The Gloucester Speleological Society
For nearly seventy years the GSS has explored, surveyed and protected the caves and disused mines of the Forest of Dean and Cotswolds — from bat studies and cave rescue to some of the most significant British cave discoveries of the last decade.
We're a friendly, active club welcoming everyone from curious first-timers to seasoned explorers, with regular meets, training and equipment loan to get you underground.
Our Founding
The GSS was formed in July 1956 following earlier ad hoc underground activities by two groups of Gloucester and Cheltenham school boys/scouts. The school boys had been inspired not only by a spirit of adventure but by scientific curiosity about caves and local mines in the Cotswolds and Forest of Dean. Some of them had found a rare Bechstein’s bat dying on the street in Gloucester and their science teacher further reinforced that inspiration, such that bat studies remained a core GSS interest and activity for many decades following.
The GSS was integral to the formation of the Gloucestershire Cave Rescue Group and to establish a first class rescue depot and training centre at Cinderford, with the majority of active GSS members serving on it.
Exploration Today
Over the years GSS’s core interests and activities have generally remained within the Forest of Dean and Cotswolds with exploration and digging activities in many caves and disused mines. The Society’s founders had been quick to recognise karst swallets and springs in the Forest of Dean and the GSS had many digging projects which by the mid-1990’s had already contributed to the Forest’s 35+km of natural caves. During the last 5 years a major rejuvenation has taken place with scientific work, resurveying and exploration digging yielding major finds in the Slaughter Catchment, which is on-going.
The realisation of an integrated Symonds Yat Cave System is within our grasp, comprising Slaughter Stream Cave, Redhouse Lane Swallet and other caves totalling more than 26km in length. As a result, today the Forest caves include Otter Hole, one of the most beautifully decorated caves in the UK, the Wet Sink-Slaughter Stream Cave, which at 14.5km is the UK’s longest cave formed in dolomite and the neighbouring Redhouse Lane Swallet, which has been extended by almost 10km to over 11.2km within the last 24 months. These caves contain many interesting geological and speleogenetic features, such as unworked iron ore veins and manganese deposits and they form a marvellous sporting and exploration challenge.
Mines & Archaeology
Many Forest Iron mines and Cotswold stone mines have also been the subject of GSS exploration digging, surveying, conservation and archaeology, such as at Old Ham, Noxon Park, Whittington and Windrush.
Beyond the Forest
Gloucester is well located for travel onwards to many other UK caving regions and the GSS holds frequent recreational and sporting caving trips not only to the local areas already mentioned, but to South Wales, the Mendips, Derbyshire, Yorkshire and Assynt in Scotland. Foreign activities have included GSS led expeditions to Montenegro and Namibia and participation in caving expeditions to Meghalaya India.
Interested? Join us!
The GSS attracts most of its members from the Gloucester and Cheltenham area and holds regular caving meets. We welcome new members who have an interest in the underground — induction, training and equipment loan are available. Get in touch at info@gloucester-speleo.org .