Hi Tom,
The other week I was looking at the cavers' discussion about the Grassington Moor Caverns and noticed that you had been contributing. Perhaps you could pass on the following comments from me, please.
The location Old Turf Pits Shaft is the crater at the NGR given in the discussion. This was known to members of the BSA in the early 1940s, but the shaft had already collapsed and so they explored any open shaft in the
(forlorn) hope that they might prove to connect with the cavern. Much of their work was around Glory Shaft, about 350 metres to the south of OTP.
They looked at OTP's footway in November 1941 and produced a plan/section which looks much like that produced by Roe. They gave the total depth as 70 feet to a collapse, whereas Roe gives 58 feet.
The minerals on Grassington Moor are the property of the Chatsworth Estate (Duke of Devonshire). The Estate Agent (it was Ben Hayes) at Bolton Abbey is probably the best first contact. The surface is controlled by the 'Moor Committee' under the aegis of the National Park. The shaft is also part of a Scheduled Monument, which would require Scheduled Monument Consent (The Secretary of State must be informed about any work which might affect a monument above or below ground, and English Heritage gives advice to the Government on each application) before anything was done. Should you choose to clean out the shaft, all their permissions would be needed. In addition, for such a major project, you would have to register the dig with the Mines Inspectorate and comply with their requirements, because you are reopening a mine. No doubt this will lead to tirades about 'Elf & Safety', but experience in other areas (following a death caused by a digger falling into an unfenced dig) has shown them to be reasonable and helpful - they will not allow the downright dangerous.
The shaft should be around 230 feet deep to the 40 fathom level. This passes through (roughly) 10 feet of surface clay, 50 feet of shale, 40 feet of Top Grit, 15 feet of shale, 85 feet of Bearing Grit, 10 feet of shale and 20 feet of Middle Limestone. The Top Grit should be competent, so the shaft has probably run from a depth of no more than 60 feet (probably much less), but that could be influenced by collapses of voids (worked out areas) on Turf Pits Vein, which runs close by the shaft.
Cavers should also be aware that there were other caverns on Grassington Moor. Miners hit 'opens' near Glory and Pit (or Old) Moss Mines (870 metres SE of OTP). There was also the 'fissure' which was reputedly discovered near How Gill Shaft (SE 0228.6815).
To what extent the Duke's Level affected hydrology in the Turf Pits area I cannot say, but there was a long link on Slanter Vein at the 42 fathom level. Glory and Pit Moss were both drained by it.
Good luck.
Mike
