It looks like I may be in Hayle for a week or so in September. Any tips on easyish walk-in type explores thereabouts?

Having grown up in Hayle, I can safely say not a lot in the immediate neighbourhood. There's the beach adits that open onto Carbis Bay close by but do not really go that far. Considering how central Hayle is in terms of mines and mining industry (central to Camborne/Redruth, St Ives, St Just etc) not a lot to offer in the way of workings.:(

---

Ah well, I expect as Mrs T will be recovering from chemo we'll be riding around in the car a bit so we will be venturing further afield at least part of the time.

I'll checkout the beach adits no doubt 😉

Give me a shout when you're down. I'll drag you down some holes.

Ah well, I expect as Mrs T will be recovering from chemo we'll be riding around in the car a bit so we will be venturing further afield at least part of the time.

I'll checkout the beach adits no doubt ;D

The one up at Hawks Point is slightly interesting and leads to a stope. The Carbis Bay open stope is worth a look. Beach height varies, sometimes its a walk in, sometimes a climb.

If you have full wet gear you might want to look at Wheal Margery while you round St Ives. Its on here.

---

Loosely connected to mining , the site of the National Explosives works on Hayle Towans (sand dunes) are worth a mooch around. There's the remains of the Nitroglycerine hill (Jack Straws Hill) as well as many other surface remains of what was a state of the art set-up that manufactured explosives for many of the later mines in the district as well as ordinance for WW1. Not so well known is that the site was previously that of the Boiling Well mine. Mainly lead but also 10'00oz silver. Only remains today are a line of adit shafts leading to the beach and last time I looked the refurbished engine shaft that was used to provide a water supply for the explosives works. Still had its timbering and was covered in steel sheet. Tried to access once but 'seen off'.

---

Anyone managed to drop an adit shaft?

Adit has no entry I can see.

---

Think they may well all have been 'treated' recently as the place is now a nature reserve.

---

Give me a shout when you're down. I'll drag you down some holes.

Excellent, will be September time :thumbsup: :flowers:

Ah well, I expect as Mrs T will be recovering from chemo we'll be riding around in the car a bit so we will be venturing further afield at least part of the time.

I'll checkout the beach adits no doubt ;D

The one up at Hawks Point is slightly interesting and leads to a stope. The Carbis Bay open stope is worth a look. Beach height varies, sometimes its a walk in, sometimes a climb.

If you have full wet gear you might want to look at Wheal Margery while you round St Ives. Its on here.

Sounds good :thumbup: Will try and take a look at Wheal Margery. Lots of pins in the map nearby but not many with photos so I assume no access.

Explosives works also sounds interesting, plenty to keep me busy by the look of it!

If you are interested in those works the book is worth getting.
This gives the history and site details of the explosive works.

http://www.moorebooks.co.uk/Cornish-Explosives-Second-Edition.html 

(Other booksellers are avaliable.) 🙂

Map of the works.:)

http://maps.nls.uk/view/105995575 

Map of the works.:)

http://maps.nls.uk/view/105995575 

If you get the book it will explain the buildings and operations. :smartass:

Its worth every penny.

---

Thanks Gentlemen, just added to birthday present list.:)

Well my holiday in Hayle came and went much too quickly, apologies for not catching up with all those who offered to meet up, Mrs T's cancer recovery and my recent medical issues meant many of our plans didn't quite come to fruition.

I did spot a level coming out onto the beach near where we were staying at Riviera Towans however and poked my nose in whilst on a stroll. I believe this was the drainage adit of Wheal Lucy? One afternoon when Mrs T was resting I did venture forth agsain armed with a torch to see how far it went. It deteriorated to a rather low crawl fairly quickly due to washed in beach shingle. After about 20' I noticed a seriously unpleasant sewage smell, since it was far to tight to turn around I backed out then returned to the entrance where I noticed the massive human turd I had crawled through on my way in and had been smearing up the sleeve of my jumper as I crawled.

I washed most off in the sea but the pointed looks and raised eyebrows on my return discouraged any further exploration. Fortunately there was a washing machine where we were staying.

The point being I never reached a conclusion to the level - anyone been up in more sanitary conditions?

Ah the joys of West Cornwall in the holiday season and the tale of a loo too far. As far as I am aware all of the adits from Wheal Lucy that exit in the cliffs are blocked by falls/sand etc. There is or was one with a portal next to the steps leading onto the beach that could be crawled in but only to reach a blockage further in. I seem to remember this being caused by sewage works several years ago. Other than a few lumps and bumps in the dunes, there is little left to see today. The large car park opposite the 'Bluff' is a levelled burrow. Most of the other remains have been lost under holiday chalets etc. There is supposedly a tunnel leading from the workings under the hill and coming out in the basement of Riviere House. Interesting link to mining there is that Humphrey Davy used the basement as a lab for a while.

---

It was the portal at the bottom of the steps that I entered. It didn't look like I had reached the end but it's possible it was blocked just around the corner of course!

This was the beach level entrance by the steps on my first visit.
🔗108415[linkphoto]108415[/linkphoto][/link


This is as far as I got when I realised I was smeared in Poo and the whole venture lost it's appeal. The photo doesn't show it very well but beyond the visible plastic bottle there is about 4" of water on the floor covered in broken up floating polystyrene. It looked to me like the level turned slightly to the right, I certainly didn't see a definite conclusion (the level is a flat out crawl at this point). Since this level was en-route to the little shop I did pass it again a couple of times and hoped perhaps that high tide would have removed the 'offering' but sadly not :thumbdown:
🔗108416[linkphoto]108416[/linkphoto][/link]