Snailbeach Mine

Yesterday evening, Karen and I left Winster to head for the Foxholes Campsite near Bishops Castle in Shropshire where we were booked into a bunkhouse on the campsite.

It was a very wet drive and there was quite a lot of deep water and debris on the roads in the Minsterley area after the day's heavy rain and recent wet spell so that the rain was simply flowing straight off the fields and collecting on roads and at least one case unfortunately flowing through someone's house.

We met Boyd and then later Pete Wagstaff at the bunkhouse in the evening.

In the morning, Dave Phillips also arrived and had caused a bit of consternation by walking in through the front door of the campsite owner;s house and into the living room!

We knew the bunkhouse had only and electric kettle, but it was next to a “wet room” shower and toilet and also a room with sink, hot and cold water, a fridge and a chest freezer. So we had come prepared for breakfast of cereal and sausage sandwiches by bringing mugs, plates, cutlery and a camping gas cooker.

We met up at the Village Hall car park in Snailbeach with Mike and Eileen of Shropshire Cave and Mining Club along with Keith Slatcher, Chris Jackson and Mat and Nikki Adlam-Styles. We left some cars there as others were driven nearer to the mine which wasn't that far away anyway and had limited parking space.

Karen and I were given a lift by Eileen right to the mine's entrance at Perkins Level. Once all had got changed into caving gear we headed into the adit and each person moved a brass disc from the lower section on a wooden board with hooks to a higher section, which is how the miners used to “clock in and out” and keep a record of who was underground.

Snailbeach was once considered "the richest mine per acre of ground in Europe", and was one of the most famous lead mines in Britain. The Romans probably mined the lead ore (Galena) on this site first and they were certainly busy at nearby mines in the upland country of the Stiperstones around 120AD.

After the Romans left, there seems to have been little mining until the late 18th century when Snailbeach and other Shropshire mines enjoyed a bonanza lasting around 150 years.

Not far along the adit we reached a metal bridge with a metal ladder on the other side of the bars along the side of the bridge. The ladder was vertical and about 5 metres long. We climbed down the ladder to a small chamber. From here we all dropped down a pitch with a very short wet vertical section followed by a slope with sandy material with a channel cut into it by the water flowing from above. Mike and Eileen had told us that this was usually dry but of course the weather had been very wet yesterday.

After reaching a rebelay further down the slope, two route diverged: the “Classic “ route and the “Scenic Route”.

Karen, Chris, Mat and Nikki together with myself followed Eileen on down the “Classic” Route while Mike led the others down the “Scenic” Route.

So, I followed Eileen down a diagonal route continuing down the sandy slope to a point where the roof came down towards the slope where there was a deviation.

After passing the deviation, the route dropped a bit more steeply the swung into a passageway continuing underneath.

We followed this passageway for a short distance to a right-angled junction, then a few tens of metres to a drop where the rope was rigged a s wide “Y-hang”.

This was the beginning of a section of “in-situ” ropes which were 11 mm diameter and therefore thicker than the 10 or 10.5 mm diameter ropes we usually used so there was quite a lot of friction.

Passing another deviation this rope followed a slanting wall to a sandy ramp where there was another “Y-hang”.

This rope was held clear from the sandy slope at the lower end by being passed through a pulley and having a weight attached which made it even more difficult to get through the descender.

At the end of this rope, where it passed through the pulley, there was an eyehole about 2 and a half metres off the still sloping ground with a double knotted handline.

Eileen clambered up the rope and into the eyehole and told me to make sure I didn't roll further down the slope as there was 30+ metre drop off to the right further down.

We waited for the others to arrive and Nikki was next followed by Mat, who gave Nikki a leg up to get started, followed by Karen and then Chris.

The other side of the eyehole was an easy clamber down for a metre or so then a very short horizontal passage to the top of an aluminium builders ladder.

After climbing down the 4 or so metres of ladder, another sandy slope continued downwards passing a short low section, then a higher and steeper section equipped with a handline.

At the bottom of the slope were a set of rails which were much wider apart than the rails usually scene in the Peak.

After walking along this passageway we soon reached a bend where there was a drop ahead and a passage going left.

After following this passageway, I could see someone ahead sitting down with a white beard and a caving light and first though it was Boyd, but it was actually Mike.

We walked into a larger section of passage where Mike was sitting which was a junction and also the point at which the “Scenic Route” comes in.

Mike was having a snack and waiting while the others had gone down a passage leading to another pitch dropping further down into the lower levels of the mine.

We followed down this passage leaving Mike to continue with his snack. Further along the passage, we met Pete, Keith, Boyd and Dave who had been to the pitch and found it was much to wet to descend.

So we also went to have a look at the pitch, which was by a set of rails rigged with a traverse line, and it did look very wet.

After returning to the junction,we wall sat and had Mars Bars or whatever snacks had been brought along, then Eileen started up the “Scenic Rout” as we began to exit the mine via the route the other party had taken.

The first section of the route began awkwardly as the rope dropped down over the lip of the passage we had taken earlier on our way in so the rope was free-hanging at the start for a metre and a half or so.

After passing this lip, the route continued up a slope to a flat area with a “Y-hang”. Next came a steeper section to the left which again was ascended by pushing jammers up the rope and climbing with the feet to reach s short steeper wall with a tackle bag protecting the rope as it passed over the top of the steeper wall.

Just above this was another “Y-hang” with a small platform to stand on where I met Karen who was waiting for Eileen to clear the next section.

After another short ascent we reached a horizontal section of passage leading to a slope protected by a traverse line with the top of the slope to traverse across about a meter lower so you had to clip into the traverse line and lower yourself down a step to reach the slope.

After crossing the slope, we reached another short, steep section heading up and to the left at the top of a steep hading slope with floor and roof fairly close.

There was a very short section of rope leading to a rebelay then it disappeared around the corner following up the steep floor. I waited on the flat section until Karen had shouted “rope free” from the section above as it was easier to wait where I was.

Soon Karen had shouted “rope free” and I ascended to 3 metres to the rebelay than after passing it, I followed around the corner and then up the steep floor which was covered with small gritty debris and water and again I rejoined Karen at a horizontal section again by a “Y-hang” while we waited for Eileen to clear the section of rope above.

Soon Karen was following Eileen upwards and we began to hear voices and see lights from the other group also ascending nearby.

Again I heard Karen's “rope free” and I followed the again, sloping climb to reach a deviation on the left-hand wall then a short section of the sandy, steep slope we had descended earlier as we reached again the convergence of the “Classic Route” and “Tourist Route”.

I waited for Mike who was ascending the slope above to clear the rope as Boyd began coming up the rope to the right which we had descended earlier with Mat waiting at the rebelay below me.

Once Mike had shouted “rope free” I followed up and joined Mike and Karen at the foot of the short metal ladder by the bridge.

After clambering up the ladder Mike showed Karen and I around some more sections of the mine nearby including sections which had been blocked with concrete as they were unstable plus short sections of corrugated metal arching, again supporting short sections of unstable passage, leading to a large chamber where the final mining activity, for Barytes, had ceased in the 1950's.

After this, we were joined by some of the others to again cross the metal footbridge back towards the entrance then having a look at the 200 metre deep Chapel Shaft at a passage which joins it about 70 metres from the bottom.

With our visit to Snailbeach at an end, we followed the adit back to the surface to get changed.

After walking or driving back to the Village Hall car park and narrowly avoiding a short heavy shower of rain, Mike and Eileen took us on a short tour of the mine buildings nearby including the Locomotive Shed, Blacksmith's Shop and the Miner’s Dry (now converted into a Visitor Centre), where miners placed wet working clothes over steam pipes to dry for the next day.

Later on, we all reconvened to have a meal at the Stiperstones Inn which was very good and at very reasonable prices.