The ghost village lost in time accessed through an eerie tunnel

Portia Jones finds nature steadily reclaiming this place as moss creeps over stone and rainwater carves channels through walls that used to house workers

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Perched above Tanygrisiau, near Blaenau Ffestiniog, this crumbling mine and workers' village once buzzed with slate dust and hard graft

I SCRAMBLE up a steep, slate-covered slope, and every footstep feels like a future cautionary tale Mountain Rescue includes in its training videos. Somewhere beneath me, the grey mountain probably groans at yet another overconfident visitor determined to turn local history into breaking news. I can already see the headline on my employer's Facebook page: "Idiot reporter requires airlift.

Ahead, a shadowy tunnel gapes open, a low-lit, rocky void you'd expect to see in an episode of Stranger Things. Our impossibly chipper guide, George, assures us this damp, ominous hole leads to the remains of an old slate-mining village. A once industrious community carved into the mountainside, it was abandoned when the slate trade crumbled, leaving a ghost village behind.

"You'll love it," he says, grinning, as if we're heading to a charming tearoom instead of a crumbling ghost town. He also mentions the words "cavernous quarries" and "ruined workers' cottages" with the casual enthusiasm of a man who's not seen a horror movie in his life.

Perched above Tanygrisiau, near Blaenau Ffestiniog, this former mine and workers' village once buzzed with slate dust and hard graft.

Now, it's eerily silent, save for the wind and the occasional sheep bleating. Nature, having lost its patience with pesky humans, is steadily reclaiming its place. Moss creeps over stone and rainwater carves channels through walls that used to house groups of workers.

"I thought you said we were walking to a village," my long-suffering husband muttered. I did say that, technically. But I forgot to mention one tiny detail: the village has been abandoned for years.

Plas Weunydd, a boutique B&B located on the same site as Llechwedd and Zip World, organised our intrepid hike to the misty slate landscapes.