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* Allt Ddu Quarry (Dinorwig Slate Quarry) *

[Pic 1] Allt Ddu Quarry - Transporter incline winding house (Aug 1982)

North west of the main Dinorwig Quarry workings (and close to the village of Dinorwig) lies the old Allt Ddu quarry - or at least it used to until intensive landscaping obliterated all traces of it in the mid 1980's. Prior to this there was a host of interesting remains to be seen - including a great example of an incline that uphauled product from a connection to Chwarel Fawr quarry (located slightly to the north west) using a side loading transporter.

Pic 1 (above) shows the ruins of this inclines winding house* shortly after it had been partly demolished and its drum removed. Note the old (upper) incline in view behind the winding house was redundant prior to the first world war, being replaced by a steeply rising tramway connection to the 'Village Branch' line that connected Allt Ddu with the Dinorwig mills.

* There is a fine photo of the intact remains of this electric powered winding house on Page 35 of 'Delving in Dinorwig' by Douglas C. Carrington / Published by Gwasg Carreg Gwalch

[Pic 2] Allt Ddu Quarry - The Bonc Fawr embankment and tunnel to Allt Ddu pit (Aug 1982)

One connection into the big deep Allt Ddu pit was via a short tunnel through an impressive embankment (see Pic 2 above) known as Bonc Fawr, which led to a steep uphaulage incline from the pit bottom. Another route was through a long tunnel (on a lower level) who's entrance was on a level with, and slightly east of, the base of the transporter incline to Chwarel Fawr (mentioned above) which was used to uphaul useable product, while waste from this level carried on along the lengthy Domen Fawr waste tip. Note: The short tunnel is just in view (lower centre) behind the overgrowth and the rusting remains of an old car.

[Pic 3] Allt Ddu Quarry - Looking west along the Fawr waste tip (Aug 1982)

Pic 3 shows the view west from near the Allt Ddu mill area with the tramway from the 'Village Branch' line (dropping downhill on an embankment) approaching a connection with the Fawr waste tip line. This is a section of the route (mentioned above) built to circumnavigate the use off the upper Chwarel Fawr incline and was designed to be loco hauled - but involved some tough gradients for the loco to tackle. Product bound for the Dinorwig mills would be taken out along the waste tip line, then head uphill along this embankment to meet with the Village Branch close to the Bonc Fawr embankment *. The small building in the distance was, presumeably, a weighbridge. The length of this tip, and the even more impressive Domen Fawr tip below it, used to serve as a measure of the extent of the excavations that had taken place over the years in both Allt Ddu and Chwarel Fawr.

* An incredible account of the procedure for the working of this stretch can be found in 'Delving in Dinorwig' by Douglas C. Carrington.

[Pic 4] Allt Ddu Quarry - Weighbridge (Aug 1982)

A closer view of the Fawr weighbridge (?) located just beyond the junction with the Village Branch tramway connection. This photo doesn't do justice to the size of the tip - you had to stand at the very end and admire the view to do that. When they came to landscaping this area they certainly had quite a few thousand tonnes of waste to move! Note, in the far distance across the valley, the Glynrhonwy complex of quarries with the impressive Ffridd Inclines clearly in view.

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