The reopening of the mines
First I would like the thank everyone who managed to attend, being bank holiday and at such short notice. Especially D Tyson without whose petrol driven angle grinder the work would have been tenfold.
The first call was at Level Fawr where the existing grill was cut down to waist height and the removed upper section laid over the pipe one crawls through to gain access.
I hunted down a length of timber which was wedged upright in the portal and fixed one of my warning notices, “Disused Mine Workings. Danger of death. No Public admittance”
The Trust regards properly equipped explorers as not being members of the general public, that is our meaning here.
Next we walked up Nant yr Onnnen and removed the grill that covers Taylors Level. The intention is to clear this and fit a gate inside, eventually. Next we reopened Aldersons Level. Here the top and left hand fixings where cut allowing the grill to swing on the right hand fixings in the way of a gate, a pile of rocks keeps it secure. Herberts Level was treated in similar fashion. On the other side of the stream a couple of bars were removed from the grill over Kings Adit which were refitted using fencing wire to re secure the entrance. The lower Queens has no grill, it is just fenced.
There are other levels which will need to be reopened, Evans and Rosa notably, but this can be left to another day.
Will people visiting the mines please ensure that the entrances are left secure, use rocks or whatever to prevent casual entry.
I have also explored each of the levels re opened, and her are my comments.
1/ Level Fawr. I explored all of the level and also climbed up through the stopes using the fixed ladders at the back, they are quite spectacular with powerful lighting.
The second tube is a bit awkward, the knack is to roll over onto your hip and pull yourself through by grasping the cut in the tube. All appears OK, the ladders I ascended are still sound but a heavy timber above the incline is in a noticeably worse condition than it was years ago. This is seen by climbing the short ladder and following the ‘patch’ that curves up into the stope. I spend some time pondering on this and cannot see a solution except concreting the rear part in with a heavy support coming in off the cheek of the hanging. This could be heavy timber, say part of a telegraph pole, or an RSJ. I don’t know, if anyone has any ideas, let’s hear them. The picture is as was years ago, its worse now.
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I think that this work should be done along with putting a road through the collapse so that the second tube becomes an emergency exit.
2/Taylors Level. I explored this in a full wet suit as it looked like upper chest deep water, its not, its just over the belt. I have lowered it a bit more. I have put a warning notice by the right hand branch with the bad air, “Deadly Gas in right hand branch”, quite explicit.
Further in there are quite a few artefacts and a galvanised air ducting, I noticed that an Ammonal tin that was there years ago has grown legs.
There is a left branch that goes through a lightly stoped area to a pitch down to the inner reaches of level Fawr below, inbye of the falls. This has three stainless bolts that look 10mm, no nuts or hangers through.
3/ Aldersons Level this is easy explored in boots. I remembered heavy roof timbers and thought that there was a timber roof which formed a false floor of Herberts above, I was wrong. The heavy timbers support the cheeks of the stope. The level is in very good condition and appears quite stable as well as being very interesting.
4/ Herberts Level is cross cut to the lode where it becomes very spectacular, particularly where it cuts Herbets Stope where daylight floods in. There is false floor there to the left as you enter the vein but it appears quite sound, there is a flooded understope below which obviously cannot connect with Aldersons else it would drain.
Near the daylight end the water disappears down a hole in the floor, looking down one can see the heavy timbers in Aldersons below, where the water makes a spectacular waterfall. The floor here is quite solid.
An interesting weekend. On Saturday evening there were a lot of people and cars below the road in the mill area. One group had managed to drive down to the river where they were having a barbecue and had lit a fire. Although nice people I will have to have this access blocked as it’s an SSSI due to the occurrence of a rare moss which only grows there in the whole of the British Isles.
Because of the SSSI I cannot allow camping, fires, or driving onto the land, everything will be attended to in good time.
Also, if anyone wants to gain entry to levels that are still sealed with grills, please don’t do anything without contacting me first. There are a lot of levels that end in falls after short distance and may as well be left as they are.
Pughes Adit, sorry it highly polluted water so no entry here at all. Someone explored it years ago and reported that it ends in a collapse anyway.
Day Level below the run in Jackilas Adit is not grilled but is fenced.
Bonsalls Level. This needs to be located and the entrance cleared and secured. I was in there years ago, getting in was quite dodgy due to stuff coming down hillside from above.
Finally, I hope to stat seeing underground photos on here soon.
My avatar is a poor likeness.