Murdoch's cave is located in a red sandstone cliff above the River Lugar on the north side of the water course, just below the old Bellow miller's house.

[4] As late as the mid 19th century a path led eastwards directly down from the Bellow miller's house to the cliff face above the cave so as to avoid the difficult access via the sluice and lade that carried water from the weir to the waterwheel.

[6] He is at least said to have heated coal in a copper kettle in the Bello cave that lay around 70 feet or 21 metres from his father, John Murdoch's oatmeal mill.

[7][8][9] No written record exists of the experiments that William Murdoch is traditionally said to have carried out however the considerable trouble he went to in regard of creating a draw up the chimney flue indicates more than casual use of a fire for heating and lighting the cave itself.

Cannel, splint or parrot coal was a familiar bituminous fuel in Ayrshire homes and it was named for its tendency to produce jets of bright burning gas with a tarry exudate.