Introduction

During my late teenage years I could often be found pottering around old mine spoil heaps in my spare time armed with a geological hammer hunting for mineral specimens.  It was a great way of  combining my fascination of mineralogy with my love of the countryside and the great outdoors.

I was living in North Wales at the time and studying Geology at A level along with Physics and Mathematics.   The local area contained large beds of carboniferous limestone which had been mineralised and subsequently mined over many years.  It provided ample opportunity to seek out mineral specimens on the many disused and abandoned spoil heaps.

Common minerals included the commercially mined Lead ore Galena along with the common gangue minerals Calcite and Fluorspar.

GALENA WITH QUARTZ - ALSTON, CUMBRIA

FLUORSPAR WITH ZINC BLENDE - RHOSESMOR, FLINTSHIRE

I was able to extend my mineral collecting to other areas of the UK during holidays including the Lake District where I spent some time mineral hunting the abandoned tips of the Cumbrian Iron Ore mines around Egremont culminating in an arranged trip down the Beckermet Iron ore mine which closed soon after.

QUARTZ WITH SPECULAR HAEMATITE - BECKERMET MINE, CUMBRIA

SPECULAR HAEMATITE WITH FLUORSPAR - BECKERMET MINE, CUMBRIA

My subsequent career in electronics and later software development left little time for continuing my mineral collecting. Various jobs led me to settle eventually in Derbyshire where I have lived for over 27 years and raised a family.  

Having finally retired and having more time on my hands I decided it would be nice to resurrect my interest in mineralogy and explore some of the many mine locations to be found in Derbyshire. 

This has been the inspiration for this blog which I will use to document and illustrate my visits to mining locations in Derbyshire, as and when they take place,  and any representative mineral specimens found.

All photographs have been taken using my Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX5