Ebbor Gorge

It's been a few years since I last visited Ebber Gorge. Tucked away in woodland on the Mendip Hills, Ebbor is a lovely spot, less well known than Cheddar, and in many respects better for it. A compact 350 million year old limestone gorge engulfed by woodland, it's a wonderful place; very Robin of Sherwood. The gorge has been popular with humans since the palaeolithic, with evidence of later Neolithic occupation and possibly Bronze Age too. It must have been a special place, being on the edge of two worlds, of the Mendip hills and the wetland world of the levels. In more recent times the gorge has been blighted with Ash Die back (Hymenoscyphus fraxineus), resulting in the loss of trees; fortunately the natural aspect and atmosphere of the place are little affected, and it remains magical walking. I read that the Ash (Fraxinus excelsior) is fighting back, with saplings growing in some infected areas developing a degree of resistance to the fungi. Here's hoping, eh.

Ash die back

Ash Die Back or Charala (Hymenoscyphus fraxineus) got a foot hold in British forests because our national bio-security has been piss poor, too often trumped by commercial interests and the pursuit of profit; and it's not the only disease or pest threatening our flora and fauna either. Ash (Fraxinus) makes up 20% of British woodland, that's a lot of threatened woodland, man; and scientists suggest up to 90% of our Ash trees could be lost! Ash dominated the woodlands known as 'Under Win Green' and 'Water Gutter' which cling to the combes below Win Green Clump, today though they're a sorry sight. I first explored these woods whilst on a hazelnut collecting mission some 30 years ago; I've always liked exploring, and there weren't the 'Private' signs there are now....well, I didn't see them.  It's terrible to see these and other woodlands so badly ravaged by Ash Die Back, but more than that, it's infuriating knowing it probably could've been avoided, or at least abated with due diligence. I'm old enough to remember the carnage wreaked by Dutch Elm Disease; it's inconceivable to think we didn't learn and therefore are destined to relive the experience.