Goblin Combe is a gorge, which was formed during the last ice age by melting snow and ice cutting into limestone. It is located to the east of the village of Cleeve. The site is comprised of a steep sided dry valley with extensive areas of limestone scree, areas of semi-natural ancient woodland, unimproved calcareous grassland and limestone heath. These types of habitat are rare in England and Goblin Combe was designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest in 1999. How the valley came to be called Goblin Combe is not entirely certain. In the past it was also known as Gobble Combe and Eagle’s Combe
Most of Goblin Combe and the limestone grassland to the
north of it is a nature reserve, which is owned and managed by Avon Wildlife
Trust. A public footpath runs along the
bottom of the combe and there are a number of other permissive paths in the
nature reserve and in the adjacent woods at the east end of the combe.
The woodland consists mainly of oak and ash trees with some beech,
field maple, yew, whitebeam and hazel. In the dim light at the bottom of the
combe ferns such as hart’s tongue and the rarer limestone and moonwort ferns
grow. The nationally scarce stinking hellebore grows on the limestone screes.
Over 30 types of butterfly have been found in the vicinity
of Goblin Combe, including some rare varieties: grizzled and dingy skippers; silver
washed and dark green fritillaries; purple and green hairstreaks; brown argus,
grayling and white admiral. Dormice and
greater horseshoe bats also live in the combe.
Visitors are however unlikely to encounter any goblins!
The ramparts of an ancient hillfort can be seen at Cleeve
Toot to the north west of Goblin Combe.
It is thought to date from the late Bronze or early Iron Age. 150
metres to the north of the hillfort are the remains of another smaller ancient settlement.
Goblin Combe Environment Centre, which was located in a
Victorian former school building on Plunder Street at the west end of the
combe, provided learning and outdoor experiences for schools, clubs, youth and
community groups but closed down in 2018. The future of the building is currently uncertain.
The peace and quiet of the combe is broken intermittently by
planes flying low overhead, as Goblin Come is very close to the western end of
Bristol Airport’s runway.
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