Me too. It's on one of my favourite bike rides too... the road up to Monmouth is a great day out from Bristol.

Agreed. I used to drop my son up to Hereford from Bristol and often took this scenic route. It’s an absolutely beautiful road with great scenery. When you come around the corner and get hit by the sight and sheer size of the ruined church especially when there’s a bit of mist with the sun streaming through it it’s almost a mystical experience.

Favourite place name near here? Nempnett Thrubwell. Or Chew Magna. Great names.

Nice to learn I wasn't the only one to be suddenly surprised by the appearance of the Abbey out of the gloomy mist. See my comment elsewhere about my trip to Oxford where I came across it quite by accident. The other impression that stuck with me is how rural the area is which contrasts quite sharply with the size, intricacy and complexity of the Abbey's construction.

That was by design: From the wikipedia page: The monks that built it were "considered the strictest of the monastic orders, they laid down requirements for the construction of their abbeys, stipulating that "none of our houses is to be built in cities, in castles or villages; but in places remote from the conversation of men."