Its early January 2016 and we rock up at Thoresby, the last site on our 'Tri Colliery Christmas Holiday' trip, to see how things are progressing with decommissioning the pit. Capping of both shafts is now complete and power on the site has been largely disconnected. Now i have covered every remaining UK deep pit i can probably say Thoresby has been the most enjoyable for me, not only does it feel wonderfully complete and original with little in the way of modernisation or modern additions but for once i i've managed to cover the vast majority of the site without missing sections due to locked doors or simply arriving to find them half demolished!
Coal Prep
The coal prep plant here is great as its original 1950s equipment and not a more modern replacement. Usually the coal prep is an under explored part of colliery closures often being the first section to have its power cut or be ripped down. While also being sparse of natural light, its not the kind of place for great 'arty' photos and many 'likes' on your facebook exploring page either. However, with @Dave W and @Joe. insisting i should see it before it was too late i made this the first port of call!
Emergency Winder
This obscure little building sits right in the centre of the site, its not something you would particularly think was 'epic' but it is something i've never seen at a colliery before. The idea was that if a winder failed with men still underground this smaller unit could swing into action and haul them out or provide access for rescue workers to go down. During the British Coal days i believe they switched to using mobile units that could be quickly taken to wherever they were required rather than have a permanent one at each pit. The first image shows the winder house itself viewed from the opening in the heapstead area the cable would have been strung through.
Downcast Heapsted and Headstock
The last major part of the site left that i had not yet covered was the downcast heapsted and headstock. This is where the men would have travelled underground. A corridor comes down from the dirty side of the baths, through the lamproom and into the shaft head. Its a pitty we didn't pop in here when it was still lit up but i think the capping process was still going on at the time and we felt it may not have been wise to push our luck any further that night. The headstock itself posed two problems, for one it was well barricaded and required some serious squeezing and clambering to get past the defenses. Secondly security was sitting in his car right opposite and had a grandstand view. I have no idea how he didn't see three of us go up there! Last thing left to do was get a few external shots before daylight totally faded and then home to normality.
Last edited:
