Goblin Combe is a

dry valley A dry valley may develop on many kinds of permeable rock, such as limestone, chalk, sand stone and sandy terrains that do not regularly sustain surface water flow. Such valleys do not hold surface water because it sinks into the permeable bed ...

North Somerset North Somerset is a unitary authorities of England, unitary authority in the ceremonial county of Somerset, England. The council is based in Weston-super-Mare, the area's largest town. The district also contains the towns of Clevedon, Nailsea ...

which stretches for approximately 3½ km from Redhill, near Bristol International Airport on the A38, through to Cleeve on the A370. The combe is located at (), and is a

biological Site of Special Scientific Interest A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain, or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland, is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle ...

(SSSI) originally notified in 1999, with being managed as a

nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, funga, or features of geologic ...

by the Avon Wildlife Trust. The Combe runs along the southern edge of a large woodland. "Combe" is the same as the Welsh word "cwm" which means valley. Above the valley is Cleeve Toot an

Iron Age The Iron Age () is the final epoch of the three historical Metal Ages, after the Chalcolithic and Bronze Age. It has also been considered as the final age of the three-age division starting with prehistory (before recorded history) and progre ...

hillfort. It is a roughly oval settlement which is approximately in length by in breadth. Approximately to the north is another, smaller settlement. They are thought to have been a satellite community of nearby Cadbury Hill Pits have been found at the site indicating the presence of round houses. There is a single stone rampart with a broad shallow outer ditch. There is also a prehistoric or Roman field system. Goblin Combe 2

Folk tale

Goblin Combe has a folk tale involving primroses:

“There was a parcel of children and they was a-picking primroses, see, and one poor little dear her wandered away on her lone self right down into Goblin Combe. She were only a little trot, see, and didn't know no better. Well, when she do find she's a lost she cries, and the tears do run down her dear little face, and dap on her pinafore like summer rain, and she do throw her self against a rock. Then the rock opens and there's the fairies all come to comfort her tears. They do give her a gold ball and they lead the dear little soul safe home – on account she was carrying primroses, see. Well, twas the wonder of the village and the conjuror he gets the notion he'd aget his fists on more than one gold ball when next the fairies opened the hill. So he do pick a bunch of primroses and he go on up Goblin Combe, and he was glad enough to get in to the rock after all he see and hear on the way up. Well, twasn't the right day, nor the right number of primroses, and he wasn't no dear little soul – so they took him!“

Flora and fauna

A population of the nationally scarce plant

stinking hellebore ''Helleborus foetidus'', known variously as stinking hellebore , dungwort, setterwort and bear's foot, is a species of flowering plant in the buttercup family Ranunculaceae, native to the mountainous regions of Central and Southern Europe and As ...

(''Helleborus foetidus'') grows on scree slopes in the combe, near Cleeve Toot; it is

native Native may refer to: People * '' Jus sanguinis'', nationality by blood * '' Jus soli'', nationality by location of birth * Indigenous peoples, peoples with a set of specific rights based on their historical ties to a particular territory ** Nat ...

at this site. Limestone fern (''Gymnocarpum robertianum''), another nationally scarce plant, is also found here on limestone scree. Other flowers include the autumn gentian, autumn ladies'-tresses and yellow-wort. The site also supports a varied collection of

butterflies Butterflies are winged insects from the lepidopteran superfamily Papilionoidea, characterized by large, often brightly coloured wings that often fold together when at rest, and a conspicuous, fluttering flight. The oldest butterfly fossi ...

, with over 30 species recorded. These include grizzled and dingy skippers, brown argus and green hairstreak.

Goblin Combe Environment Centre

Goblin Combe Environment Centre is a registered charity (No 1099543) which provides educational training and residential facilities for visiting groups. It is located within a large expanse of woodland ridges at the start of Goblin Combe. The centre's aim is to provide a wide range of environmental education to all ages and all sectors of the community. It uses the woods to provide a teaching space in a 'classroom without walls', and a dynamic learning environment for natural history.

Sources

English Nature citation sheet for the site
(accessed on 16 July 2006)

References

External links

{{SSSIs Avon biological Sites of Special Scientific Interest in North Somerset Sites of Special Scientific Interest notified in 1999 Nature reserves in Somerset Somerset folklore Valleys of Somerset