edited by Allan ThomasThe River Wye rises in the mid-Wales hills and meanders southwards to join the Severn at Chepstow. It flows through the Wye Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and, in its lower reaches below Monmouth, it enters the beautiful Gorge Valley of the Lower Wye. The steeply wooded hills on both banks guard the river and create one of the most beautiful landscapes in the UK.This delightful book contains sixteen walks, all devised and written by members of the Lower Wye Ramblers who have intimate knowledge of the area and know all the best walks. It includes Ordnance Survey based detailed coloured sketch maps of the routes and step-by-step navigation instructions. Key points are numbered in the text and on the maps. There is a gradient profile included with the maps. Distance and start location with grid reference are given and the book also contains some stunning full colour photographs.In the woods, depending upon the season, you may enjoy the sight of wild flowers; swathes of wood anemone, yellow celandine, purple violets, bluebells, daffodils and the sight and sent of wild garlic; or you may even see deer. By the river you may catch a glimpse of the bright blue kingfisher flashing across the water, or the leaping salmon in the pools upstream from Bigsweir bridge or see the darting dippers in the small streams.Above the woods graceful buzzards may be seen, effortlessly soaring in the thermals. There are lovely views looking down into the valley from the ridges above and, looking northwards, you can see the distant hills of the Black Mountains and to the south the River Severn estuary and its bridges.The walk locations are:1 Monmouth Meander - 9 miles2 Redbrook and Penallt - 5 miles3 Newland and Redbrook, Cathedral of the Forest - 5 miles4 Redbrook, Newland and a forgotten valley - 5.5 miles5 Loysey Woods - 2.5 miles6 Trellech, where the Curlew calls - 5.5 miles7 Whitebrook wander - 5 miles8 Whitestone, Manor Wood and Cleddon Falls - 7 miles9 St Briavels and the common - 8.5 miles10 Brockweir, riverside and woods - 5 miles11 Catbrook and Parkhouse - 6.25 miles12 Tintern and Brockweir - 4.5 or 6 miles13 Tintern, Abbey and early ironworks - 5 miles14 Chepstow Park Wood - 4.7 miles15 Eagles Nest and Gaer Hill - 5 miles16 Chepstow and Lancaut Peninsula