The Honister Slate Mine in Cumbria is the last working slate mine in England. Quarrying for Westmorland green slate has been taking place in the area since 1728. Apart from the mining it is also a popular tourist attraction in the Lake District National Park.
Opencast quarrying had been carried out at Honister since the late 17th century. But as capacity increased, the site's underground workings were extensively expanded.
By 1870 Honister's underground workings stretched under Honister Crag with intermediate workings on the opposite side of the valley at Yew Crags. Smaller-scale underground workings on Dubbs Moor, together with a small opencast quarry. Packhorse teams had been used to remove the finished slate on sleds from mines. This involved bringing the loads down steep paths that traversed the cliffs to the top of Honister Pass (The Hause). Dubbs mine was known for its 'smaller metal' (metal being the terminology for slate), in that smaller pieces of slate (thus smaller slates) were obtainable due to the geology; but this did give rise to some instability.
In 1879 the mine's new owners - who also leased and operated other quarries in Borrowdale - installed self-acting inclines to serve both the Honister and Yew Crags mines. Despite the cost to build these feats of engineering, the financial outlay proved correct as they improved efficiency in the mines. For instance the Dubbs Quarry incline allowed slate to be pulled up and then down into the valley to The Hause. Although by mid-1920s, aerial ropeways now served the Honister and Yew Crags Mines, the external Yew Crags incline proved to be so efficient it remained in use until the late 1960s. A petrol-driven narrow-gauge locomotive was used to make the connection between the Hause/slate works and the incline and short aerial ropeway. A bridge carried the railway over the Seatoller-Buttermere road. The bridge was scrapped in the early 1970s.
By 1891 production had reached 3,000 tons a year and more than 100 men were employed in the mines.
The mines reverted to care and maintenance for a while due to labour shortages in First World War. However it did not take long for production to recommence after the cessation of hostilities. By 1926, following a change of management and a new Resident Director, Robin Hoare, the mine's fortunes began to improve with significantly increased production. Considerable modifications were undertaken throughout the quarries, such as the works at The Hause being electrified with two Ruston 4-cylinder diesel generators.
The 'new' Kimberley Mine was started from the Road End Level, with a substantial 600-foot (183 m) long 14 ft × 14 ft (4.3 m × 4.3 m) internal electrically powered incline. Work also began to complete a proposal (that had first been made in the mid-1890s) to drive a level through to the Dubbs Quarries. About 100 m (330 ft) of level was completed before the project was shelved in favour of further developing the more significant workings under Honister Crag. In 1932, Dubbs Quarry ceased production largely due to the difficulties and slowness of transporting finished slate.
Despite an enforced closure from 1943 to 1945 during the Second World War production continued through the 1950s and 1960s although Yew Crag mine closed in 1966 due to difficult roof conditions.
In 1981, after fifteen years of poor management, all the quarries of the Buttermere & Westmorland Green Slate Co.Ltd. were acquired by B.R. Moore and his father, R.D.Moore. The pair introduced a programme of improvement and a large amount of capital investment was undertaken. This included the installation of rail-borne EIM-Co Rockershovels, battery locomotives, improved rolling stock and increased specialist underground mechanisation and systems (the Moores were helped by their General Manager, Jim Peart, of Weardale mining - previously manager of the Burtree Pasture, Rookhope, and Stanhope Burn lead and fluorspar mines). It was the first use of such equipment in any underground Lake District quarry (the quarries had operated surface diesel locos from about 1930 to the late 1950s).
In 1985 the Moore family sold the company and its quarries to Alfred McAlpine plc which also owned Penrhyn Quarry in Bethesda, North Wales. McAlpine used an earlier planning permission to open a new opencast (on the Dubbs side of Honister Crag), on the Honister Vein some 200 m (660 ft) from the Hopper Opencast (Kimberley Vein); which was then infilled with waste from the new workings. In 1989 McAlpine ceased operations at all the quarries. Only care and maintenance was undertaken.
In 1997 the mine was reopened by local businessman, Mark Weir, who redeveloped the mining side - producing small quantities of roofing slate - and who also turned the site into a tourist attraction.
A 600 mm (1 ft 11+5⁄8 in) narrow gauge industrial railway is used to assist in the slate extraction process. [1]
Attractions around the mine complex include a visitor centre, underground tours of the workings, and England's first via ferrata, where participants use a safety harness to scale a cliff path. This attraction proved to be very popular and in 2011 was awarded winner of “Best Tourism Experience in The Lake District" by Cumbria Tourism. Using the original Miners track up the steep outer incline of Fleetwith Pike, the via ferrata is both physically and mentally challenging. [2]
Honister Mine featured in the 2011 BBC television programme Tales from the National Park. It followed owner Mark Weir, and his attempt to open a zip wire from the top of Fleetwith Pike to the mine below. Weir died in a helicopter crash in March 2011 (during the making of the programme). He had been trying to obtain planning permission for the proposed zip wire. His business was also facing a prosecution on the part of Natural England in respect of damage to plants within a designated Site of Special Scientific Interest (Honister Crag SSSI). The damage was related to an unapproved extension which Weir had made to the via ferrata. [3]
A 2012 planning application for the zip wire was refused by the Park Authority on the grounds of impact, despite support from explorer and Lake District resident Sir Chris Bonington and notable business and tourism organisations. [4] [5]
Permission was granted for the 1 kilometre (0.62 mi) long zip wire in 2018. [6]
The Old Man of Coniston is a fell in the Furness Fells of the Lake District in Cumbria, England, and is the highest point of the historic county of Lancashire. It is at least 2,632.62 feet (802.42 m) high, and lies to the west of the village of Coniston and the lake, Coniston Water. The fell is sometimes known by the alternative name of Coniston Old Man, or simply The Old Man. The mountain is popular with tourists and fell-walkers with a number of well-marked paths to the summit. The mountain has also seen extensive copper and slate mining activity for eight hundred years, and the remains of abandoned mines and spoil tips are a significant feature of the north-east slopes.
Dale Head is a fell in the north-western sector of the Lake District, in northern England. It is 753 metres or 2,470 foot above sea level and stands immediately north of Honister Pass, the road between Borrowdale and Buttermere.
Robinson is a fell in the English Lake District, its southern slopes descending to Buttermere, while its northern side is set in the Newlands Valley. Paths lead to the summit from the village of Buttermere, from the nearby summit Dale Head and from various locations in the valleys to the north.
Haystacks, or Hay Stacks, is a hill in England's Lake District, situated at the south-eastern end of the Buttermere Valley. Although not of any great elevation, Haystacks has become one of the most popular fells in the area. This fame is partly due to the writings of Alfred Wainwright, who espoused its attractions and chose it as the place where he wanted his ashes scattered. Its large, undulating summit contains many rock formations, tarns and hidden recesses.
Crag Hill is a mountain in the North Western part of the English Lake District. It was formerly known as Eel Crag; however, the Ordnance Survey now marks Eel Crag as referring to the northern crags of the fell. It is not to be confused with another Crag Hill lying on the border of North Yorkshire.
High Stile is a mountain in the western part of the Lake District in North West England. It is the eleventh-highest English Marilyn, standing 807 metres (2,648 ft) high, and has a relative height of 362 metres (1,188 ft).
Honister Pass is a mountain pass in the Lake District in Cumbria, England. It is located on the B5289 road, linking Seatoller, in the valley of Borrowdale, to Gatesgarth at the southern end of Buttermere. The pass reaches an altitude of 1,167 feet (356 m), making it one of the highest in the region, and also one of the steepest, with gradients of up to 1-in-4 (25%). The saddle at the watershed is known as Honister Hause, using the Cumbrian word hause for such a feature.
Fleetwith Pike is a fell in the English Lake District in the county of Cumbria which reaches a height of 648 metres. The fell is a well-known feature of the area as it casts an imposing presence over Buttermere and the Honister Pass on the B5289 motor road between Borrowdale and Buttermere.
Rannerdale Knotts is a fell in the Lake District of Cumbria, England. Rising from the Buttermere valley, it is one of the smaller Cumbrian hills and is overlooked by a number of surrounding fells, such as Grasmoor, Whiteless Pike and, across Crummock Water, Mellbreak and the High Stile ridge. Rannerdale Knotts is said to be the site of a battle between the native Cumbrians and Norsemen and the invading Normans in the late 11th or early 12th century.
The slate industry is the industry related to the extraction and processing of slate. Slate is either quarried from a slate quarry or reached by tunneling in a slate mine. Common uses for slate include as a roofing material, a flooring material, gravestones and memorial tablets, and electrical insulation.
Llechwedd is a visitor attraction near Blaenau Ffestiniog, Gwynedd, Wales. It details the history of slate quarrying in the town and specifically the Llechwedd quarry in which it is located. The main aspect of Llechwedd is its Llechwedd Deep Mine Tour which has the steepest narrow gauge railway in the UK and travels over 500 feet underground to the disused slate caverns, and the Quarry Explorer Tour which heads out to the furthest reaches of the Llechwedd site to explore the history of mining in the area.
Brandreth is a fell in the English Lake District. It stands between Great Gable and Haystacks in the Western Fells.
Narrow-gauge railways were used extensively in the slate industry of Great Britain, especially in Wales. Many quarries had internal tramways, some using many dozens of miles of track. Others had private lines that stretched from the quarry to transhipment points on local railways, rivers, roads or coastal ports.
Honister Crag SSSI is a Site of Special Scientific Interest in Cumbria, England. It is designated for both biological and geological interest. The site covers an area of 302.9 ha on Honister Crag, from which it takes its name, and Fleetwith Pike, an adjacent fell.
Rhosydd quarry was a slate quarry in the Moelwyn mountains, northeast of Porthmadog in North Wales.
Oakeley quarry is a slate quarry in the town of Blaenau Ffestiniog, north Wales. It was the largest underground slate mine in the world, and had 26 floors spanning a vertical height of nearly 1,500 feet (460 m).
The North Western Fells are a group of hills in the English Lake District. Including such favourites as Catbells and Grisedale Pike, they occupy an oval area beneath the Buttermere and Borrowdale valley systems. The North Western Fells are characterised by soaring east-west ridges and an absence of mountain tarns.
Cwmorthin quarry was a slate quarry west of the village of Tanygrisiau, north Wales. Quarrying on the site started in 1810. In 1860 it was connected to the Ffestiniog Railway. In 1900 it was acquired by the nearby Oakeley quarry and the two were connected underground. In 1970 it closed along with Oakeley. There was small-scale working in the 1980s and 1990s, and the mine finally closed in 1997.
Nyth-y-Gigfran quarry was a slate quarry in the town of Blaenau Ffestiniog, North Wales. It was located about 300 feet (91 m) above the settlement of Glan y Pwll, south of what was to become Blaenau Ffestiniog. The quarry was sited on the steep cliffs that form the eastern edge of Allt-fawr and was entirely underground. The quarry opened around 1840 and became part of the Oakeley quarry in the 1880s; this in turn closed in 1969.
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