Bryn Felin Mine

Location
SH 590 473

Directions
Heading south out of Beddgelert on the A498 to Nantmor, pass Gelerts grave (on the left) and the sewage works (small and on the left just after the grave) then you come to a bend with a small copse of woodland on the right. The mine is just at the back of that small woodland and can be reached by footpaths on either side of the woodland.

Access
Ungated and Unknown

Suggested Equipment
None unless you intend to enter a shaft in which case SRT

Length
Unknown but not likely to be significant

Flood risk
None known

Mine Attributes
Copper. Heavy Sulphur & Iron intrusions. Fool’s gold found within the spoil. Open Stopes, small adits and shafts.

Description
Firstly, this mine is very dangerous as the open stopes are exposed and potentially lethal. There is no fencing around them and the drops are upwards of 60 feet and very sudden with soil at the edges that falls away.

Having said that, this is a peculiar mine in that the veins that were mined were exposed to the surface the adits are largely open for that reason. There are a few small adits (probably trials), one of which exhibits sulphur and iron intrusion (with some Iron Pyrites in the spoil heaps). One of the trials is flooded to 1 foot depth and travels only 60 feet before turning left to become quickly blind (the turn can be seen to tease you into getting wet to look what’s there).

There seems to be 3 basic mined veins which reach a depth of over 100 feet as they travel into the mountainside. They cannot be travelled along the base without abseiling down from various points (due to many blockages).

There is also an open (and fenced) shaft which remains unexplored.

Unexplored Passages
The stopes were not descended.
It is possible some elements of the mine remain undetected.
The shaft was not descended.

Digs
None known.

Links
http://www.mine-explorer.co.uk/mines/Bryn-y-felin_2170/Bryn-y-felin.asp

http://www.aditnow.co.uk/album/Brynfelin-Copper-Mine-Archive-Album/

http://ukcaving.com/wiki/index.php/Snowdonia_Mines

One of the open stopes




One of the trial adits (flooded to 1 foot)




The same adit showing it's sulphur intrusion




Another (smaller) adit