Guisborough area - noise?

[HarryM1BYT]

Well Skelton Ellers to be exact and Howla Hay to be even more precise...

At first I thought it was noise from large jet aircraft cranking up for take off, but the noise lasts for hours. Its some miles away, because it varies with the wind direction. What is making the noise please - just curious, if anyone might know?

Took a bit of a walk with the dogs up the hillside into the woods and found a curious stone built building with a square tower. At first it looked like a derelict house, but on getting nearer, it appeared to be an industrial type building with a pulley block hanging from one wall. It just seemed so very odd, in the middle of a wood, on a farm track. What might that have been?

At the other end of the track, once out of the woods, more curious derelict buildings, not far from the main A road - Two large brick built shafts, a row of what might have been a terrace of cottages, other derelict large buildings and a curious one which looked like a watch tower with on the roof a stone slab with brick peers supporting the slab at the corners, built at the exit to the site. I thought maybe an early coal mining site, but no sign I could see of any spoil heaps.

[willshot]

I've just Googled it and there are pics of old ironstone mines on there.

[2Diesels]

Ah you've stumbled on my secret laboratory where I make killer electric bunnies..................oops! I've said too much

[Kennyeth]

Did you take any pics?
I think Moulder & scully hang out in that area

[reworht]

Harry - I'm pretty certain that the noise you're hearing is one or more of the chemical plants at the Wilton Site (used to be ICI) flaring off - i.e. burning off unwanted gases. In the dark, if you look to the North, you can see a flickering orange glow in the sky. Often happens in Summer when they're on shutdown for maintenance - or occasionally for safety reasons if something goes astray. You (and I) are shielded to a degree by the Eston Hills - you can imagine how noisy (and bright) it is for residents on the other side of those hills

As regards the dilapidated buildings - they'll be the remnants of long gone ironstone mines and the miners' cottages - the area is riddled with them. This area was the raw material for The Infant Hercules' (as Gladstone I think called Middlesbrough) ironmaking industry. A lot of the ironstone was mined by Cornish folk, who came up here with the demise of the Cornish tin mines. There's a fairly local (Skinningrove)museum dedicated to the industry.

Have you seen any deer at Howla Hay - they're quite commonplace around Skelton Ellers - often in the middle of the road on the twisty bit !

If you like pork pies - make the trip to Great Ayton and try Petch's - it's only about 7 miles down the road

[HarryM1BYT]

Originally Posted by reworht

Harry - I'm pretty certain that the noise you're hearing is one or more of the chemical plants at the Wilton Site (used to be ICI) flaring off - i.e. burning off unwanted gases. In the dark, if you look to the North, you can see a flickering orange glow in the sky. Often happens in Summer when they're on shutdown for maintenance - or occasionally for safety reasons if something goes astray. You (and I) are shielded to a degree by the Eston Hills - you can imagine how noisy (and bright) it is for residents on the other side of those hills

As regards the dilapidated buildings - they'll be the remnants of long gone ironstone mines and the miners' cottages - the area is riddled with them. This area was the raw material for The Infant Hercules' (as Gladstone I think called Middlesbrough) ironmaking industry. A lot of the ironstone was mined by Cornish folk, who came up here with the demise of the Cornish tin mines. There's a fairly local (Skinningrove)museum dedicated to the industry.

Have you seen any deer at Howla Hay - they're quite commonplace around Skelton Ellers - often in the middle of the road on the twisty bit !

If you like pork pies - make the trip to Great Ayton and try Petch's - it's only about 7 miles down the road

Now you mention it, yes there was an orange glow in the sky to the north. I thought it was too bright for Guisborough's street lights.

I did take some Iphone photos of the derelict buildings, but they were hopeless. A bit wet this morning, but I'm thinking to take another walk up there with a better camera. I was surprised to see such very old buildings pretty much untouched, as the had been abandoned. Normally the stone would be scavenged for other buildings, but apart from the roofs, windows and doors, they were pretty much intact.

We will be testing the pies later today

Thanks for the mass of info - always curious, I find this sort of thing absolutely fascinating.

[HarryM1BYT]

Really nice pies, bought a couple yesterday morning - she says they are not only nicer but better value

[BigRuss]

Know every inch round there Harry that's where I grew up

The first one you came across was probably this one which is one of quite a group of them just where you are:




It's a fan house and shaft

The other one that you came across will be Skelton Park Mine which operated from 1872 t0 1938.

http://www.hidden-teesside.co.uk/cat...kelton/page/2/

The last ironstone pit was North Skelton which closed in 1964.

The noise is definately from what was the old ICI Wilton plant. The glow in the sky is not as bright or as frequent as it used to be as the number of flare stacks have been reduced as many plants closed over the years.



Certainly not as bad as the occasional explosions that used to occur there in the days before the world became more safety concious

Russ

[HarryM1BYT]

Thanks Russ, spot on and a good photo. It was getting dark the other night and it looked like stone, but its not - it is rendered. It looked to be very elaborate for an industrial building.

It was also completely over grown, but I can see how it worked from those photos.

[RPWC]

Brilliant information there Russ, it's right up my street, exploring old run down buildings , perhaps you can satisfy my curiosity,what is the bulidingStructure adjacent to the southbound A1 near Doncaster! It looks like a mausoleum of some sort can be seen better when travelling north,it has an elevated position,in a green park or field.