United Cavers Exploration Team

Posted in here as it is a slate quarry and you do go underground. if you don't think it should be here, please feel free to move it.

Visited with Vikki.

Dinorwic Slate Quarry is a large slate quarry located between Llanberis and Dinorwig in north Wales. It is said to be the second largest slate quarry in the world, with the largest been neighbouring Penrhyn Quarry. It covered more than 700 acres and consts of two main quarry sections with 20 galleries in each and a number of ancillary workings. an extensive internal tramway systems connected the quarries using inclines to transport slate between galleries.

Our trip to the quarry was to do the classic “Snakes, Ladders and Tunnels” trip, which would be better  called “snakes, ladders, tunnels, sketchy climbs and probable death by scree slope” trip. we had more than likely not taken the “approved” route through the quarry, but it was a fun route, which as far as we know had taken in all accessible parts of the trip, the only issue we did have is it doesn’t take you right up to the highest areas, we could of had a walk up, but it was HOT, I was tired and time was ticking on.

I set off from Manchester at 9am having to make a couple of stops on the way, this got me to Bangor by 10.50 where I was meeting Vikki, we stuffed all my crap into her car and headed over to the quarry, eating my burger king breakfast (bacon double cheese burger, counts as breakfast right?) on the way…

This got us to the parking spot and ready to go for around 11.30, we got on our climbing harness, Vikki’s all clean and shiny, mine looking like I had just found it dumped in the bush’s, Vikki grabbed the 50m rope, I grabbed a bag full of camera gear and off we went. We walked a short distance and Vikki said “it’s down there” we had to go down into a pit where there was a tunnel, the route on was through here, which brings you out into another gallery, Vikki then pointed across at a wall with a chain hanging down, she said the way to go was up the chain, and through the tunnel abseiling down at the other side, then through yet another tunnel which brings you do a hideous scramble/climb up scree and rock where one slip would result in you been sliced and diced on the razor sharp slate.

Once you get to the top of the climb you are greeted with a ladder, if that’s what you would want to call it, the rest of the route from here on is old sketchy ladder after old sketchy ladder followed by abseil and more old sketchy ladders.

Total trip time was around 5 hours, but this included a little bit of route finding and a lot of time spent messing about with the camera, Dinorwic is one of the best places I have visited, i’m sure it was helped by the superb weather and good company, i’m just gutted I live so far away, if I was closer I would be there every day, A return visit to get further up those inclines is most defiantly on the cards.

More pics available here - http://www.dspexplores.com/#/?p=598

well done , good photo's dan.
glad you got your interweb sorted

it isn't, I uploaded the pics off my mobile phone. There coming out tomorrow.

Awesome piccies, definately shows clearly that the place is only suited to nutjobs  :)

it worries me that you have said that, as I really liked it there! infact I wish I lived closer, I could even be tempted to take up climbing just to have an excuse to go there more often.

there's so much to see there, you've only just scratched the surface

The sign says climbing and abseiling is prohibited  :dry:

Must have missed this on the forum, I was free that day with nothing to do  :(

[quote="Iestyn999" post=18190]The sign says climbing and abseiling is prohibited  :dry:  :([/quote]


you should know better than to take any notice of an official sign  :whistle:  :whistle:  :whistle: . anyway i did'nt have my glasses on  :blink:  :blink:  :blink:

[quote="Iestyn999" post=18190]The sign says climbing and abseiling is prohibited  :dry:

Must have missed this on the forum, I was free that day with nothing to do  :([/quote]

it actually says forbidden, 4x4'ing is prohibited, not sure why it uses 2 different words for the same thing.

but to be fair, we must of seen 60 climbers and a whole school/youth club trip.

pyb use it for most of there climbing intro groups, which is why first hydro kicked off about dali's hole being used so much .which now has a 8ft high fence around it. (for now)