A little trip back in time to Easter, and a post we didn't get around to putting up during the rush to get the Alice stuff finished. For this post, a bit of exploration in North Wales.
High in the hills above Tanygrisau are the remains of a number of slate quarries. There are a few nice walks up into the mountains through these old workings, and its somewhere we've done a few times. Of course, now we are with Foster Childs mountain walking has become a bit tricky, but we were able to take the eldest for the rather more basic walk. We also wanted to get up into the hills with the camera and record the place whilst we still could- between natural collapses and weather damage, and the possibility that quarrying could be restarting soon, we thought it best to get up there whilst there was still something to see.
This is as far as we got last time, about three years back during the recce for the "Home is..." project, when we found paths closed due the slate-waste slipping. This time around, the damage was even more pronounced, with a lot of collapses evident.
Along the path of an old tramroad, and the first lot of buildings, former offices and quarryman's barracks.
Back onto the tramroad, and looking back the way we walked. Very odd lighting on this day.
The old chapel, something of a landmark on this walk, and a natural stopping point for a break. We didn't realise until reading up on the walk later that it still had its roof until the 1990's, and after it was removed the building deteriorated rapidly. It is noticeably in worse condition than the last time we did the walk in 2012.
Looking back along the tramroad again, from the base of the steeper patch of the climb.
The bases of an old aqueduct which powered the waterwheel, which in turn powered the machinery...
...in these buildings.
Up the slope, and the oddly pyramid-like mountain of slate waste beside the path.
A close-up of this odd, man-made landscape.
Just before you get to the main quarry level is an impressive waterfall.
An attempt at re-doing a shot Ben took about ten years back.
Up on the main level, the entrance to one of the underground workings. The quarry here is vast, with a lot of underground chambers, tunnels, inclines and galleries. They did used to be navigable, but a lot of collapses have apparently happened in recent years and the lot is considered quite dangerous these days, we gather. Certainly, higher up the hills, there are a lot of fenced-off areas where the ground has collapsed into the underground caverns. Obviously, we didn't go exploring underground, particularly with the Eldest Foster Child in tow.
The main feature is the 'street', though it's definitely in worse nick, with more wall collapses, than last time we were up here.
Dotted around the level are the heavily-rusted remains of bits of machinery, presumably too tricky to remove for scrap, either officially or otherwise.
More collapsing buildings around the old workshops.
Back down the hill, after lunch and a bit of an explore...
Via the very nice old house which belonged to a senior member of the quarry management- the status confirmed by the presence of trees. Wood was in such demand in the quarries that the whole valley was stripped of trees, and the only places they remain are this house and the chapel.
So all in all, a good trip-nice to be able to get back and snap some photos whilst there are still structures to see.
No comments:
Post a Comment