Sauerland · about 3 km from Bad Fredeburg (Schmallenberg)
Schieferbergwerk Felicitas
- Max depth52 m
- CertificationCavern
- Water temperature≈ 7–9 °Cestimated, no reports yet
- SpecialFlooded mine or quarry
Diving and fills
Dive here with
Fills nearby
- Fill stationBergwerktauchen FelicitasAir, nitrox and O₂ (2024 article); helium/trimix not mentioned — askRoute ↗
- Fill stationBergwerktauchen Nuttlar (Tauchschule Sauerland)Air 200/300 bar, nitrox (32 %), trimix and O₂; no price is listed for trimixRoute ↗
- Fill stationTauchschule Sorpesee (Tauchschule Sauerland)Air 200/300 bar, nitrox up to 36 %, O₂ (7 l cylinder); no trimix or helium listedRoute ↗
What it looks like
Tauchen im Bergwerk Felicitas Tauchen im Bergwerk Felicitas Bergwerk Felicitas TEC Tauchen im Sprengstoffraum Bergwerk Felicitas 2025
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Videos and posts
From other divers, via YouTube, Instagram and Facebook. They only load when you click; after that, Google's or Meta's privacy rules apply.
Tauchen im Bergwerk Felicitas Tauchen im Bergwerk Felicitas Bergwerk Felicitas TEC Tauchen im Sprengstoffraum Bergwerk Felicitas 2025
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Other people's footage, not advice: how someone else dives here says nothing about what suits your team. Dive within your training.
The dive
You dive through chambers ~15 m long and 4–5 m high with hoists, ore carts on rails and saw and splitting machines, and through a machine room with loaders and saws.
1 earlier accident or incident has been reported at this cave. Read what happened ↓
Profile and sections
You dive through chambers ~15 m long and 4–5 m high with hoists, ore carts on rails and saw and splitting machines, and through a machine room with loaders and saws. The Barbaratunnel leads deeper into the mine. The water is 7–9 °C year-round. Visibility near the entrance is sometimes murky, clear after the first T (2019 report).
Slate was mined here from 1863: roofing and slab slate, school slates too, and slate flour and chippings. First with explosives, from the 1950s with saw machines. According to the Geological Survey of North Rhine-Westphalia, underground mining stopped in 2000 and the mine closed for good in 2011; Divernet gives 1994 as the end of the 'new' part. A side adit in the east has been a healing gallery since 1998, the Abela-Heilstollen. The first exploration dives were in January 2017; the mine has been open to divers since July 2018. Per Divernet the mine measures 720 m east to west and 200 m north to south.
Practical: independent diving needs a recognised cave or mine certification; if you are unsure whether yours counts, send your cards before booking. Without a cave card you dive only with guidance: two guided dives, with the fills they need. Day passes are sold online, for weekdays too. The cave-diving school on site trains one-to-one to IART standards: Intro to Cave €2,450, Full Cave €1,750, CCR Cave upgrade €1,050 (prices Nov 2026; previously €1,750, €1,500 and €750). Fills on site when booked in advance (air, nitrox, O₂).
- Depth and profile
- Plan for -52 m in the deeper part: Divernet (2019) puts the second level at 52 m; the operator gives levels at 30 and 50 m, other sources ~-45/-48 m for the deeper section (~150 m long). Level 1 ~-30/-32 m (most routes -24 to -30 m). Inclined entry shaft ~100–130 m. >2 km of permanent line (operator: >3 km with >10 jumps).
- Configuration
- Doubles, sidemount and CCR. CCR independently only with a CCR cave or CCR mine certification; CCR guidance needs ≥35 hours after your CCR certification. Drysuit and 3 lights (1 primary, 2 backups). Scooters: not mentioned — ask.
- DPV: unknown
- The operator's site says nothing about scooters — ask. The other mines in the region ban scooters.
Who can dive where
- At least Cavern
- Configurations: Backmount / twinset / Sidemount / CCR / Small cylinders / no-mount (speleo sumps)
- Goes down to 52 m (trimix or deco may be needed)
This is how the planner decides who in your team may dive this cave. Rules your own trip adds (organizer, a mail, the AI) show with your trip.
How to get there
Via Bergwerktauchen Felicitas (Zum Heilstollen, 57392 Schmallenberg), ~2 km NW of Bad Fredeburg. Sat–Sun 9:00–18:00, other days by arrangement; year-round. Day pass €59 (online, also for Mon–Fri), guidance €200 (two guided dives with the fills they need); send certification, dive insurance and medical in advance. Large hall (~600 m²) with parking, toilets, shop and fill station. You descend along an inclined shaft (Bremsberg) of ~100–130 m to the first level.
Around Schieferbergwerk Felicitas
Fills3 fill stations · nearest 0 km
Bergwerktauchen Felicitas
Zum Heilstollen, 57392 Schmallenberg (Bad Fredeburg)
Air, nitrox and O₂ (2024 article); helium/trimix not mentioned — ask
Sat–Sun 9:00–18:00, other days by arrangement
Fills only when booked in advance. Hall of ~600 m² with storage and a repair workshop; cave-diving school (IART) that also teaches a nitrox/trimix gas-blender course (€350). Walk-in fills without diving: ask.
Bergwerktauchen Nuttlar (Tauchschule Sauerland)
Briloner Straße 48a, 59909 Bestwig (Nuttlar)
Air 200/300 bar, nitrox (32 %), trimix and O₂; no price is listed for trimix
April–November Sat–Sun 9:00–18:00
Fills at the mine itself, in the check-in room. Prices at the mine: air 12 l €7.20, 15 l €9, twin 12 l €14.40 (300 bar €21.60), twin 18 l €21.60; EAN32 12 l €14.40, twin 12 l €20.90; O₂ 40 cft €15, 80 cft €30. Rental gear only via the dive school, not at the mine. Own compressors are banned on site.
Tauchschule Sorpesee (Tauchschule Sauerland)
Ameckerstraße 16, 59846 Sundern
Air 200/300 bar, nitrox up to 36 %, O₂ (7 l cylinder); no trimix or helium listed
Wed–Thu 14:00–19:00, Fri 14:00–18:00, Sat 10:00–17:00, Sun 10:00–16:00 (closed Mon–Tue)
Main shop of the Nuttlar operator, with rentals; same fill prices as at the mine. Handy Wednesday–Friday, when the mine is closed. Walk-in fills for visitors: ask.
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Caves nearby2 within 26 km
News
All (1)
Accidents and incidents
What happened at this cave before, with the sources. No names are given; read it as a lesson for your own planning.
- According to DiveInside (taucher.net, 27 March 2025), there was a fatal diving accident in the mine in February 2025, and two decompression accidents with rebreather divers in the six months before that article.
Access and rules change: check what applies locally right before your trip. Source: GDELT Project and the news feeds of diving magazines. Search for more news ↗ Searched automatically, last on 13 Nov 2026.
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