Underground Boat Ride in a old Mine: Speedwell Cavern, Castleton, Peak District, Derbyshire, England

Speedwell Cavern is one of the four show caves in Castleton, Derbyshire, England. The cave system consists of a horizontal lead mine 200 metres below ground. The narrow mine is permanently flooded, so after descending a long staircase, access to the cave is made by boat. At the end of the adit, the cavern opens up with fluorspar veins, stalactites and stalagmites, and the so-called “Bottomless Pit“. This chamber has an underground lake with a 20 metres (66 ft) high waterfall and an extremely deep vertical shaft, now choked to within 20 metres (66 ft) of the surface by rock spoil dumped by miners. The original depth of the shaft has been estimated, from the amount of spoil placed in the shaft over the years, at around 150 metres (490 ft). The mine was developed in the 1770s but the limited lead ore deposits meant that it was not profitable and it was closed down by 1790. Originally the guide would propel the boat by pushing against the walls with his hands, later the boat was legged through, and now