I’ve worked in the quarries in Blaenau for nearly 22 years, since I was 17 years old. I started when I was 13 working over the summer for Wil Roberts, the owner of Gloddfa Ganol…. I never thought I would be a manager on the same site 20 year later. I did a lot of filling holes, painting, making coasters….. and a lot of skiving during this period… great times!
I got a job working at Cwt y Bugail Quarry when I was 17, treating walling stones, learn to split and chisel stones, and how to use the ‘diamond blade’ saw. Cwt was the highest of the Stiniog quarries, and without a word of a lie, I saw snow fall in May! I worked at Cwt y Bugail for 12 years, and then I moved to Ffestiniog Quarry; to the Gloddfa Gannol site. But we used and stones from the Oakley Quarry. I accepted a job as a supervisor at the site; a year later I was offered a job as Production Manager, and job as Site Manager a year after that. I did that job until the underground mine made the area where we treated the stones unsafe.
I started working at Antur Stiniog in May 2012 setting up the Downhill Centre and trails on the Cribbau slopes in Llechwedd; another quarry which had been closed for some years, and was run by a small group of people. It's such a shame to see the slate industry die! The bike trails open in July of 2012 and is now world renowned for its warm welcome and unique biking location! We have more than 10,000 riders using the service, and the center employs 12 local people.