Wood Mine, Alderley Edge

Ashley of the “Alt. Tuseday” cavers arranged for a trip for some of us into West Mine at Alderley Edge. Karen had asked of it was OK for Keith and Pete to come along as well and was told it was alright but in the event, Pete was suffering from a cold and stayed at home.

We met at 10:00 in the National Trust car park next to The Wizard Pub and found a party from Crewe Climbing and Potholing Club, including Keith Joule, also preparing for a trip to West Mine.

A member of the Derbyshire Caving Club acted as guide and led us through the woods past the entrance to Wood Mine, which we had visited on a previous occasion, across a field to a small fenced enclosure containing the lidded shaft entrance to West Mine.

The lid was opened and we climbed down a short iron ladder and headed into the mine. Like other Alderley Edge mines, the main product was copper and the ore-bearing rock is sandstone so all the mine had been dug out with no natural cavities. Also like the other mines, it is relatively warm, a fairly constant temperature of about 10 degrees Centigrade (50 degrees Fahrenheit). Also it is fairly dry and mainly walking passages with very little crawling or climbing,

Highlights of the trip were Plank Shaft, which now has a sturdy bridge across it instead of a plank of wood as in years past, The Lion (a rock with the profile of a lion's head when viewed from one direction sadly inscribed with graffiti), the Green River (a small stream coloured with a lovely green/blue from copper ore), The Laundry Chute (a sloping chimney connecting two passages at different levels) which some climbed up for fun, The Hourglass (another climb, but shorter, which is made awkward by being the shape of an Hourglass) and Sphinx Chamber with miniature Pyramids and a Sphinx made from the sandy floor. Also there was a small chamber with a ceiling which looked like it was made from a mosaic of small stones but was due to the sedimentary material drying out.
We were about four hours underground, including a break for lunch. Afterwards we had lovely egg or sausage sand in the Tea Shop next door to the pub.
Afterwards Karen and I drove home to feed the cat and have a shower, then spent the evening at the Orpheus CC cottage for bonfire and fireworks.