"Mining heritage. There is a rich mining heritage within the park. Lead deposits were discovered during surveying for the construction of the military road in the early 1800s. Since then the ore has been worked the remains of which can be seen at various locations and inparticular at the miners village above the Upper Lake and at the old lead mines in Glendassan both of which are short walks from Glendalough.."
http://www.loughdan.com/?page_id=736
North end of the lake is where Wicklow granite meets other rock. Boundary zomes granite volcano have different mineral deposits which is why there were mines there: geology. http://spatial.dcenr.gov.ie/GSI_DOWNLOAD/Geoheritage/Reports/WW041_Lough_Dan_North_End_Granite_Contact.pdf
How might you find the caves . . . https://mountainviews.ie/summit/210/ Scarr mountain "Inchavore Valley. If you aim to hit the valley at the end of the track running north east along Lough Dan - you may discover a cave which appears to be a disused mine [O13717 04214 I]" grid reference of cave I visited before.
You have to be very very careful visiting old mine shafts. this was a safe enough one. But conditions can change.
On google maps satellite view you can see evidence of the mine tailings
https://maps.app.goo.gl/gAKHa
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| Satellite, on left mine tailings can be seen emanating from old mine entrance. Downhill to North-East and further over to East from that old walls and buildings some overgrown some exposed. |
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| Viewranger, Openstreetmap mine shaft location and good place to cross river. |
http://www.countywicklowheritage.org/page/mining_in_wicklow_the_geology
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| Simple geological/location map of Wicklow showing mine sites, Lough Dan is North of Glendalough |
7. The Glendalough Mines
The Camaderry Mountain separates the two valleys and the two mines – the Glendasan mine and the Glendalough mine. The Luganure mineral vein cuts across Camaderry Mountain between the two valleys. The workings in the Glendasan valley were connected by a tunnel through Camaderry Mountain into Glendalough. This allowed for natural drainage of the Luganure shafts and tunnels and made transportation of the ore for processing in Glendalough valley easier."
http://www.countywicklowheritage.org/page/the_glendalough_mines
"Mining in Glendalough dates back to the 1790’s where lead, zinc and silver were mined both in the Glendalough Valley and the next adjacent Valley, Glendasan. Mining in this area took place for over 150 years and at the peak of production 2,000 miners were employed. Mining continued up until 1957.
Remains of the mining villages can be easily accessed from the National Park. The remains of the mines can only be accessed on foot.
Check out the Glens of Lead Facebook Page for more about mining histrory in the area. This site is dedicated to the history and heritage of 4 mining valleys in County Wicklow, Ireland: Glendalough, Glendasan, Glenmalure and Lough Dan- www.facebook.com/GlensOfLead"
https://www.dccae.gov.ie/en-ie/natural-resources/topics/Minerals-Exploration-Mining/historic-mine-sites/Pages/Historic-Mine-Sites.aspx
https://www.gsi.ie/en-ie/geoscience-topics/construction-and-engineering/Pages/Mining-and-Quarrying-in-Ireland.aspx
https://www.gsi.ie/en-ie/geoscience-topics/geology/Pages/default.aspx
https://www.gsi.ie/en-ie/geoscience-topics/geology/Pages/default.aspx
Report on the geological heritage of Wicklow
https://www.gsi.ie/en-ie/publications/Pages/The-Geological-Heritage-of-Wicklow.aspx
WICKLOW - COUNTY GEOLOGICAL SITE REPORT
NAME OF SITE Lough Dan, Lough Tay and Cloghoge River
Other names used for site Loch Déan, Loch Té, Guinness Lake, Luggala Estate
IGH THEME IGH7 Quaternary; IGH14 Fluvial and Lacustrine
Geomorphology
TOWNLAND(S) Cloghogue, Carrigeenshinnagh, Carrigeenduff,
Ballinrush, Carrigroe, Ballinastoe
NEAREST TOWN/VILLAGE Roundwood
SIX INCH MAP NUMBER 11, 12, 17, 18
ITM CO-ORDINATES 715250E 703650N (centre of Lough Dan)
716050E 707600N (centre of Lough Tay)
1:50,000 O.S. SHEET NUMBER 56 GSI BEDROCK 1:100,000 SHEET NO. 16
Outline Site Description
Situated in the central Wicklow Mountains, the Cloghoge River drains Lough Tay and flows
south through the north-south oriented U-shaped Cloghoge valley, draining into Lough Dan.
Geological System/Age and Primary Rock Type
The valleys hosting the Lough Dan and Lough Tay ribbon lakes are Quaternary in age,
shaped by glaciers during and prior to the Late Glacial Maximum (c. 25,000-22,000 years
ago) of the last ice age. Bedrock is predominantly Ordovician schist with Devonian granite at
the northwest end of Lough Dan, and on the west and north side of Lough Tay.
Main Geological or Geomorphological Interest
Wicklow’s mountainous terrain was covered by the vast Wicklow Ice Dome (area c.
1000km2
) during the Late Glacial Maximum (c. 25,000 to 22,000 years ago). From the ice
dome, a large glacier flowed through the Lough Dan valley. This glacier was joined by
another glacier moving south from above Lough Tay through the Cloghoge Valley. When the
two glaciers merged, they continued as one into the southern reaches of the Lough Dan
valley. When the ice sheets retreated and melted, meltwaters remained on the valley floors,
forming Lough Dan and Lough Tay. 3km long and 0.5km wide, Lough Dan (mean depth
13.5m; area 106ha) is a classic ribbon lake occupying the floor of a U-shaped glacial valley,
c. 200m above sea-level. Two rivers feed Lough Dan: the Cloghoge River and the
Inchavore. Both rivers feature sandy river deltas where they enter Lough Dan. The
Avonmore River drains Lough Dan to the south. The Cloghoge River valley was carved out
of schist bedrock whilst the mountainous terrain north and west of Lough Tay is mostly
granitic. Traces of the metamorphic aureole are inter-fingered with the granite terrain
overlooking Lough Tay. At Luggala Lodge, the Cloghoge River meanders across flat ‘delta’
draining into Lough Tay. Mass wasting (boulder debris) is abundant at the foot of the eastern
slopes of Luggala (595m). Large debris slumps are visible at the western side of the valley
where landslides occurred when ice retreated from this over-deepened glacial valley.
Site Importance - County Geological Site
This County Geological Site encompasses one of Wicklow’s classic and most scenic glacial
landscapes. Most of the site is within the Wicklow Mountains SAC (002122) and it is
imperative that the influence of the site’s geological heritage on the landscape and
biodiversity is promoted in any future promotion of the area.
Management/promotion issues
This is a hugely important site in terms of the variety of classic glacial landform features
(ribbon lake, collapsed valley sides, river deltas). Roadside (R759) viewpoints overlooking
Lough Tay and the walking route along the Cloghoge valley to Lough Dan allow for
wonderful views of the landscape.
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| Showing the north end of Lough Dan lies on the border between two different rock types. Stars mark mine locations. |
Location Maps - Lough Dan mine, Lough Dan, Co. Wicklow, Ireland
| Latitude & Longitude (WGS84): | 53° 4' 36'' North , 6° 18' 14'' West |
| Latitude & Longitude (Decimal Degrees): | 53.076666666667 , -6.3038888888889 |
| Latitude & Longitude (Degrees plus Decimal Minutes): | 53° 4.6', -6° 18.233333333333' |
These map resources refer to external websites, and as such links are outside of the control of mindat.org they may from time to time fail to work, some may also not be as accurate as we would wish.
Important Disclaimer: This locality information is for reference purposes only. You should never attempt to visit any sites listed in mindat.org without first ensuring that you have the permission of the land and/or mineral rights holders for access and that you are aware of all safety precautions necessary.
Map Location Accuracy: The coordinates listed for many locations are general regional coordinates (not accurate) and should not be relied upon for locating localities (eg with a GPS).
Important Disclaimer: This locality information is for reference purposes only. You should never attempt to visit any sites listed in mindat.org without first ensuring that you have the permission of the land and/or mineral rights holders for access and that you are aware of all safety precautions necessary.
Map Location Accuracy: The coordinates listed for many locations are general regional coordinates (not accurate) and should not be relied upon for locating localities (eg with a GPS).
