Caves
The Lamproom Cafe at Clearwell Caves
Foraging at Humble by Nature
WILD FOOD FORAGING
The Manor - Luxury Holiday Cottage with Hot Tub
The Manor - Luxury Holiday Cottage with Hot Tub
SOURDOUGH at Harts Barn Cookery School
SOURDOUGH
Clearwell Caves
Clearwell Caves
Coleford's music festival
Coleford Music Festival
American Hoedown Barn Dance at Hillside Brewery
American Hoedown Barn Dance
Meadow Byre - Luxury Cottage with Hot Tub
Meadow Byre - Luxury Cottage with Hot Tub
Wye Adventures
Wye Adventures
Enjoy a meal on the Royal Forester Evening Dining Train
Royal Forester Evening Dining Train
Breadmaking at Humble by Nature
BREAD MAKING WITH HOBBS HOUSE BAKERY
CHEESE, CHUTNEY & BREAD at Harts Barn Cookery School
CHEESE, CHUTNEY & BREAD
Cowshed Cottage
Cowshed Cottage
RAKU POTTERY: INTRODUCTION at Humble by Nature
RAKU POTTERY: INTRODUCTION
JAPANESE COOKERY CLASSES at Harts Barn Cookery School
JAPANESE COOKERY CLASSES
Canoe the Wye
Canoe the Wye
Puzzlewood
Puzzlewood
Chunky Knit Blanket Course
Chunky Knit Blanket Course
RESTAURANT FAVOURITES – INDIAN TAKEAWAY SPECIALS at Harts Barn Cookery School
RESTAURANT FAVOURITES – INDIAN TAKEAWAY SPECIALS
PrevPrev
  • 1SOUTH INDIAN TAKEAWAY SPECIALS
  • 2Resilient Woodlands Retreat
  • 3Forest Barn Falconry
  • 4Lydney - Gateway to the Forest
  • 5Usk
  • 6The Lamproom Cafe at Clearwell Caves
  • 7WILD FOOD FORAGING
  • 8The Manor - Luxury Holiday Cottage with Hot Tub
  • 9SOURDOUGH
  • 10Clearwell Caves
  • 11Coleford Music Festival
  • 12American Hoedown Barn Dance
  • 13Meadow Byre - Luxury Cottage with Hot Tub
  • 14Wye Adventures
  • 15Royal Forester Evening Dining Train
  • 16BREAD MAKING WITH HOBBS HOUSE BAKERY
  • 17CHEESE, CHUTNEY & BREAD
  • 18Cowshed Cottage
  • 19RAKU POTTERY: INTRODUCTION
  • 20JAPANESE COOKERY CLASSES
  • 21Canoe the Wye
  • 22Puzzlewood
  • 23Chunky Knit Blanket Course
  • 24RESTAURANT FAVOURITES – INDIAN TAKEAWAY SPECIALS
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