The hills have vibes

'Hidden treasure' with endless walks and a 5-mile secret underground

- By ANDREW FORGRAVE Countryside and Tourism Editor [e-mail]

The nature reserve offers a variety of walks, terrain and habitats

(Llywelyn2000/Wiki)

IT'S been described as a “hidden treasure” with “The Hills have Eyes” vibes. Minera Quarry is a vast site with endless walks that’s free to visit - yet it’s rarely busy enough not to offer plenty of solitude.

Centuries of mining history that scarred the landscape have since been softened by nature. In summer, a site known locally as Y Calch hums with insects and blazes with wild flowers.

Native-breed ponies graze the quarry in summer and among the stones are ancient fossils waiting to be discovered.

Yet it is beneath the grasslands, woodlands and gravel that the quarry’s greatest secret can be found.

Below lies a vast network of caves that runs at five miles under Esclusham Mountain west of Wrexham.

Discovered during mining operations in the 19th century, it’s the most extensive cave system in North Wales.

Yet it wasn’t properly explored until the mid 1980s and many smaller tributary caves remain unmapped.

Victorian miners drilling drainage adits initially chanced upon the network, coming across a 40ft-high chamber which ran for 150ft. They called it the Great Cavern - it was also known as the “Magnificent Cavern” Yet the extent of this incredible place wasn’t realised until the 1960s. Three larger chambers, up to 230ft high and 66ft wide, were subsequently discov ered, accessed via a 300ft mine shaft.