Glossary
From UkCaving
A glossary of terms used in caving and in this Wiki.
| Contents: | Top - 0–9 A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z |
|---|
A
Adit: A (usually) horizontal mined entrance to a mine or cave system.
Armchair Caver: One who enjoys his caving through the media of books, films, television, and caving forums.
Ascender: Device used to go up ropes (See SRT)
Aven: A vertical extension up from a passage or cave, that doesn't break through to the surface. An aven may lead into higher level passages.
B
Bobbin: A descending device consisting a number of metal fixed pulley like deviations around which the rope is threaded to provide friction.
C
Capping: A technique used to split rock using nail gun cartridges.
Cave: A natural cavity negotiable by humans.
Cavern: Normally used as part of the name of a cave system (e.g. Peak Cavern), but can also be a large chamber (e.g. Cavern 84 in Pikedaw Calamine Caverns).
Chamber: Refers to an area of enlargement in a cave. When associated with a passage with a flat-out crawl, a chamber may be big enough to sit in; when associated with larger caves, they can be of considerable size. For example, Sarawak Chamber in Lubang Nasib Bagus, Borneo, is 700 m long, 400 m wide, and 70 m high.
Choke: A jumble of boulders. Chokes often have to be got through by moving carefully through the gaps between the boulders.
Coe: A small limestone building built near to or even over the top of the entrance to a mine which was used by the miners to keep their equipment and underground clothes in.
Cow's Tail: A short piece of dynamic rope attached to a caver's harness at one end and with a karabiner attached to the other. It is used for safety, and during some SRT manoeuvres.
D
Deads: Unused rocks created by miners whilst extracting minerals. Usually 'stacked' at side of passageways or up in avens or gaps held back by a stemple.
Descender: Device used to go down ropes (See SRT)
Dig: A site on the surface or underground where effort is being made to remove material in the hope of entering open passage beyond.
Duck: A section of passage where the roof dips for a short distant close to or below the surface of the water. Some ducks may require total submersion to negotiate, whilst others may have a usable airspace.
E
F
Free Dive: A dive through a short sump using a lung full of air rather than diving equipment.
G
H
Hanging Death: A phrase used to describe what appear to be precariously poised boulders.
I
J
Jammer: A mechanical device for gripping rope. Used in ascending during Single Rope Technique (SRT).
K
Krab: Informal name for a karabiner or carabiner. A metal loop with a sprung or screwed gate for linking ropes and vertical equipment.
L
M
N
O
P
Pitch: A vertical section of cave passage. Usually negotiated with the aid of rope or ladder.
P-Bolt: Also referred to as Eco-bolts. A type of fixed, resin-mounted anchor often encountered installed on pitches in popular systems.
Pothole: A vertical entrance to a cave system; a term commonly used in the north of England but less prevalent elsewhere in the UK.
Pull through: A trip which involves abseiling through a system and pulling one's rope down as one goes, hopefully exiting through a second entrance.
Q
R
Rack: A descending device consisting a number of bars around which the rope is threaded to provide friction.
S
Shaft: A man made vertical entrance to a mine. or a prominent vertical feature in a natural cave (e.g. Gaping Gill Main Shaft).
Simple: The brand name of a Bobbin descending device manufactured by Petzl.
Slickenside A lineation on a fault or bedding plane caused by the frictional movement of one rock body against another. The plane may be coated by a mineral, often quartz or calcite, which itself shows striations in the direction of movement. It also the name given to a variety of galena.
Sough: (pronounced 'sow') A sough is an underground channel for draining water out of a mine. The term is closely associated with the lead mining areas of Derbyshire.
Squeeze: A constricted section of passage, either horizontal or vertical, that may require some effort to force your way through.
Stemple: A piece of wood, often of dubious quality and great age, that holds up stacked rocks in mined passages or has been fixed across passages to allow progress at a high level. The latter technique has been used by both miners (as seen in Stemple Highway in Peak Cavern), and by cavers (as in the Meanders below Cairn Hall in the Gouffre Berger).
Stop: A descender produced by Petzl, basically a Simple (or Bobbin) with the addition of a 'braking' handle.
Sump: A section of passage full to the roof with water. Some sumps may be free-dived, normally following a heavy duty line, others may require diving apparatus to explore.
Survey: A map of a cave or mine system. A survey may include a plan, one or more elevations, and passage cross sections. There are recognised symbols for plotting features such as sumps, sediments, water flow directions, and drafts.
