Symonds Yat is a village in the Forest of Dean and a popular tourist destination, straddling the River Wye and the borders of the English counties of Herefordshire and Gloucestershire, it is within a few miles of the Welsh border. The name is said to come from Robert Symonds, a 17th century sheriff of Herefordshire and "yat" as an old word for a gate or pass.[1]
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The Yat Gorge was mined for iron ore and remains of a smelting works are located down stream of the Symonds Yat Rapids.[2] The ironworks at New Weir date from the 1590s and were operated by the White family until 1753, George White leased the site to John Partridge, an ironmonger from Ross on Wye. Partridge combined the ironworks at New Weir with his forge at Lydbrook which smelted pig iron from his furnace at Bishopswood.[3] The works closed when the lease ran out in 1798 and the adjacent weir and lock buildings were demolished and the lock filled in 1814.[3]
In April 2009 Herefordshire Archaeology excavated New Weir Iron Works at Symonds Yat West to establish how the iron works functioned between the start of smelting in and the decline of the works in the 1800s. It was found that the works included a 'slitting mill', for making wire nails and a rolling mill powered by water wheels.[4]
The Old Court Hotel in Symonds Yat West, which was built in the 16th century,[5] was the ancestral home of the Gwillim family and was home to John Graves Simcoe, who was governor and one of the founding fathers of Upper Canada.[6]
Symonds Yat East is on the Gloucestershire side of the river, it has two hotels, a canoe hire centre and the Saracens Head public house. A footpath leads from the village up to Symonds Yat Rock. Another footpath and a cycleway, constructed on a former railway line, runs on the eastern bank to Monmouth.
Symonds Yat West is on the Herefordshire side and has a large caravan and camping site, as well as a small amusement park.[7] Symonds Yat West also has visitor attractions including a maze built in 1977 to commemorate the Silver Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II,[8] and the Wye Valley Butterfly Zoo.[9]
Two hand ("pull") cable ferries enable foot passengers to cross the river, powered by ferrymen who pulls the ferry across the river using an overhead cable.[10] The only connection by road is upstream over Huntsham bridge; this is a five mile trip. One ferry is operated by the Saracens Head Inn and the other is operated by the Old Ferry Inn.
A suspension bridge was built over the river by the Forestry Commission using local oak timbers in 1957. Linking Symonds Yat East to the Biblins camp site, the bridge was fully refurbished in 1997 and rotten timbers and the two support towers were replaced. Although it is designed to take up to 30 people, it has a sign requesting that no more than 6 cross at a time.[11]
Symonds Yat Rock overlooks a spectacular gorge through which the River Wye snakes. This rock is the perfect viewpoint from which to watch raptors. Pride of place goes to a pair of Peregrine Falcons that nest annually within sight of the rock, and can be watched through telescopes set up by the RSPB. Buzzard, Goshawk and Hobby are regularly seen, too, and migrant raptors such as Osprey and Honey Buzzard are possible.
The River Wye at Symonds Yat has cut a deep gorge in the Carboniferous Limestone exposing impressive cliff faces. At nearby 'King Arthur's cave' on the Great Doward, there have been important archaeological discoveries including the remains of a hyena family and Sabre-toothed Cat bones.
Tourist activities include canoeing and kayaking down the rapids, boat trips, a maze, an oriental garden and four country pubs which are the Old Court, The Saracens Head Inn, The Ferry Inn and the Wyenot.
Symonds Yat was featured on the 2005 TV programme Seven Natural Wonders as one of the wonders of the West Country. A scene from the movie Shadowlands was filmed at Symonds Yat Rock, with the view of the Wye Valley in the background, but it was meant to be another location within the plot of the film.
Symonds Yat Rapids are a grade 2 man-made feature at Symonds Yat used by canoeists and kayakers for whitewater training and playboating.[12]