Has anyone been down this drift since it closed? Last time I was there, the winder was still in place. Was any equipment left behind underground?
What other mines did it link with in the area?

Has anyone been down this drift since it closed? Last time I was there, the winder was still in place. Was any equipment left behind underground?
What other mines did it link with in the area?

Water levels are high in there, its flooded to about 70 feet below portal.
Consequently there isn't anything at all to see, you hit water before anything nice. Water level is constant year round too.
Very little left underground after closure, nigh on everything was brought out and taken away by the scrapman, even equipment that was only a few weeks old was scrapped apparently.
As far as I know it never actually linked up with any of the more modern mining operations in the area but it did cut into a lot of the oldman's workings.

As I remember it, in the smaller tunnel you hit water not that far in. After the initial descent the decline takes a right before dropping down the main decline towards Rookhope, passing a winder on the way, then water.
Just near the entrance, if you look up to the right there are old workings that must be just underneath the road, but don't know how extensive they are, if at all.
On the edge of the village green, opposite the old village hall/library, is the entrance of the abandoned horse level that descended in a spiral fashion into the old workings.
It was originally assumed by British Steel that the reserves of fluorite were substantial (in excess of 1 million tons) but this turned out not to be so they pulled out after spending a vast sum of money prospecting for them.
The nearby Fawside level, were it not blocked near the portal, reaches the Corbet Mea shaft over in Rookhope. That would make for an interesting walk.

Manxman.

If you go down the smaller incline as far as the winch you may be in for a rude surprise 🙂
Despite appearances the whole floor is timber and just about knackered at that point.
The older workings are small and go nowhere.
The original spiral decline was cut through by the more modern workings no longer exists sadly.