Pegasus Caving Club have just posted a huge article about the history of the exploration of Hollandtwine Mine in Castleton, now buried and lost. There's even super-8 footage ;)

https://www.pegasuscavingclub.org/hollandtwine-mine 

That was a great read, really enjoyed it!

What a shame it was destroyed after all that effort.

Thanks, a great read, I also enjoyed. Shame also...

One thing I love about these historical accounts in the no fuss normal accounts of using a pound of bang. Think of the Draconian legal situation today if anyone got caught (11th commandment!). I suppose back then people could access abandoned mining gelignite whereas today anything abandoned in the 50s is likely so sweated and unstable as to be potential suicide to pick it up (to repurpose for clearing boulders). Expansive demolition grout just isn't the same.

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I'm sure Les can shed more light, but in those days a lot of cavers had working connections with the mining industry, and many had explosive licenses as a result (or coincidentally). So as long as you had your ticket, and a supply, there wasn't much to worry about. You can still use bang if you've got the ticket. There's probably as many minor earthquakes in Mendip caused by cavers as tectonics ;)

And realistically, given where it is, most things can be done quite easily - the landowners get away with most things, after all, as do off-roaders (though I hear through the grapevine the Moss Rakers have all been arrested and charged - yes).

And if you're underground, who's ever going to know unless someone dies? As they pointed out in the article, none of the university lecturers were bothered about verifying their survey accuracy 😉

I've heard tales of the Eldon PC mounting nocturnal "collecting" trips into Sallet Hole Mine many years ago in order to get hold of Dr. Nobel's instant excavator for their digs! Probably in the days before the authorities started taking a close interest in how securely bang was kept...:o

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Back in the '80s I can recall at least 6 of us cavers working at Sallet hole, we all had official bang licenses and knew where it was kept underground -----:sneaky:

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We still have the occasional nocturnal "whump"....or at least we did pre-Covid 😞

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Life was much easier in those days. None of the explosives used was old stuff, it was all new and mainly legal.
I applied for my first private use licence on my 18th birthday and it was backed up by a letter from my colliery manager saying I had been trained to use it. You could keep 10lb of explosives and up to 100 detonators (separately!) at home. I was visited by the police explosives man who suggested I keep it in a cool place, our pantry, and chained to the gas meter for security.

A nice historical article by Cheg. In the photo of the two winches recovering the tackle, I am the bloke laid down at the shaft collar in the wool hat.

Les

What killed private use certificates for most of us was the Control of Explosives Regulations (COER 91) in 1991. Amongst other things, this upped the security requirement needed to acquire & keep explosives for private use. The minimum standard imposed by most UK police forces, included a requirement for a Red Care monitored alarm. Pretty well overnight, this priced most private users out of having a licence. As an aside, it also closed our local explosives dealers magazines, as the cost of updating to the new commercial spec. was prohibitively high.

I had a stroke of luck in early 92 when the analytical instrument company that I worked for, transferred me to the division that made explosives detectors. I became the signatory to the UK offices explosive licence & our store complied with COER91. My private use certificate (& employer) allowed me to use the store, so I was back in business. Not only that but it also gave me a ready supply of free gelignite, courtesy of the Police! We were regular visitors to the branch that tested new Police (& certain other organisations) equipment, which of course included explosives detectors. This meant they had to keep explosives, including gelignite with which to trial it & gelignite has a limited shelf life. Getting rid of it was a first class PITA, so some Charlie tuning up regularly, who could cart it off for them FOC & legally was just the thing. Of course that someone was me & they had a lot. Most of it was 100g sticks of SG80 & just the job, so all I had to buy was the dets.

When I left in 94 I lost the storage facility (& free bang) & that was the end of using H.E. So, I applied for a new certificate to use black powder, as the storage requirements are less onerous. Most of the old mines were worked with it, so I reckoned it would do me for the odd bits I needed to do. Suffice it to say, it does & quite well.

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Just watched the super 8 footage, I don't think we'd clear the ground around an open shaft top for recapping these days without everyone being clipped on to a safety line!:o

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...a new certificate to use black powder, as the storage requirements are less onerous. Most of the old mines were worked with it, so I reckoned it would do me for the odd bits I needed to do. Suffice it to say, it does & quite well.

Having a shotgun certificate makes applying a lot easier as a lot of the control measures are very similar and it's usually the same licensing team so you are already known to them. If you have a shotgun that is proofed for BP then they already think that is probably why you are applying for the BP licence.
You can then generally store up to 10kg but NOT with the guns, separate box. Dets or fuse in a separate place again.
Strangely I have only ever had 2 random spot checks at home generated by my shotgun licence in the last 30 years, the last one about 5 years ago when I moved house, but on neither occasion were they interested in the BP....

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