does anyone have any info on a smugglers cave in Heswall
I think some wives of the smuggles were all killed there

It was still there in 2005, can't be that difficult to find you'd think. Is that Greg's book?

Not sure which book
I just happened to glance thru it at the main reference library while waiting to look at some photos

any idea where it could be?. ive got a thing for caves and tunnels. went to see the bidston hill tunnels but they have all been closed up.

Greg Dawson.

I have no idea where it is, but there is always talk about smugglers on the gulley that leads up to The Dungeon, there is also mention of a smuuglers cave in Thurstaston Village, whether that is tied to the tunnel that was found or independent I don't know.

When the Wirral Tour Bus included a Smugglers Cave on it's tour around the Heswall area in 2005, it *implied* that access to the cave is normally restricted ie it is on private property.

I think there is a bit of a cave on heswall dales but is about as exciting as The Dungeon.

Many Smugglers Caves around the country turn out to just be little nooks and crannies that Smugglers may have used to hide stuff - not on your tunnel scale. Red Rocks springs to mine as being similar in stature to some I have seen.

just think that in a hundred years time people will be talking about the mersey tunnels {road} as been the drug dealers tunnels from liverpool to the wirral

I didnt know anything about that cave. Good find !

this could interest UEs and ghosthunters and historians




By the croquet lawn at the far side of the old house called The Cave, Thurstaston Road, Heswall
is a stone summer house.
Behind the walls of this summer house is the large entrance to a smugglers cave
The doorway is 5ft 9ins high by 2ft 6ins wide opening out to an oval shaped room 8ft 6ins by 9ft ins

long and 6ft 1ins high
Authentic dates chiselled in the rock start in the 1800S altho smugglers wouldn't put their names
or dates on. It is estimated over 250 years old or earlier

Can anyone around Heswall say where it is and put a map up please

WOW COOL MATE!

Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm interesting. thanks for the heads up derek.

wow need to go here

https://www.wikiwirral.co.uk/forums...d/Number/17597/filename/Cave%20house.jpg



https://www.wikiwirral.co.uk/forums...ename/cave%20in%20trees%20%20resized.jpg

Fantastic Derek ....

Here is a google earth of "The Cave" house and where I think the smugglers cave is. They house appears on ordinance survey maps since about 1890 and the smugglers cave is on the maps from about 1890 to 1920. I am guessing the actual location of the cave because one map has the label west of this point and another map has the label east of this point. I will have a distant nosey tommorow early evening.

excellent D,D. THANKS

1912 map

230 actually has The Cave written on it.

Hope you don't mind me butting in!!

COOL COOL

we will have to go and look see

Is it in somebodys property then ?

thats ok i have wiki cards lol

I can add a few images for you, well not of the cave, but the area that it will be in.

Ok, you can enter a public area from Oldfield road....via this well made gate.


Keep left and follow the fence until you reach an opening on the top of the hill.



Bear left....following this path.



And if you keep left along the fence you get here.....


The outhouse sort of under the 'bright' green tree in the centre of this picture, and that tree is growing out of a 'cliff' type area made from sandstone

The area is fenced off so I went for a wander to try and get around the fence (The fence is just a wire, but I thought as it was sunny I would not wander around some randomly fenced off land in full view of the houses).
This area there are large 'valleys', so went to the bottom of the one by the cave house looking for a way to it. There is a small stream leading through here so I followed it for a bit until the shrubbery got a bit too dence for my t-shirt and shorts so I set up camp.....



Whilst here I tried my hand with an oscillator, but as it had not been PAT tested since 93 I thought I would leave it to the professionals.



The area smelt of poo, and was scattered with beer cans and bottles, so I decided to leave the camp behind for another day.

Hope this is of help to people.

Neston, do we have to go through private land to get to the cave then ?

There are no signs about (or at least I didn't see any), but I'd say it was private land. It looks like someone has made a rather large clearance and fenced it off, which seems a tad strange given it's location and inaccessibility by wheeled vehicle and by foot (in one form or another).
I wouldn't be at all surprised that if you ventured around on the fenced off land, a nice man with a rent a cop badge and a big dog may turn up and tell you to get back over the fence to the public side.

It is the old croquet lawn mentioned above. Yes, the land is private.

The land that is fenced off is defo not an old croquet lawn, this is cleared shrubbery, and is very uneven and 'hilly'.
It's actually in front of all the houses between them and the public area (The Dales as I have been told), absolute nightmare to get to due to having to navigate up & down a 'gauge' that is overgrown, and once at the fence it's a good 50 to 100 meters to get to the boundary of any of the properties.
I'd say the clearing is private land, and it has been done as a clear area to spot potential trespassers.
I could be wrong, but as I could not see anyway of a vehicle getting there, it seems someone has gone to a lot of trouble to clear the area for some reason. I can only speculate, but this is as far as I will go with this, I'll still visit the area as it's a good place to do some running, but my curiosity on this subject will end at that fence.

Sorry, I realise what you are talking about know, they have done a massive clearance of what must be getting on for a quarter of the dales, if you go up the steps at the pipers lane entrance there is another massive clearance area.

I guessed one plant was becoming too dominant, it is quite normal to clear gorse every now and then, but on this occasion they have also cut down loads of small birch (and other) trees.

Maybe they be clearing those scabby trees lookin for burried smugglers treasure eh mateys ?

Arrrrgh !

Just picked up on this from the new post enquiring about smugglers caves. The cave in Heswall, is in Lower Heswall. It is on private property and was open a few years ago to the public, on one of the Heritage Open Days. At that time, I visited and sat in the cave,it is just like a sitting area, which may I add, is not very big. It is situated in the garden and if you try to sneak in, you will be well and truly spotted or eaten by the dogs!! Interesting, but not as awesome as had been expected. Probably too many people around to get the full feel of the place.

Granny, theres an interesting report of a wiki visit here in the u.e Forum.

Thnks Rude, will have a look.

look here, clicky

Thanks Kimpri, going to have a read now.

I was fortunate enough to know Matt Wright and his wife June when a was asked to coachpaint his 1926 Rolls Royce in 2004.

During the week I was there Matt gave me permission to view the cave and I did take a few photographs but they are not high quality taken from an old Zenith camera.
I also took a few photo's of Matt's Rolls Royce which together I'll put on my website if anyone is interested seeing them.

Sadly though Matt died just before Christmas 2011 and I am not sure what has happened to his vehicles, AFAIK his wife June still lives at the Cave.

PB

Oh Paintboffin. That is such sad news. He was a really nice man, one you expect to go on forever.Very open, friendly and not a bit above himself with as sense of humour. He gave us a nice chat about the place, when we were there. Sorry to hear that news.