Brownley Hill Round Trip via High Level

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Mr Mike
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Newbie Topic Starter

11 years ago

Has anyone done this recently, was thinking of doing it soon.

I know there was a fall Chris and Rich cleared a while back on the Brownley Hill Vein - last news I heard.

Mr Mike www.mineexplorer.org.uk

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RJV
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11 years ago

No idea, haven't been for ages.

Last time we went through the dodgy bit on BH vein was that day you were messing about with your maypole in there - about a year ago? It was fine then but were only poking around in the Moss Cross Vein area, didn't go up to the high level.

One thing I did notice when myself Colonel Mustard & SimonRL last did the round trip approx 18 months back was that somebody had done a substantial job of clearing some of the shale where it got tightest on the High Level near Jug Vein.
_____

Edit - having checked it was actually about two years ago when we were last there! Time flies... Rich

Mr Mike
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11 years ago

We did this on the weekend. A few fresh falls of roof (thin slabs) on the High Level, nothing too bad.

However, on the way out just a few metres west of BH Moss XV, I caught a loose key stone in a section of arching coming out of it and about 0.5m of it fell in on top of me. No damage, but a bit of a shock. We rebuilt the sides to keep shale roof at bay, but just be careful on approach.

Also a bit further on, on way out, there is a pinched in section of arching (you have to go on hands and knees through it in water) and the exit is a right angle into the shale falls above. In the section of arching, the roof has got a really bad sagging under hang in it, much more so than I remember from last time going through it (around 2 years) - be careful.

Ropes on Jug Vein, High Level to Horse Level are dated 1992, maybe a change is needed?

Mr Mike www.mineexplorer.org.uk

christwigg
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Newbie

11 years ago

Glad to hear you got nothing worse than a fright.

Theres a lot of bad ground around that whole area, the whole lot needs to be given plenty of respect.

RJV
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11 years ago

"Mr Mike" wrote:

Ropes on Jug Vein, High Level to Horse Level are dated 1992, maybe a change is needed?

I think the rope on the bottom Jug Vein pitch was installed on a trip in June 2009 though I might be mistaken. In any event, they are probably all slightly due an overhaul.
Don't have any rope to donate unfortunately, not ones which aren't past it themselves anyway, and have no plans to be in Nent any time in the foreseeable future unfortunately.

Jimbo
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11 years ago

"RJV" wrote:

have no plans to be in Nent any time in the foreseeable future unfortunately.

:ohmygod: I thought you guys practically lived there these days! ;)

Ring me for a chat sometime Rich! :thumbup:

"PDHMS, WMRG, DCC, Welsh Mines Society, Northern Mines Research Group, Nenthead Mines Society and General Forum Gobshite!"

christwigg
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11 years ago

"Jimbo" wrote:

"RJV" wrote:

have no plans to be in Nent any time in the foreseeable future unfortunately.

:ohmygod: I thought you guys practically lived there these days! ;)

No, our lease expired and gNick got it :lol:

RJV
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Newbie

11 years ago

Indeed, who needs Alston Moor when Bilsdale's jet mines are so close at hand... :blink:

Off out digging shortly Jim, will give you a call tomorrow night. 🙂

John Lawson
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11 years ago

Good to see the way to Jug is open!
As I have stated previously this the big plus point of this forum.
It was always, 'rough traveling', in the Moss Cross Vein area.
Indeed so much has come down that there is no sign of the Southern branch, horse level.
We spent some time when this area was opened, some 24 years ago looking for it, but the problem was as now, where to start digging, and when and if you did would the roof come down on top of you?
No, I guess this is part of the Brownley plan we wil not see.

gNick
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11 years ago

#10

"christwigg" wrote:

"Jimbo" wrote:

"RJV" wrote:

have no plans to be in Nent any time in the foreseeable future unfortunately.

:ohmygod: I thought you guys practically lived there these days! ;)

No, our lease expired and gNick got it :lol:

I can sub let Brownley to someone keen to clear falls, re-rig pitches, rebuild arching, etc. etc. 😉

Don't look so embarrassed, it's a family trait...

Mr Mike
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Newbie Topic Starter

11 years ago

#11

Another note on the High Level, when you get up into it above BH North Middle Vein / Guddamgill Burn XV. The connection heading (head south, first junc on the left) to Tatler's String is open. Which makes a shorter round trip if your not into long hands / knees jobs and duck walking.

Mr Mike www.mineexplorer.org.uk

RJV
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11 years ago

#12

"Mr Mike" wrote:
(head south, first junc on the left)

North I think. Found that a few years ago after a dose of collective amnesia sent us the wrong way on the High Level... 😞

What's always interested me is the southern end of Moss Cross Vein though its always looked like a dead duck when have looked underground... I think from memory its open in full north of BHV.

Mr Mike
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11 years ago

#13

North takes you to the west side of BH Vein. You need to go south first, take the first left, and that then goes north to Tatler's.

Moss Vein is open partly northwards. No sign of the south entrance. However, a couple of years back, we got reasonably close to it from the High Level above Tatler's. Going east along it a fall stopped us. I would say we were within 100m of the Moss Vein. Having a poke at the fall on the High level might yield a way through, then a drop down a sump into workings on Moss Vein.... not to mention the rest of the high level along BH Vein eastwards.

This is starting to spiral out of control for new projects....

Mr Mike www.mineexplorer.org.uk

RJV
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11 years ago

#14

Indeed, we turned off too early & trooped off to Tatters - a common mistake by all accounts!

I remember we got into the north bit of Moss XV with a bit of digging. The three rises on the VM plan were open (+ possibly some small flats running east?) but we couldn't find a way south from there. Can't remember how the north end ended.

Mr Mike
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11 years ago

#15

"RJV" wrote:
Indeed, we turned off too early & trooped off to Tatters - a common mistake by all accounts!

That's how we found out it was open!

"Tatter" / " Tatler" which one is it? I have a colour VM plan scan in French and it says Tatler, I also have a tracing that someone did of the same plan and coloured it in, but it says "Tatter".

A very old BH plan shows the same area with same workings with no name.

Mr Mike www.mineexplorer.org.uk

christwigg
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11 years ago

#16

http://www.ukancestors.co.uk/jun11.php

Quote:

'Tatters' is a rare and unusual surname. In 1861 there were only 17 Tatters households in England. Seven of those were in Alston.

The earliest mention of the name in Alston is in 1713 when William Tatters was born there. The first appearance on a census document is for William's grandson, John who was born in 1785 and became a lead miner. Among his children was William Tatters, born in 1827. William married Rachel Erwin in 1860, the daughter of another lead miner, George Erwin.

William was also a lead miner at the age of 13 and in both the 1851 and the 1861 censuses, he was working as a lead ore smelter. By 1871 he was a General Dealer, and ten years later he describes himself as a China Merchant. He died in 1888.

RJV
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11 years ago

#17

Well googling "Tatter Alston" brings up loads of genealogy stuff. Googling "Tatler Alston" brings up virtually none.

Given the amount of Hetheringtons etc that you still see on vans and so on in the area, my guess is Tatter.

Not sound science admittedly!

Mr Mike
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11 years ago

#18

Looks Like Tatters then.

Mr Mike www.mineexplorer.org.uk

John Lawson
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11 years ago

#19

Slightly off topic, but interesting, and I would appreciate any thoughts, you guys might have.
When, some 20 odd years ago, I entered the BHV horse level at the Jug junction, the way on(to the forehead), was chest deep in water. It remained like this for a few years. On another occasion, when we had decided to organise a dig to lower it, the water had vanished. Indeed exploration showed that we had gone through the county boundary and almost to the forehead. On another visit the water was back again, and on my last visit there was none.
There are workings in the four fathom limestone below parts of jug but not as I recall on this part of BHV. Nent force does not come up the BHV. Any views?

RJV
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11 years ago

#20

Haven't the foggiest unfortunately. The only section I've seen of the BHV (dated 1914 - VMZ prospecting?) shows rises up to the top of the Great Limestone beyond the boundary but no workings below the BH horse level.

Have only had the quickest of dashes down that way; seem to recall a lot more shale than the 1914 plan suggests!

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