Speedwell Cavern facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Speedwell Cavern |
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| Location | Castleton, Derbyshire |
| Geology | Limestone |
| Website | Speedwell Cavern official website: http://www.speedwellcavern.co.uk/ |
Speedwell Cavern is an exciting show cave located in Castleton, Derbyshire, England. It is one of four amazing caves you can visit in this area.
This special cave system was once a lead mine. It has a long, flat tunnel called an adit that goes deep underground. This tunnel leads to the main cavern, which is made of limestone.
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Exploring Speedwell Cavern
The tunnel leading to the main cavern is always filled with water. This means you get to explore the cave by boat! After walking down many steps, you'll board a boat for a unique underground journey.
Your Underground Boat Trip
The boat trip takes you through the narrow, water-filled adit. It's a cool way to see the inside of the earth. In the past, guides used to push the boat along the walls with their hands. Later, they used a method called "legging," where they pushed off the tunnel sides with their feet. Today, the boats are powered by an electric motor, making the trip smooth and easy.
The Famous "Bottomless Pit"
At the end of the boat ride, the tunnel opens up into a large cavern. Here, you can see beautiful fluorspar minerals, along with amazing stalactites and stalagmites. The most famous part of this chamber is the "Bottomless Pit."
This part of the cavern has an underground lake. There's also a 20 metres (66 ft) high waterfall that adds to the cave's beauty. The "Bottomless Pit" is actually a very deep vertical shaft. Miners used to dump rock waste into it. Even though it's now filled with a lot of rock, it's still incredibly deep. Experts believe the shaft was originally about 150 metres (490 ft) deep!
A Glimpse into History
Speedwell Cavern was first developed as a lead mine in the 1770s. However, the miners didn't find much lead ore. Because it wasn't very profitable, the mine was closed down by 1790. Today, it's a popular place for tourists to visit and learn about mining history and natural cave formations.
Connecting to Titan Cave
In 2006, an exciting discovery was made! A connection was found between the Speedwell Cavern system and Titan. Titan is the largest natural shaft in the UK, reaching an amazing 141.5 metres (464 ft) high. This discovery links two incredible underground worlds.
