Members of the Mid-Wales Local Section and their guests met for lunch in Lampeter, and then braved the wettest September day for many years to visit the Dolaucothi Gold Mines (National Trust) at Pumpsaint, Carmarthenshire.  First worked as an opencast quarry by the Romans, and then forgotten for hundreds of years, the site was reinvestigated in the 18th century and worked as a gold mine for various periods in the 19th and 20th centuries, finally closing in 1938.  A well-informed guided tour took the group through the tunneled mine workings at various levels in the wooded mountainside overlooking the Cothi valley, but  no gold was found that afternoon.  The guide reminded us that “if it's gold you're after, you can find it in the shop”.

If you would like to find out more about the many activities in the Mid-Wales Local section please contact networks@rsc.org for more information.  Mid-wales also run a series of educational activities as well as public lectures and social trips like the one mentioned in this post.