Report - Hasard Cheratte - May 2014

[Morrisey]

I first saw Photos of this place yonks ago and vowed that one day i would pay the old girl a visit, and with rumours that work on the site was due to start anytime soon, now was the time to pay a visit. Upon entering the site i was amazed at the number of people mooching around here, explorers from a multitude of countries doing their thing, plus the local scrotes up to no good!

The place is a veritable death trap with large drops and open shafts to catch out the unwary. I could have spent days here just looking at the above ground derp, never mind the drifts that disappear into the darkness.

PS - Don't know what it's like when parking the car, but motorbikes certainly attract the attention of local scrotes - little bastards!


Mad history courtesy of Wiki

This first shaft was dug in 1850. Its depth is 250 meters. After reviewing the mine to know its state, the engineers noticed that the thiny coal was located deeply. The first mine is dug again and reach a depth of 420 meters. The place on which is located the mine is not very big. The extraction company decided, for the first time in Belgium, to build a head frame. This tower is stuffed with an extraction machine and several motors working with direct current. A washhouse is built in 1920 by Beer de Jemeppe company, and a second extraction mine with a metallic tower is opened.[1] In 1927, the Belle-Fleur mine[5] is equipped by a little tower made of reinforced concrete and a low power winch. It's work is to bring back the tailings to the surface.

A third mine and a headframe were built between 1927 and 1947.[1] In 1938, the mine has reach 313 metres depth, but it only begun to work in 1953. Il is improved and reached 480 metres depth. The extraction machine at its top is insufficient. The engineer decide to install a machine on the floor, and to improve it. The mine n° 1 stopped the extraction and became a rescue mine. Then, its additional building are converted to showers and cloakrooms. The mine n° 2 is sealed off. When it closed on October 31, 1977, it employed more than 600 miners.

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[Oxygen Thief]

Didn't think you knew what 'top side' was.

Revisit for the drifts?

 

[Morrisey]

Didn't think you knew what 'top side' was.

Revisit for the drifts?

Lol.... Back underground tomorrow,

Would go back to HC tomorrow if i could be sure that the drifts go.

 

[Lenston]

Good stuff mate

 

[soylent green]

Looks like a fascinating site , and must have been a nice ride across there

 

[The Kwan]

Ace photos man, it looks fantastic despite the dangers.... The bikes look cool in red, green and blue see you left a sentry to guard the hubcaps

 

[Und3rc0ver Genius]

This is ace! Was there myself in April. Photo #4 is a belter; gutted I missed that bit. If you do go back, I'd recommend parking up top, near the minehead monument, and coming down the slope. Much more discreet, and a nicer area up there, so fewer scrotes knocking about!

 

[Will Knot]

Great report and nice pics there mate

 

[Matt Inked]

The first picture with the bikes is pretty cool. Nice report

 

[latentuk]

Nice shots, and that's a fancy looking building.

 

[Will Knot]

Mate, meant to mention, in picture 3, I found the other wellie to that in Huncoat Power Station the other day Amazing ...........but that's another story