Groes Y Ddwy Afon · AditNow Community

LAP
50.2% (Neutral)
Newbie Topic Starter

17 years ago

Some interesting looking tunnels in the side of this pit 😉

[img]http://www.aditnow.co.uk/showimage?f=/community/Groes-Y-Ddwy-Afon-Slate-Mine-User-Album-Image-002/[/img]

Kein geneis kanaf - Cain gnais canaf
Byt vndyd mwyhaf - byth onddyth moyav
Lliaws a bwyllaf - Líows o boylav
Ac a bryderaf - ac o boryddarav
Kyfarchaf y veird byt - covarcav yr vairth
Pryt nam dyweid - poryth na'm dowaith
Py gynheil y byt - Pa gonail y byth
Na syrch yn eissywyt - na soroc yn eishoyth
Neur byt bei syrchei - nour byth bai sorochai

Vanoord
54.4% (Neutral)
Newbie

17 years ago

#2

Probably a flooded chamber? Looks like there's another one at back left of the pit.

Anyone know an alternative name for this, incidentally: I can't find it in the gazetteer, although that might just be because the printers decided to omit it for no particular reason...

Presumably we're looking here: http://www.flashearth.com/?lat=52.964142&lon=-3.858289&z=16.7&r=0&src=msl

Hello again darkness, my old friend...

merddinemrys
50.2% (Neutral)
Newbie

17 years ago

#3

Yes, that's correct location - last worked in the 1980's by men who were on strike from Oakeley if I remember correctly. The correct name is Croes y Ddwy Afon - it is in AJR's Slate Regions of North and Mid Wales and their Railways.

Its somewhere that I keep meaning to return to - there are levels in open chambers that are accesible if I remember correctly.

LAP
50.2% (Neutral)
Newbie Topic Starter

17 years ago

#4

"merddinemrys" wrote:
Yes, that's correct location - last worked in the 1980's by men who were on strike from Oakeley if I remember correctly. The correct name is Croes y Ddwy Afon - it is in AJR's Slate Regions of North and Mid Wales and their Railways.

Its somewhere that I keep meaning to return to - there are levels in open chambers that are accesible if I remember correctly.

Sounds interesting. It it at all big underground or just an open quarry with the odd chamber/level?

cheers

Kein geneis kanaf - Cain gnais canaf
Byt vndyd mwyhaf - byth onddyth moyav
Lliaws a bwyllaf - Líows o boylav
Ac a bryderaf - ac o boryddarav
Kyfarchaf y veird byt - covarcav yr vairth
Pryt nam dyweid - poryth na'm dowaith
Py gynheil y byt - Pa gonail y byth
Na syrch yn eissywyt - na soroc yn eishoyth
Neur byt bei syrchei - nour byth bai sorochai

Vanoord
54.4% (Neutral)
Newbie

17 years ago

#5

You beat me to it!

Yes, worked in the late 1980s by workers displaced from Oakeley, then sold and 'vigorously' untopped in the 1990s. Now abandoned and flooded.

Slightly surprising it's not drained somehow, as it would have been a lot of hassle to continually pump it, but (a) untopping may have blocked the (drainage) adit; and (b) originally slate was uphauled, which suggests there may not have been a low adit.

Not having checked the OS map, I'd guess it's pretty flat around there?

Probably worth a visit on a winter's afternoon, if only to confirm that all the chambers are flooded. I have a supply of about 20 little dinghies somewhere...

Hello again darkness, my old friend...

merddinemrys
50.2% (Neutral)
Newbie

17 years ago

#6

I don't think there would be low adit - if there was it would be very long. It appears on a documentary I have on video called Blaenau Rock if you fancy borrowing it sometime.

LAP
50.2% (Neutral)
Newbie Topic Starter

17 years ago

#7

"Vanoord" wrote:
You beat me to it!

Yes, worked in the late 1980s by workers displaced from Oakeley, then sold and 'vigorously' untopped in the 1990s. Now abandoned and flooded.

Slightly surprising it's not drained somehow, as it would have been a lot of hassle to continually pump it, but (a) untopping may have blocked the (drainage) adit; and (b) originally slate was uphauled, which suggests there may not have been a low adit.

Not having checked the OS map, I'd guess it's pretty flat around there?

Probably worth a visit on a winter's afternoon, if only to confirm that all the chambers are flooded. I have a supply of about 20 little dinghies somewhere...

cheers both

On the pic it looks as if only the top of the chambers can be seen - so maybe it's flooded almost up to the tops of their roofs??

Kein geneis kanaf - Cain gnais canaf
Byt vndyd mwyhaf - byth onddyth moyav
Lliaws a bwyllaf - Líows o boylav
Ac a bryderaf - ac o boryddarav
Kyfarchaf y veird byt - covarcav yr vairth
Pryt nam dyweid - poryth na'm dowaith
Py gynheil y byt - Pa gonail y byth
Na syrch yn eissywyt - na soroc yn eishoyth
Neur byt bei syrchei - nour byth bai sorochai

hymac580c
50.2% (Neutral)
Newbie

17 years ago

#8

The tunnel you see is the top of a chamber. There are about 3 chambers in the flooded pit. There was a road down originally to the bottom. Water was pumped out as the original tunnel/adit was collapsed. We have been on a boat a few years ago, but not a lot to see. But water is very deep.
Last worked by Natiowide slate products who at that time worked Cwmorthin on the surface and Foelgron on the opposite side of the road to Groes. Surprisingly sand and gravel was also quarried at Foelgron. Closed approx 1993 and everything was leveled out (national park).
When the quarry was working I had planned to take some photos when I did a couple of jobs for them, but sadly I did not.

Bellach dim ond swn y gwynt yn chwibian, lle bu gynt yr engan ar cynion yn tincian.