WATCH: I go 500ft underground on Zip World's Deep Mine Tour
TODAY (April 23), we went 500 feet underground as we were taken on an immersive and exhilarating tour of the Llechwedd slate caverns in Gwynedd.
Adventure company Zip World has brought the history of Welsh mining to life with its Deep Mine Tour, which relaunched on April 5 at its Blaenau Ffestiniog site.
Today's tour was led by Brian Jones, who worked in the mine himself in the 1970s and 1980s.
It included a descent into the mine via Europe's steepest cable car, a look inside 10 of the mine's 250 man-made slate chambers (which are brought to life with enhanced audio-visuals), the simulating of a mine blast with a 'detonator', and much more.
The tour lasts 90 minutes, and gives a unique insight into what it was like to work in the mine for people like Brian – one of the chambers was even used as a wedding venue previously.
Each chamber has a solid granite roof, while miners worked in pitch-black conditions with no electricity and just a helmet light and a candle to navigate their way.
Boys as young as eight would work there, Brian told the tour, and at 11.30am, the bell would go for a 30-minute break – the only break of the day, during which workers would 'cram as much food into their gullets'.
Tours at the mine started in 1979, while the mine itself dates back to 1846 when it was opened by John Whitehead Greaves, a successful quarry owner.
At its peak in 1884, the quarry produced 23,788 tonnes of finished slate per year and employed 513 workers.
At the end of the tour, a new light show and projections transform the underground water table into a visual spectacle, and guests hear the 'Farewell Song', recorded and sung by miners, in the Miners' Caban.
Those visiting also "meet a miner" through a projection where a miner shares his story and experiences.
Brian said: "It's been fantastic to see how Zip World has regenerated the site over the years.
'The mine's legacy is deeply ingrained in the history of the area, and it's wonderful to see our past reimagined in such an engaging and educational way.
'It gives me a huge sense of pride that we're able to continue sharing our stories with generations to come.'
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