Get Your Adrenaline Pumping at Honister Slate Mine

Quarrying has been taking place in Honister since 1728 in order to extract coveted Westmorland green slate from the landscape’s rugged topography, used throughout the UK on architectural projects such as the Royal Hospital in Chelsea. Reaching its height towards the end of the nineteenth century in 1891 when output touched 3,000 tons, the mines were closed following decades of mismanagement in 1981 before being reopened as a working mine and tourist attraction by local entrepreneur Mark Weir. The site has been in continual development ever since and welcomes some 60,000 visitors per year, having won numerous awards as one of the region’s top tourist attractions. Initially consisting of a visitor centre, underground tours of the working mines, and England’s first via ferrata up Fleetwith Pike, a constellation of adrenaline-inspiring experiences are now offered for guests of all skills and ages.

Via Ferrata

Via Ferrata is Latin for “iron path”, a mountain-climbing experience originating in the Alps that involves scaling sheer cliff-faces and treacherous summits using metal cables, ladders, and harnesses. Honister Slate Mine’s via ferrata was the first in England and mounts Fleetwith Pike, a foreboding fell that dominates the Buttermere-Honister area skyline. The experience takes about three hours.

Mine Tours

Taking you deep into Fleetwith Pike’s interior to surround you in the green slate that has made the mountain famous, Honister’s Mine Tours give you a literal deep-dive into the fascinating history of its 350-year-old mines, full of historical anecdotes and explosive special effects. Alternatively, you can embark on a tour of the cavernous Cathedral Working Mine or Climb the Mine along a dizzying course featuring rope bridges, ladders, zip lines, and Tarzan swings.

Infinity Bridge

Suspended over 1,000ft into the sky, Honister’s Infinity Bridge is the longest highwire bridge in Europe and is a totally unique way to experience the Lake District’s monumental landscapes. So called due to the high density of fog and mist that often hangs over the pathway that totally obscures the other end, walking the bridge takes approximately one hour and is suitable for all.

Cliff Camping

A totally unique package experience, Honister’s Cliff Climbing involves firstly a journey across the Infinity Bridge. After that you will have to abseil down a sheer crag to a secluded mountain sanctuary where you will spend the night wild camping in a tent suspended 500ft above the ground off the rocks of Honister Pass.

Canyoning

Taking you through “nature’s own waterpark”, Honister Slate Mine’s canyoning experience will take you across water falls and down rock faces for an unforgettable amphibian experience.

Honister Slate Mine experiences should be booked in advance online; all relevant information can be found on their website here.

On the ascent to Honister Slate Mine is Honister Pass, one of the most magnificent mountain walks in the UK. Joining Buttermere to the tourist town of Keswick, the pass crescendos at an altitude of 1167ft (356m), making it one of the highest passes in the region. It is also one of the steepest, reaching gradients of up to 1-in-4 (25%). Several walks traverse the sublime natural scenery, so enjoy one of the Lake District’s most challenging yet also most rewarding hikes.

At the bottom of Honister Pass is Buttermere, a small village adjoining a small lake of the same name. There are a few interest points in the settlement: grade II-listed Buttermere Church which features a memorial plaque dedicated to Alfred Wainwright and with a commanding view of Haystacks, where the famed fellwalker’s ashes were scattered; the Bridge Hotel, whose history traces to the 11th century; and the former Fish Inn (now called Buttermere Court Hotel), which was the home of Mary Robinson made famous as “The Maid of Buttermere” in William Wordsworth’s “The Prelude”.

However, what makes the area most interesting is its lore. Although one theory suggests that the name “Buttermere” comes from the fertile cow-grazing pastures that trace the lake’s banks, another argues that the name in fact means “Buthear’s Lake”, a reference to the semi-mythological Viking figure of Jarl Buthear who is said to have launched a bloody guerilla war against the armies of William the Conqueror from his lakeside stronghold here during the Norman king’s proto-genocidal Harrying of the North in the 11th and 12th centuries. Attacking the Norman invaders’ supply wagons and ambushing its patrols, it is said that the carpet of bluebells that now grows on nearby Rannerdale Knots in the springtime bloomed from the blood of the men Buthear’s men slayed.