Tintern Abbey

This morning we explored the impressive ruins of Tintern Abbey, the first Cistercian monastery to be founded in Wales, back in 1131. It was greatly enlarged over the centuries and this Gothic Church was built in the 13th century replacing an earlier, smaller church. It is built of Old Red Sandstone which is prone to erosion so there is a lot of work being undertaken by Cadw to  conserve  the structure.  

Next we drove to the nearby  RSPB Nagshead Reserve. It is a lovely ancient woodland site home to lots of birds including Pied and Spotted Flycatchers, Hawfinches, and even Goshawks, but they had either  migrated or were  being very shy today, as we only  saw a  few  common birds!  
We also visited Woorgreens nature reserve, where the lake was very quiet with just a few House Martins  swooping down to take up water.

We finished the  day at The Miners Sling, near Coleford, where we are  staying the night.