Gwynedd Slate Landscape

[Paul Marvin]

Rhosydd is safe, a foot of water is plenty protection from people casually wandering in. Croesor more of a concern, but if gated there's the shaft, wouldn't be quite the same though as an "introductory" trip with its powers to corrupt innocent urbex and climbers into further subterranean trips.

Rhosydd  :-\  A small linear platform would easily avoid any wet feet

 

[Paul Marvin]

Be careful, the words "trundle" and "trundling" seems to be gaining ground (US influence possibly) to mean chucking big rocks off cliffs or rolling them down steep slopes. Commonly, not what I'd call "scalling" for safety work but giggling idiots doing it for fun, clearly not thinking of others. Unless of course that's what you meant, and you plan to roll a huge boulder down the incline/tunnel?

Enjoy!!

As said the water doesn't stretch nowhere near as far as it did or as deep 

 

[RobinGriffiths]

Be careful, the words "trundle" and "trundling" seems to be gaining ground (US influence possibly) to mean chucking big rocks off cliffs or rolling them down steep slopes. Commonly, not what I'd call "scalling" for safety work but giggling idiots doing it for fun, clearly not thinking of others. Unless of course that's what you meant, and you plan to roll a huge boulder down the incline/tunnel?

Enjoy!!

What would have been good would be a huge Indiana Jones style boulder, drop it through the Wrysgan incline tunnel head, and thence down the incline. Reminds me of the funny Indiana Jones boulder p*ss take they did in Labyrinth!

 

[Cantclimbtom]

Wow, last time I was there was way back in end October 2020 (family illness or I'd have been back at maybe twice since then). Back then there was one part where I had to step on rocks so it didn't over-top my wellies. Sounds like this trench has been effective. I'm split between grumbling the deterrent is gone, and warmly thanking whoever for digging it

 

[wormster]

Be careful, the words "trundle" and "trundling" seems to be gaining ground (US influence possibly) to mean chucking big rocks off cliffs or rolling them down steep slopes. Commonly, not what I'd call "scalling" for safety work but giggling idiots doing it for fun, clearly not thinking of others. Unless of course that's what you meant, and you plan to roll a huge boulder down the incline/tunnel?

Enjoy!!

AH!! the ancient sport of climbers, walkers and me since the early 1970's, my eldest brother introduced me to the sport when he was at Bangor studying Outdoor Persuits under Brailsford's influence, he did tell me about riding big slabs down the hills like a surfboard after climbing the slabs! - such fun!

Mind you its been many a moon since I last had a go, and when I do I always make sure that there's nobody about when selecting a suitable candidate for a good trundle down the hill!

 

[cavemanmike]

I worked in Llanberis for many years and a lot of the old boys had a thumb or one of there fingers missing because as kids they used to slide down the snowdon railway tracks on a slab of slate and inevitably catch a finger or thumb on the track.
Owch 

 

[RobinGriffiths]

Then if they went on to work in the slate dressing sheds, there's a fair chance they'd lop another one off. My uncle had two missing after working with a Greaves trimmer.

 

[paul]

I worked in Llanberis for many years and a lot of the old boys had a thumb or one of there fingers missing because as kids they used to slide down the snowdon railway tracks on a slab of slate and inevitably catch a finger or thumb on the track.
Owch 

Have a look at this (from an interview with Joe Brown):

https://youtu.be/dmEz2GLo_wM?t=1643

 

[Cantclimbtom]

I had a grandad who was a steel worker (looked and sounded very much like Fred Dibnah) and he had the little finger and half the ring finger missing on left hand, it might have been much worse if his wedding ring hadn't saved him.

Not just slate workers who lost fingers, they didn't believe in having too many guards etc on machines back in the day...

 

[cavemanmike]

I worked in Llanberis for many years and a lot of the old boys had a thumb or one of there fingers missing because as kids they used to slide down the snowdon railway tracks on a slab of slate and inevitably catch a finger or thumb on the track.
Owch 

Have a look at this (from an interview with Joe Brown):

https://youtu.be/dmEz2GLo_wM?t=1643

What an absolute legend of a man and so modest.
He's right in what he said about we will never have the same climbing experience he has as it's getting more and more difficult to put up new routes

 

[Paul Marvin]

I had a grandad who was a steel worker (looked and sounded very much like Fred Dibnah) and he had the little finger and half the ring finger missing on left hand, it might have been much worse if his wedding ring hadn't saved him.

Not just slate workers who lost fingers, they didn't believe in having too many guards etc on machines back in the day...

Before Health and Safety had been invented, what we did back in my youth on the building sites ! looking back makes me cringe .    :chair:

 

[Cantclimbtom]

What an absolute legend of a man and so modest.
He's right in what he said about we will never have the same climbing experience he has as it's getting more and more difficult to put up new routes

True, we might get opportunities as old ones collapse, slate for example, but also Cwm Silyn has been playing that game in recent years. Sadly it's as likely to make existing ones harder, but sometimes it presents new routes and just occasionally ones at a low enough grade that an inept "cycling window cleaner" (to use the Joe Brown expression) like me might just be able to manage

 

[PeteHall]

Not just slate workers who lost fingers, they didn't believe in having too many guards etc on machines back in the day...

Not that unusual even in more recent times.

My neighbour is missing the index finger on his left hand, after a site accident 20 years ago (that was a cement mixer). They did sew it back on, but it caused him so much trouble he told them to cut it off again! 

A couple of years ago, he tried to balance things out by shattering the bone in the index finger on his right hand, but they were able to save that one.

My neighbour where I grew up also lost a finger to an old circular saw on the farm, but that was so badly gored that they didn't even try sewing it back by all accounts. That was after I'd left home (and before he died) so something in the range of 5-15 years ago.

 

[ChrisJC]

There's always one cock who wants to piss on the fire:

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2021/jul/30/the-links-between-welsh-slate-and-slavery

As if that's going to change anything?, should we fill in the quarries and demolish all vestiges of the industry as some sort of reparation?

Chris.

 

[Cantclimbtom]

That's the statue debate all over again. Everyone, including "great" people are flawed when you look closely. There are many people with statues that did 1 very bad thing for every 10 very good things.

Do we revise history and pull down the statues, or openly recognise the mix of things they did?
Anyone who gets the contract to fill in Penrhyn again had better win it on time and materials basis!

(Although in the case of George Pennant/2nd Baron Penrhyn the ratio was probably closer to 20 very bad things to each good thing, or worse?)

 

[Speleotron]

Are there any remaining rails where you can ride down on a rock like in that video? I wouldn't fancy it on the Dinowric inclines. I don't really remember any long sections of rail that aren't knackered in some way but maybe there is one out there somewhere. My knowledge is very Dinorwic centric.

 

[Cantclimbtom]

Wow, that sounds dangerous, a far safer option  :doubt: would be Snowdon Mountain Railway and something like this, 2 skateboards and a bit of wood. But if you do it and break both your legs, just don't come running to me

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tRh2CC1ThQ8

Edit...  if you did it at night and were prepared to run away from angry people... maybe could run like that all the way from Blaenau to Penrhyndeudraeth  (give or take jumping off for a few level crossings, and maybe the new tunnel is flat?). I wonder with the right skateboards and speed on your side if you could do it in one go without walking?

 

[Roger W]

It's not a railway track, but has anyone tried skateboarding down Winnats?

 

[droid]

It's not a railway track, but has anyone tried skateboarding down Winnats?

The cattle grid at the bottom might be a bit of a challenge...

 

[RobinGriffiths]

Wow, that sounds dangerous, a far safer option  :doubt: would be Snowdon Mountain Railway and something like this

Reminds me of the lunatic who drove up the Snowdon Railway track in his 4x4 a few years ago. Not once, but twice.