Coppet Hill Tunnel, Lydbrook in Gloucestershire.

Today a group of us went for a walk down to Lower Lydbrook in Gloucestershire, not far from Mitcheldean. 

We were intrigued by a tunnel that we had been told off which runs alongside the River Wye. It is an old railway tunnel that was used during the war to take ammunition from the ammunition factory in Lower Lydbrook. Apparently the area was bombed a lot during the war because of this factory as obviously the enemy wanted to put it out of action. 

You start by walking down past the old factory and towards the bridge that runs over the River Wye itself and then heads into the railway tunnel.

The bridge is called Welsh Bicknor Rail Bridge and you can still walk over it today and see the old railway line which ran along the bridge, it takes you over the River Wye and into the line of fire from the Welsh Bicknor Pill Box which was built to defend the bridges in case of invasion.

Dates on the side of the wall of the factory indicating flood levels over the years.

The Factory through the wire.

The Factory.

The railway track going over the River Wye.

Walking over the Welsh Bicknor Bridge

Welsh Bicknor Pill Box.
This was built in order to defend the tunnel and the railway.

Once you have walked over the bridge and past the pill box you arrive at The Coppet Hill Tunnel. This tunnel runs from Kerne Bridge to Lydbrook and is 630 yards long with a slight curve as it winds its way through the hill. The tunnel was in use between 1873 until 1965.

The Coppet Hill Tunnel entrance.

Once inside the tunnel it is pitch black so not for the faint hearted and torches are a must, wellies and waterproofs as well as the entrance has a small stream running through it, this gets deeper depending on the rainfall. Keep your eyes peeled for bats they love to snuggle down in the little side hidey holes found through out the tunnel for people or workers to escape safely into should a train be racing past. 

Inside the Tunnel.

One of the escape holes.

Super dark in the middle of the tunnel.

Sleepy bat.

Tunnel Exit.

I have to say that the scenery is fantastic and there is wildlife galore, so if you find yourself with a couple of hours to spare in this area and you are game for an adventure, it's well worth a visit.

Mushrooms.

Moon Daisy

Mushrooms.

The River Wye.

The River Wye.

Woodland Walk.

Woodland Walk.

Following the old railway line.

Wye Valley Walk.

Adventuring around Mitcheldean

Adventuring around Mitcheldean

So today , the sun was shining so what better day could we have chosen to go adventuring around our beautiful village of Mitcheldean. A friend and I decided to walk from the village of Mitcheldean to a gorgeous place called St Anthony's Well in Mitcheldean ( There appears to be some debate about if it is actually in Mitcheldean or Flaxley but hey as we are from the mighty Mitcheldean we shall stick with Mitcheldean). 

Having lived here for several years now I was pleased to find several new paths and fields to explore along the way. Starting off from the High Street we walked towards Baby Lane which is at the end of Silver Street, following the public footpath at the end of Baby Lane, we ended up in some fields , totally lost track of the public footpath and am pretty sure we covered more miles than we had too!!!

 Finally we found ourselves on Jubilee Road and walked down towards St Anthony's Well. Fabulous walk, lot's of wildlife, only one car passed us on the way, it was fantastic to be really getting away from everything yet still close to home, no car journeys to get to somewhere nice, it was right here on our doorstep and free.

After a walk through woods which had some very pretty bluebells in and wildlife galore we eventually arrived at the well. A beautiful place , full of history and legends and cool clear water and pretty streams. Lots of places to paddle in shallow water, so ideal if you have children and of course you can even have a dip in the well itself. 

One thing we did decide on was next time we go , we will be taking a picnic with us and making a day of it.......

A cow have a staring competition. 

St Anthony's Well

Flowers in Mitcheldean

St Anthony's Well

The woods