Hi People

I have been contacted by some people who are to do some work for NRW. Does anyone have any recent info about this mine, is the adit still accessible, from photos it looked bad years ago. What is the adit like now, any recent photos, any survey available?

I explored it years ago and found it clear but the rise at the end blocked, from memory.

https://www.aditnow.co.uk/Mines/Coed-Mawr-Pool-Lead-Mine_9420/ 

---

Last time I walked past the deep adit, the one above the river bank, there was about 6" air space above the water. That would have been approx. 2 1/2 years ago, so not recent.

---

Have you looked in the Vernon books? there might be a survey in there.

Chris.

Tony Jarrat got quite high up from the adit back in the seventies.
http://www.mcra.org.uk/logbooks/?dir=jrat 

Not sure which volume, but you'll have more fun just going through them.

And for the lazy :thumbsup: -

Entered “Level Fawr” – some ¾ mile of monotonous adit – to the crawl and shaft chamber at the end. I then climbed some 60-70 ft up the shaft via the 5” compressed air pipes until I was able to reach a c.20’ blind level where I belayed a ladder. Both the “belay” and wall of deads over which the ladder hung were extremely dubious! As was the climb itself. At least one more acrobatic trip is needed in order to
cross the shaft into the level which we hope lies beyond the large waterfall pouring into the shaft from above. Not a nice place but looks promising. Ladder, slings, rope and crabs left in – along with a few nerves, grey hairs etc.

Can only imagine the condition it is in now, some 40 years later? Crying out for a modern equipped explore. I have spoken about it a few times with Chris @ gobelow.

I have not been there for years but from the description of the state of the portal now, I see a situation whereby it could become blocked and lead to a blowout after heavy rain.

---

Found some of my notes from about 20years ago. Neck deep even then!

"The adit is fenced and disgorges a great quantity of water into the river. The level commences through neck deep water gradually shallowing. At the end is a choke which is presumably at the base of a shaft as evidenced by a rope and the remains of an old electron ladder. This point is presumably beneath the main workings. Just before this point is a small stope in a vein.The mine is also linked underground to the Ffriddllechwedd workings."

I have just had a check through my photos, thinking I had a shot of the portal itself, but unfortunately not.

This is the only one I can find, that I uploaded back in 2014:

🔗94511[linkphoto]94511[/linkphoto][/link]

If somebody were doing - NRW - sanctioned digging to prevent a possible blowout then I suspect it would be a relatively easy job. The blockage is outside, it would just need gradually lowering. And the run-off once cleared ought to be exactly the same as it currently is.

---

CAL have had a mail asking about Parc mine drainage etc. I suspect this is belated due diligence with regard to the collapse inbye of the level 3 portal which happened a few years ago. At present the water from the mine now drains via kneebones cutting and a hole in the floor which probably leads to level 4 (and possibly deeper levels). The water doesn't back up too much at present, but if that exit point became blocked then there is a potential for water levels to rise which might make the current blockage in the portal unstable and lead to sudden failure/flooding...

Dave

CAL have had a mail asking about Parc mine drainage etc. I suspect this is belated due diligence with regard to the collapse inbye of the level 3 portal which happened a few years ago. At present the water from the mine now drains via kneebones cutting and a hole in the floor which probably leads to level 4 (and possibly deeper levels). The water doesn't back up too much at present, but if that exit point became blocked then there is a potential for water levels to rise which might make the current blockage in the portal unstable and lead to sudden failure/flooding...

Dave

Yes its the same inquirer, email forwarded to me by Stuart.

The inquirer should be following this, as I pointed him here. I think the Pool adit portal should be cleared. There has been blow outs in the past, Derbyshire and Cwm Rheidol occur.

They make a right mess.

If anyone else has anything useful to add please go ahead. I want to help these people as much as possible. It demonstrates the usefulness of explorers in providing information about the underground.

---

Natural Resources Wales which have been looking at blow out risks at disused mines across Wales. I first became aware of this study when Cambrian Mines Trust, Cadw and other stakeholders attended a meeting at Cwmystwth around a year ago as that mine site was, it seems, higher up their priority list than some of the Gwydyr mines which they have now reached.

I concur that Parc No.3 Level presents a potential significant risk should the drainage through unknown rubble filled voids in the base of Kneebone's Cutting to No.4 Level become blocked. In this instance there is a straightforward solution - to pipejack a tube (or another technique) through the fall a short way into No.3 Level. Roy: maybe Cave Access Ltd, as a major stakeholder, ought to make representations? PM me if necessary.

Back on topic, I'm afraid I have little direct knowledge of Coed Mawr Pool but hopefully the above notes put the enquiry into the context of the wider risk assessment study.