Spar Mine hole

tomferry

tomferry

Well-known member
Hello everyone .

A mate of mine went to ******** today just want to make everyone aware that their is a sign  ?quote ? .

Large collapses have occurred March 2021 and their are new blockages in the main levels .

The mine is extremely unstable and collapses are now occurring more frequently.

Do not enter the mine their is a significant risk to your life .

Just passing the warning message on  :thumbsdown:
 
royfellows

royfellows

Well-known member
Hi Tom, is the sign posted by land or mineral owner, or is it a goodwill sign by a kindly fellow explorer?
 
Pete K

Pete K

Well-known member
Mods I suggest you rename this thread to something generic like Spar Mine asap. Super sensitive site right now which is why you have not seen it posted here or on social media.
It's a goodwill sign but very recent. PM me for details if you wish but edit the title please.
 
Badlad

Badlad

Administrator
Staff member
Done as requested.  Let me know if anyone has a problem with that - by PM please.
 
Cantclimbtom

Cantclimbtom

Well-known member
A certain explorer group posted a video 3 days ago on YouTube of the same place. It did look recent and loose. Sadly from their video it looks like sections are decidedly on the move and sustained bad weather (or explorers touching roof in collapsed areas) will bring down a lot more
 
tomferry

tomferry

Well-known member
If your re naming the thread mite I suggest that you edit my comment ? I am not drawing attention to this site but I do not wish anyone to drive a long way their to realise this then turn back  (y)

Hello Roy I afraid it?s just At the entrance no names mentioned at all .


Please remove the above issue Tom
 
Pete K

Pete K

Well-known member
I guess that this thread generates more questions than answers, sorry.
I have heard that a certain mine spar mine near Stoney Middleton is rapidly and recently running in. Access to this mine is not allowed and the owners are currently keen to prosecute anyone found in there and do look on sites like this. I can imagine it is hard to let folks know about an underground danger in a mine that acknowledging you have been may lead to arrest. Heed the warning notice!
 
Brains

Brains

Well-known member
Heard on the grapevine that a collapse happend last year, blocking the main drive beyond an air wall. The passage goes through a thick section of volcanics that have altered to a weak green clay (T'owd stone, cat dirt to the old miners...) This has come through the timber lagging where the passage is ringed. Features such as the zig zag ladder stope, or the muddy sump are not reachable.
 
pwhole

pwhole

Well-known member
This shitty photo is from roughly the same area, and it was taken in 2010, so I think we can safely assume that to be much worse now. The arching was buckling under the weight of the overburden and the weakness of the tuff (which is like halva in places it's so fragile) is hardly helping, as it just gets squeezed into the passages like toothpaste.
 

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Brains

Brains

Well-known member
bograt said:
Its toadstone, not t'owd, due to it resemblance to a toads skin!
Click to expand...
Or as I was taught, T'owd as in The old mans' stone... Follow it to find the mineralisation that may be focussed on its lower surface. Rising fluids in joints and faults hit the clay aquiclude and bunch out into a load. The old man (a miner or knocker) would lead the adventurer to riches, or nothing if not respected! A moot point - literally if it goes to the Bar-Moot Court! Shame Jim Rieuwerts cant give us his input!  ;)
 
Brains

Brains

Well-known member
Some pics that show the lagging failing and volcanic debris falling in.
Middle pic is some dumped spoil with timbers mixed in and decomposing.
The las one shows a mass of clay with a less rotted harder piece on top
 

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Brains

Brains

Well-known member
Roger W said:
Looks like a good place to go poking around if you want to save on undertaker's bills!
Click to expand...
Apart from the drives through the lavas, the mine was mostly in good limestone other than the stopes, which are now backfilled... As the lavas in question are near the entrance I suppose there was a good chance of being entombed...
 
Mark

Mark

Well-known member
There was nothing to see in there when it was a working mine, I really can't imagine what the attraction is now.
 
Brains

Brains

Well-known member
Rocks, minerals, fossils, geology, industrial archaeology, history... No nothing to see  ;) ;)
 
Cantclimbtom

Cantclimbtom

Well-known member
Without promoting a YouTuber not popular with many on AN,  you could always watch his/their video posted 3 days ago to get an idea of  recent state of the mine. Understood that the person seems as interested in making videos as actually exploring, so yes you can shout at the screen as you watch. Posting due to direct thread relevance not to promote

"Collapse of a Fluorspar Mine"
https://youtu.be/HDmTVdE3wok
 
tomferry

tomferry

Well-known member
Does not look in the best of conditions , not sure I would enjoy the screaming and shouting the hole time would get very annoying especially under the fresh collapse areas !
 
AR

AR

Well-known member
Brains said:
bograt said:
Its toadstone, not t'owd, due to it resemblance to a toads skin!
Click to expand...
Or as I was taught, T'owd as in The old mans' stone... Follow it to find the mineralisation that may be focussed on its lower surface. Rising fluids in joints and faults hit the clay aquiclude and bunch out into a load. The old man (a miner or knocker) would lead the adventurer to riches, or nothing if not respected! A moot point - literally if it goes to the Bar-Moot Court! Shame Jim Rieuwerts cant give us his input!  ;)
Click to expand...
Even Jim never managed to find a definitive answer to that etymological question as far as I'm aware - however, it could be said for certain that the term was largely confined to the southern half of the orefield, "channel" being usual in the northern half (or "cat-dirt" to describe weathered volcanics). It was always written as toadstone, never t'owd stone though, and I've always thought that the similarity of mottled green-black volcanics to a toad's skin was the most likely derivation.
 
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