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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
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A short trip to yet another failed Hill-man venture!
TAKE GREAT CARE AROUND OLD BUILDINGS AND SUDDEN STEEP DROPS!
Recommended parking at Laxey, firestation or wheel, an excellent walk carries on from the cache, descending to King Orry's grave, back along the road to the car.
Hill-man's last fling in Laxey! Having abandoned his efforts at Snaefell mine Hill-man went south again to attempt a scratching not far from the Round Table. "What were you doing up under Snaefell yessir, when everyone knows Agneash is where the metal is?" Ever gullible, off he sets for Agneash, this time just across the valley from the hamlet. Another setback, it is all worked out and abandoned, will he ever learn? The answer appears to be yes, as his attention is now turned to timber. Look to your trees, Forestry Board!
The area that concerns us is the buildings and associated structures near Dumbells' Shaft, part of the Great Laxey complex. Almost the furthest shaft up the valley from Laxey, it was also the deepest, at 302 fathoms (1812 feet), measured from the main level known as the adit, which started at the Mines yard, above the washing floors.That leaves a good height still to the surface and daylight. This shaft was driven almost vertically, unlike the rest of the shafts which followed the veins of ore at about 15 degrees from the vertical. Used mainly for hauling ore up, this shaft marked the upper end of the tramway used to haul ore out of the mine. The daylight end of the tramway has recently been restored, with replicas of the original Ant and Bee locomotives running to a timetable at weekends, at least in summer. The stone-built structure, with its' surrounding iron band, in the field above the ruin is the header tank for the turbine which powered the hauling gear for a period.
A story to help keep you on the marked path to the ruins:- many years ago, after the mines had closed, a couple were returning to their respective homes after chapel one Sunday, when the ground gave way below the young lady, pitching her a considerable distance down. Her young man ran to summon assistance, returning with men and a good rope. Amazingly the girl was still alive and retrieved without serious injury, having landed on a ledge part way down. Not a pleasant experience on a quiet evening.
As with previous Hill-man caches, much of the above information has come from Industrial Archaeology of the Isle of Man,(Bawden,Garrad,Qualtrough and Scatchard). Further information may be gleaned there, or in numerous historical/specialist papers and books.
The cache is approached on the flat, and does not require entering the building. If you enter the upper/inner part of the ruin you are in the wrong place!
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Oruvaq n pbhcyr bs fgbarf, haqre gur jvaqbj ubyr.