TAKE a walk on the wild side and discover one of the Wye Valley's hidden gems just yards off the beaten track.

Slade Brook (grid reference SO564055) is a 3.63-hectare (9acre) biological and geological Site of Special Scientific Interest near St Briavels that cascades down into the Wye over a succession of mini waterfalls.

What makes it so unique are its 60 or so rare ‘tufa’ dams and plunge pools, resulting from a combination of physical and chemical processes.

The brook rises on the Carboniferous Limestone of the Forest of Dean and flows for 2km with around 1km of tufa, formed by rainwater percolating into sinkholes in the limestone and becoming enriched with dissolved calcium carbonate.

When emerging from springs along the brook, fallen twigs and branches, algae and mosses help to slow the flow of the stream and photosynthesis encourages the removal of the carbon dioxide, creating the series of dam-like tufa structures.

Fallen twigs and branches, algae and mosses help to slow the flow of the stream and photosynthesis encourages the removal of the carbon dioxide.

You can walk along the brook just off Stowe Road, just above the former Lindors Hotel and via a gate on the right past Green Gables.

See tudorfarmhousehotel.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/Slade-Brook.pdf for a circular walk taking in the stream.