Bixslade

It begins on high ground at Bixhead, near Broadwell, and descends sharply to meet the Cannop Valley at Stonyhill Green.

The Forest of Dean sits on a basin plateau, formed of a fractured asymmetrical syncline composed of Upper Palaeozoic rocks from the Silurian, Devonian and Carboniferous periods.

A wide range of natural habitats exist in the valley, including deciduous and coniferous woodland, open glades and wet areas.

Underground workings provide a habitat for greater and lesser horseshoe bats, whilst disused quarries are especially suited to reptiles, lichens, mosses, liverworts and ferns.

The earliest surviving documents record quarrying activity at Bixhead, the highest point of Bixslade, from the 15th century onwards, although extraction is likely to have taken place long before this date.

Larger blocks from Bixhead and Mine Train are transported by road to be processed in a nearby stoneworks at Cannop Ponds, whilst Monument Quarry mostly produces walling stone.