Am going to Derbyshire in a few weeks on holidays Can anyone suggest some interesting & easily accessable mines as the joints are getting a bit stiff these days, Crompton, Eyam & Worksworth areas seem interesting

for wirksworth area; masson, devonshire, wapping, slaley sough, dunsley spring, groaning tor and silver eye come to mind.

Easy to find might be another critera to consider, now that the vegetation's back in the Via Gellia!

My suggestions would be:

1) Devonshire Cavern, Matlock Bath. Entrance may require an adjustable spanner, easiest bit to do is going updip on the old showcave route, having a copy of a decent survey is advisable if you're going downdip plus there's more crawling down that end

2) Groaning Tor level, near Cromford, short walk from Via Gellia Mills. Obvious adit close to a footpath, water should be under welly depth except at the far end after a collapse.

3) Mouldridge Mine, Pikehall, short walk from A5012. Catflap gate leading to walking size passages, more crawly bits if you want. Somewhat complex but survey available in PDMHS bulletin 9:2 on the society's website

4) Hanging Flat Mine, Stoney Middleton Dale, close to Horseshoe Quarry. Collapsed entrance with hole at the back right by the side of the A623, walking height passages.

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You cant come to Derbyshire and not visit Holme Bank its great if you PM me I will let you have the owners number for the keys its very very easy all he ask for is a donation which he gives to Altzeihmers charity

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Many thanks guys for the info,off there tomorrow and hoping to have a good mooch around only trouble is I pulled a hamstring a few days ago which may limit how much I can do

The Black Marble mines around Ashford in the Water are pretty accessable if you've crocked yourself.

The Black Marble mines around Ashford in the Water .

Any views on whether this mine should be in the limestone section?

Given you've got mines for both black and rosewood marble, and quarries for grey and birdseye, all of which are varieties of limestone, I'd vote for all the decorative marble mines around Ashford (Rookery, Arrock, and Nettler) to go under limestone.

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True Marble does not appear to be all that common in the UK?

http://www.buildingconservation.com/articles/shining/shining.htm 

Middleton mine is well worth a look around if you're over Wirksworth way.

The scale alone is worth the visit :ohmygod:

Middleton mine is well worth a look around if you're over Wirksworth way.

The scale alone is worth the visit :ohmygod:

Hmm - access was a bit tough last I heard. 'Tis an awesome place though 😉

Note the "easily accessible" bit in the original poster's request, I don't think places you have to break into qualify as that....

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Note the "easily accessible" bit in the original poster's request, I don't think places you have to break into qualify as that....

Being a bit of a Gammon slipper aren't we AR??

Who said anything about breaking in? You can walk straight in if you know where to look.

:lol: :lol: :lol:

Not been over that way for ages, is it still working?

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Production ceased in 2005 i believe. Sometimes see vehicles going in and out, but they're few and far between.

Hopton yard is completely derilict now, Middleton yard is used for storage.

According to the planning permission, they are supposed to check all entrances once a month and judging by the tyre tracks, they do.

Still officially on care and maintenance AFAIK, hence my comment about breaking in, though last time I was round that neck of the woods Tarmac seemed to have pretty much given up on it.

As for being a "gammon slipper" whatever one of those may be, advertising to the world that you've been into mines without permission is not regarded as big or clever on this particular forum....

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Hmmm, so it's a mining forum that doesn't go in mines then??

If that's the case;

A) Where did i say i had been in Middleton?
B) Grow a pair.

I've been at this long enough to know what that crack is AR. The OP asked a question, i gave a suggestion.

:flowers:

I've an idea AR is too much of a gent to reply as he should to a ****.I , on the other hand feel you are out of line old boy!
Oh, and in your intro ( hello from Sheffield, you list Middleton Mine, DUHH!.)
O. G. 😠

Oh, don't come the smirky "ha, ha prove we were there" urbexer with us here - you've made it quite clear enough from your posts above that you've been into Middleton, and as for "growing a pair", you've no idea of where I've been or what I've done as regards mine exploration, though don't expect me to get into a willy-waving contest with you over who's been to the toughest place. More pertinently, I know when to advertise it to the internet-connected world and his dog and when to keep it out of the public view.

Old-school netiquette was that before joining a forum you lurked, got to know the culture and mores of the place so you didn't make an arse of yourself straight away...

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As has been said, Middleton is still in care and maintenance, and is regularly checked by security-both outside and inside the mine. Subsequent to the recent remedial works a whole new tranche of security features went up and access is very much discouraged...

And there was that whole incident with a pikie putting 25kv through himself whilst trying to steal cable in the Middleton quarry couple of years back, which caused a few issues... :glare:

As for suggestions, as has been mentioned, Holme Bank/Hall are a great place, friendly owner, interesting stuff to see, although starts to get bit dodgy and shattered in the northern section... And of course always the chance to run into a diver suddenly emerging from the flooded bit! :lol:

You also have the Alderley Edge mines not too far away, plenty to see there-Edd, Brakeman and the DCC are the people to tell you more...

J

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