Gaewern Slate Mine (The Car Cave) - Wales

Having wanted to visit this place for years, I finally managed a day trip to Corris to tick off a few spots. "The Car Cave" was the first pin of the day, and after a short walk, we soon found the partially flooded adit hidden among the overgrowth.

The sheer amount of litter hinted that we were heading into the right mine. This place has gained notoriety online over the years due to the hundreds of dumped, disused old cars dropped inside. The gaping entrance hole, with a beam of sunlight pouring into the otherwise pitch-black space, truly paints a striking picture.

For this reason, and also due to the complete fabrication regarding "King Arthur's sword" a certain group of explorers supposedly "found" there, the place went viral for a number of years. This attracted masses of folk, many of whom were unprepared or improperly equipped to explore mines safely.

The first sign of this was the graffiti, followed by various descending aids, none of which would suffice in the caving world. One way down was a long ball of string, which people have seemingly entrusted their lives to, it's truly amazing that no one has been seriously injured here.

After navigating safely down to the lower level, you're greeted with even more awful graffiti, none of which shows any skill, mostly just names and generic penises scattered around. Through this chamber passing a set of disused mine carts is the lake, where there are almost as many discarded rubber dinghies as there are rotting cars.

I was a bit gutted when I arrived here, as it seemed the open hole that previously allowed daylight to fill the chamber has since been almost completely filled, offering only a mere pinprick of light. I presume this was done by local cavers to deter people from coming, and it might just do the trick.

Since my visit, there have been cleanup operations within the mine. One saw a large group head down and ferry out a substantial amount of previously left behind rubbish. They also scrubbed away a lot of the graffiti.

History

“Gaewern Slate Mine, also known as "The Car Cave" or "The Cavern of Lost Souls," is an abandoned slate mine located in Corris Uchaf, Gwynedd, Wales. Established around 1820, the mine significantly developed, employing approximately 200 men by 1873, and later merged with the Braichgoch quarry. While Braichgoch ceased operations in 1970, Gaewern is generally cited as having closed around the 1960s or 1970s. Following its closure, one of the mine's main chambers, containing a deep lake, was utilized as an illicit dumping site, primarily in the 1960s and 1970s. This resulted in the accumulation of dozens, potentially hundreds, of disused cars, along with other household waste such as refrigerators and televisions, within the underground space. The presence of these decaying vehicles, partially submerged in water and illuminated by light shafts from above, created a distinctive and visually striking environment”.