Forest of Dean
 

Does anyone have any first hand knowledge of the Forest of Dean and more specifically the Lydney area? We have our eye on a lovely house in the area and would like some impressions from people who know the place.
Thanks.

Re: Forest of Dean
 

It's a lovely area but haven't been for many years so don't know if it's changed. We had a weekend place close by and sometimes shopped around lydney.

Re: Forest of Dean
 

Are you moving with your sister?

Isn't it infamous for something?

:rofl:

Re: Forest of Dean
 

You're thinking of Tasmania.

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Thanks. Anyone else.

Re: Forest of Dean
 

Yes, I know Lydney. Haven't been there for a while though. The location isn't very good, thus the lower prices. It's in the flatter valley part of the river Severn, and boxed in by the Forest of Dean. Thus, you can't get to the Cotswolds, because of the river. To get to the other side of the river you either have to go to Gloucester, and go around, or go through Chepstow, and go over the Severn bridge. Both quite a jaunt.

Lydney is a very small sleepy town. Not much there. It's not picturesque or artsy or anything. No shopping to speak of. The nearest shopping would be Gloucester. Also for big hospitals, the train links, concerts, etc., you would have to go to Gloucester. Chepstow is about 10 miles away, and part of the Wye valley, but most shops have closed down, and the high street now is charity shops, and Tesco. Most people in Chepstow go over the Severn bridge to Bristol, or Cribbs Causeway shopping. Which is quite handy, but then you have to pay a large toll for the bridge.

The Forest of Dean has some lovely scenery, but in past days it was also a coal mining area. The small towns of the forest were cut off, with small roads, and the locals have a very broad coarse sort of accent. It's not an artsy area by any means. The forest, with it's small roads, also makes getting to Hereford, etc. very difficult.

Lydney is a friendly nice town, but there is really not much there, and it's quite a drive to anything you might like to do. Most people would have been brought up around there. I personally wouldn't want to live there - but then I don't know what you are looking for.

Re: Forest of Dean
 

What's it infamous for?

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Thanks, sounds like just what we are looking for.

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What is it that you are looking for?

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In breeding

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Lydney is okay - it's not really in the forest per se. The local area, schools and such, is called "The Forest of Dean."

The villages of the forest would be somewhat like West Virginia. Very beautiful, but.........

Re: Forest of Dean
 

I lived in Cinderford for a while, many years ago. The school I worked in probably had a combined total of about 20 surnames (exaggeration of course, buts gives the gist). There were kids in Year 7 who were 'uncles' of kids in yr 11 etc.

'Outsiders' were still not considered as 'local' even after 15-20 years of living there.

The countryside/geography of the Forest is beautiful, but it is very parochial, and remote (in feeling if not geographically).

Lyndney was the big town down the Rd and slightly less like the scenario I describe.

I wouldn't live there again.

Re: Forest of Dean
 

Beautiful surroundings, relative isolation, a detached home on a decent block, a nice place for the kids to grow up. The usual stuff.

Re: Forest of Dean
 

As a result most of the villages in the Forest of Dean have their idiots. The northern part of the Forest of Dean area is also infamous for being the stomping ground of Fred and Rosemary West....doesn't come more infamous than that.

Not quite so infamous - most of the wood that formed part of the construction of the original Palace of Westminster / Houses of Parliament - pre May 1941 - came from the Forest of Dean.

The local accent is quite unique - a wee bit weird you might say.

In spite of its beautiful surroundings parts of the Forest of Dean District area was a thriving coal mining area - and some of the small towns and villages reflected this....a Labour party stronghold in the midst of the Tory heartlands.

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Why the Forest of Dean though? Do you have connections with South Wales/Gloucestershire?

There are lots of places in UK which fit this description which are probably more practicable and desirable.

If you want relative isolation why not Yorkshire, Dartmoor, Exmoor, many areas of Somerset, devon, Cornwall. If you want isolation, Scotland is your place.

Lydney is just a bit too impractical for travelling around UK elsewhere. Also, like others have said, although Lydney is slightly better than the other areas, there isn't much to do there unless you like the great outdoors and plan to do not much else than walking.

I am intrigued as to why you want isolation.

Re: Forest of Dean
 

The Forest of Dean just happens to be where a house we have seen is located, no real connection to the area. We are going to buy a house in either Somerset, Dorset or maybe Gloucestershire.
As i said we want 'relative' isolation, a village with basic amenities. I dont want to live in a cave on an island :lol:

Re: Forest of Dean
 

Having lived in the Forest of Dean and travelled fairly extensively around Devon and Somerset (as well as having covered virtually every square inch of it on Rightmove!) I would suggest you would be better going for Somerset or the Cotswold type areas of Gloucs.

There are lots of nice small villages elsewhere(look at Bratton Fleming or Swimbridge in Devon or Porlock/Watchet/Blue Anchor in Somerset) .

Looking at House prices, there isn't a lot of difference. The F o D is very much more out of the way for travelling

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Thanks, to be honest Somerset is easily at the top of our list and as you say the prices are very similar. I am really surprised by what we can get for our budget, detached, 4 beds, big garden etc. I think the house we saw in the FoD just had us looking elsewhere when we really shouldnt have :)

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nimby hell!

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Me!

I used to live the other side of the bridge in Almondsbury for a few years but used to travel up to Lydney fairly regularly, as I had two young sons at that time and the Forest of Dean railway was a major attraction.

Lovely part of the world and probably does tick all your boxes. Lydney itself isn't that much to write home about and if I had the choice I'd try and live closer to Chepstow than Lydney, but cost is obviously a factor.

I'd be more than happy to live in that general area.

Re: Forest of Dean
 

Thanks, it has been more or less decided that Somerset might be a better choice. We would need good access to main roads and it might just be a little too much off the beaten track (relatively speaking of course). We have a budget of 250k plus and there seems to be no shortage of suitable places in most SW regions.
Thanks everyone.

Re: Forest of Dean
 

Be wary of Watchet,not all is what it seems ! It looks picturesque to the visitor,but the houses are cheap for a reason. I lived there for a couple of years and it appears to be a dumping ground for society's unsavoury types. Asbo central as we nicknamed it. We had a loft conversion with velux windows and left them slightly open on a summers' evening - you could hear the cop cars circling around Watchet !! :rofl:
We moved to Bishops Lydeard shortly after ...

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What do you mean? Not in my back yard? in what way?

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Chris, we looked into moving to The forest of Dean several years ago as we loved camping there. I found the schools to be shockingly poor and there seemed to be lots of social problems.

Of the areas you are considering, I would (and did) choose Dorset. Great schools, beautiful scenery, good weather compared to elsewhere in UK.

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aaaahahaha I know the Forest very well. They don't take very kindly to outsiders. (I'm serious)

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Thanks, yes i think we have come around to that way of thinking as well. I would love Dorset but my wife wants to be a little farther north, Somerset :)