We’re going on a boar hunt...

A guide helps Wendy Gomersall enjoy getting up close to the Forest of Dean’s inhabitants

It was just a few minutes before dusk and we stood in a line at the edge of magnificent ancient woodland, peering in at giant gnarled moss-coated tree trunks, branches and tangled undergrowth, listening intently for the sound of snorts and snuffling. Where are they, we wondered…

We are in the Forest of Dean in Gloucestershire, which is home to wonderful creatures such as red kites and pretty fallow deer. And boar.

There are some 1,200 in the forests and we had booked a three-hour Wildlife Safari from the Tudor Farmhouse Hotel in Clearwell with naturalist Ed Drewitt in order to have the best chance of seeing some.

Our boars didn’t wait until it was dark to arrive. A group of adults and cute spotted babies appeared without ceremony, trotting across the track a few feet in front of us.

They did notice us, turning their heads to raise a curious snout in our direction, then trundling off unperturbed. What fantastic beasts they are – and a whole lot bigger than we’d expected, the size of a chunky German Shepherd dog, I reckoned.

Ed took us to see mud wallows where the boars cool off, places where they’d scraped around for food and little trails in and out of the deepest bits of forest.

Some residents of this former royal hunting ground have been grunting about what a pig’s ear the creatures have made of areas of the woodland as they churn up the soil in search of tasty roots to munch.

But, according to Ed, the porcine pests actually do more good than harm, as they turn the earth.

Like so many animal experts, Ed has fantastic eyesight, and during our walk we also saw twitching deer, bats flitting in the twilight and yes, more boar. One large mummy watched her little ones patter off down a path then turned, almost daring us to come nearer. Eventually satisfied we meant no harm, she bustled off after her babies.

Back at the Tudor Farmhouse after our boar trail, we enjoy a glass of wine and charcuterie boards with succulent local meats and cheeses.

The hotel, which lies in the pretty village of Clearwell, has an excellent restaurant. Breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea and dinner are served, and dishes feature food produce from within a 20-mile radius wherever possible.

How about twice-baked double Gloucester soufflé, pork belly with pickled pear, parsnip purée, pork rillettes and roasted onion and buttermilk pannacotta, honey and thyme plums, yummy...

There’s a great wine list, too, with English and Welsh wines among the wide choice, and delicious local beers and ciders, too.

You feel really well looked-after at the Tudor Farmhouse. The hotel has 20 elegantly furnished, very comfortable en suite rooms featuring bathrooms with roll top baths, monsoon showers and bedrooms with duck feather pillows and duvets, 300 count linen sheets and Nespresso coffee machines.

As well as the Wildlife Safari, other themed breaks such as foraging, flower-arranging, cycling, even forest bathing and chunky knitting, are on offer, and when you’re done with the boars or whatever, there are plenty of other attractions around here to make it worth staying a few days.

Clearwell Caves (clearwellcaves. com) close to the hotel have been

Clockwise from main: wild boar in the Forest of Dean; the exterior of the Tudor Farmhouse; a bedroom

mined for iron ore for more than 4,500 years.

Symonds Yat is well worth a visit – walk up to Symonds Yat Rock, 500ft above sea level and overlooking a spectacular gorge. Have lunch at the Saracen’s Head Inn afterwards. Its outdoor terraces are literally a few feet from the River Wye.

Do visit Puzzlewood, Coleford, a woodland with extraordinary tree and rock formations that’s been used as a filming location for TV and films including Doctor Who and Star Wars.

There are several companies offering canoeing, kayaking and paddle-boarding on the Wye – try canoethewye.co.uk. You never know who may be watching from the forest as you float along… ■

Tudor Farmhouse’s three-hour Wildlife Safari costs from £40pp, with charcuterie board and glass of wine. Join a group departure, see website for dates, or book a private excursion, from £150 for six people. Rooms from £129 per night with breakfast. Call 01594 833046, tudorfarmhousehotel.co.uk. For more on the Forest of Dean and the Wye Valley, visit wyedeantourism. co.uk

A group of adults and cute spotted babies trotted across the track