Monday August 21st. Juniper Gulf.
One of my earliest memories is climbing out of Calf holes on a rope ladder, I was probably about 10 years old and I thought it was absolutely fantastic. My grandfather was one of the early pioneers of Dales caving in the late 1930?s and 40?s. What a time he must have had teaming up with fellow enthusiasts to explore the Dales caves for the very first time, the golden age of caving. My Dad also caved and now the bug has passed to my brother and I.
I have been captivated by Juniper Gulf since first reading the guidebooks. ?A magnificent, classic pot with fine situations? (Northern Caves 2, The three Peaks) and ?A magnificent cave. One of the best trips in Yorkshire? (Selected Caves of Britain and Ireland). After my brother and I had served our caving apprenticeships in Sell Gill, Ireby Fell, Alum, Lancaster hole, Gavel (what a great cave), Hurnel Moss, Notts, Little Hull, Lost John?s, Aquamole and Rowten?.. we felt ready. Could Juniper meet our expectations as being one of the finest trips in the Dales?
Juniper had beaten us back in March 2017. We?d reached the final chamber but ran out of time to descend the big pitch ? this time we were determined to add Juniper to our caving CV.
It was warm, very warm with little breeze. The walk in was going to be a slog armed with over 250m of rope. The plethora of SRT hardware was at least lightweight but it definitely raised an eyebrow from one of the early morning walker?s we passed. I always enjoy the walk in, the earlier the better. A couple of Buzzards circled the crags above the Crummack track and a deer grazed amongst the sheep in the field to our left. We had three heavy bags between us and soon broke into a sweat. After 50 minutes the trusty GPS brought us to the familiar entrance. By now it was late morning, rain was due in at 4pm, would we need to rig the entrance pitch alternative with the roof traverse?
After Dave explored it we decided no, water levels were very low and the rigging was going to slow us down ? we needed to get moving. The first easy pitch dropped us in the stream way via a simple re-belay. After a brief scramble the next two bolts came into view and I started rigging the first traverse. An obvious widening in the traverse was quickly encountered, my long legs allowed me to straddle the drop and the foot holds were secure enough to allow the next bolt to be easily rigged. The remaining traverse here proved very straightforward, as was the short pitch at the end.
Dave?s turn to rig, just at the point where Juniper starts to bear its teeth. The next traverse is awkward to say the least, especially so with heavy rope bags. Crawling over the network of ledges at roof level feels reasonably secure however these intermittently disappear, I then found it easiest to jam my knees and backside into the rock and edge my way along. Good kneepads proved essential! I joined Dave at the ?bad step? which he rigged with ease, the rock here was dry and therefore good friction saw us quickly across and onto the most difficult part of the traverse before the third pitch. The excellent third pitch starts off very narrow which focused my attention ? quite a welcome relief as my thoughts had already turned to the daunting task of rigging the big pitch??
From the bottom of the third pitch the cave changes character. The rock is darker, the roar of running water becomes more apparent and the traverse up to the big pitch becomes quite wet. This is what we had come to see, the big pitch. Juniper was first bottomed in 1924 and, after battling with the traverses carrying heavy equipment, what a fantastic discovery those men had made when they first peered into the huge void.
I get nervous at big pitches and the thought of rigging it had been playing on my mind throughout the morning. It?s an uncomfortable emotion but it helps me to focus. I would have great reservations caving with a partner who didn?t feel even a slight reservation at tackling such a huge pitch.
The traverse around the top of the shaft is very straightforward although I deliberately avoided looking down until I had safely rigged the Y-hang, with Dave looking on. Leaning back on my cows tails I switched my powerful headlamp to full beam, what a fantastic view! The fluted walls went on and on with light glistening off the wet rock at the foot of the pitch many metres below. Water levels were very low and I could only imagine what an even more amazing experience it would be experiencing Juniper in full flood.
I double checked my stop before slowly edging over the lip of the pitch until I was level with the single anchor re-belay, Dave watched my every move and I could feel his gaze. I carefully rigged the single bolt and double checked the length of the re-belay??looked good. Now I again locked on my stop and spent a few moments admiring the pitch before slowly abseiling down, it is simply an awesome feat of natural beauty.
Once safely at the bottom I signalled to Dave on the walkie-talkie that it was safe to descend (what on earth would the guys in my Grandfather?s era have thought?..light weight ropes, synthetic undersuits, SRT kit, head cams, GPS, walkie-talkies!?). Watching Dave abseil down really gave some scale to the pitch, he looked miniscule. Judging by how slowly he descended whilst the powerful beam from his headlamp slowly scanned across the walls, he was clearly as mesmerised as I was.
Once Dave was down we headed off downstream to the sump. A few minutes of easy caving and we were there, a frothy sump which had left its mark on the walls to a level just above my head.
Now, time to get out! Ascending the big pitch was certainly hard work, despite the absence of a heavy rope bag. After I derigged we sat safely at the top chamber, next to the big block which I had draped my longest sling over. We munched on some well-deserved chocolate and got some fluid down. We both felt elated.
Derigging the traverses passed without any major problem although there are certainly some tricky moves. We were soon out in the fresh air after what appeared to be only a hint of rain, water levels at the stream way were unchanged. We were soon changed and back to my favourite pub to celebrate. What a trip!
Having now reflected on my caving career how do I rank Juniper Gulf? Personally, I feel it has to rank as one of the top 5 greatest caving trips in the UK and one that every caver should complete. Having said that I still have many a Dales trip to complete so perhaps my opinion will change over the years? What about the peak district gems?
Juniper requires a good level of fitness, proficient rigging / SRT skills and a cool head. A GPS is a valuable investment for a hassle-free walk in and a powerful head lamp displays the big pitch in all its glory. I can also thoroughly recommend Spelenium Gold rope, at least on the final pitch! I take my hat off to any caver who has tackled Juniper on ladder and lifeline.
I only learned last week on the sad closure of the peak district shop Hitch n Hike, from where I have purchased some of my caving gear. I do have concerns for the future of British caving but I think there are enough of us getting out there and enjoying the same trips that both my Grandfather and dad so much cherished.
I hope that readers will find this account sufficiently inspiring to get out and tackle Juniper Gulf one day. I love to get outdoors to climb, cycle and walk but my most memorable day out to date has been Juniper Gulf.
Safe caving.
Andrew Gemmell
29th August 2017.
One of my earliest memories is climbing out of Calf holes on a rope ladder, I was probably about 10 years old and I thought it was absolutely fantastic. My grandfather was one of the early pioneers of Dales caving in the late 1930?s and 40?s. What a time he must have had teaming up with fellow enthusiasts to explore the Dales caves for the very first time, the golden age of caving. My Dad also caved and now the bug has passed to my brother and I.
I have been captivated by Juniper Gulf since first reading the guidebooks. ?A magnificent, classic pot with fine situations? (Northern Caves 2, The three Peaks) and ?A magnificent cave. One of the best trips in Yorkshire? (Selected Caves of Britain and Ireland). After my brother and I had served our caving apprenticeships in Sell Gill, Ireby Fell, Alum, Lancaster hole, Gavel (what a great cave), Hurnel Moss, Notts, Little Hull, Lost John?s, Aquamole and Rowten?.. we felt ready. Could Juniper meet our expectations as being one of the finest trips in the Dales?
Juniper had beaten us back in March 2017. We?d reached the final chamber but ran out of time to descend the big pitch ? this time we were determined to add Juniper to our caving CV.
It was warm, very warm with little breeze. The walk in was going to be a slog armed with over 250m of rope. The plethora of SRT hardware was at least lightweight but it definitely raised an eyebrow from one of the early morning walker?s we passed. I always enjoy the walk in, the earlier the better. A couple of Buzzards circled the crags above the Crummack track and a deer grazed amongst the sheep in the field to our left. We had three heavy bags between us and soon broke into a sweat. After 50 minutes the trusty GPS brought us to the familiar entrance. By now it was late morning, rain was due in at 4pm, would we need to rig the entrance pitch alternative with the roof traverse?
After Dave explored it we decided no, water levels were very low and the rigging was going to slow us down ? we needed to get moving. The first easy pitch dropped us in the stream way via a simple re-belay. After a brief scramble the next two bolts came into view and I started rigging the first traverse. An obvious widening in the traverse was quickly encountered, my long legs allowed me to straddle the drop and the foot holds were secure enough to allow the next bolt to be easily rigged. The remaining traverse here proved very straightforward, as was the short pitch at the end.
Dave?s turn to rig, just at the point where Juniper starts to bear its teeth. The next traverse is awkward to say the least, especially so with heavy rope bags. Crawling over the network of ledges at roof level feels reasonably secure however these intermittently disappear, I then found it easiest to jam my knees and backside into the rock and edge my way along. Good kneepads proved essential! I joined Dave at the ?bad step? which he rigged with ease, the rock here was dry and therefore good friction saw us quickly across and onto the most difficult part of the traverse before the third pitch. The excellent third pitch starts off very narrow which focused my attention ? quite a welcome relief as my thoughts had already turned to the daunting task of rigging the big pitch??
From the bottom of the third pitch the cave changes character. The rock is darker, the roar of running water becomes more apparent and the traverse up to the big pitch becomes quite wet. This is what we had come to see, the big pitch. Juniper was first bottomed in 1924 and, after battling with the traverses carrying heavy equipment, what a fantastic discovery those men had made when they first peered into the huge void.
I get nervous at big pitches and the thought of rigging it had been playing on my mind throughout the morning. It?s an uncomfortable emotion but it helps me to focus. I would have great reservations caving with a partner who didn?t feel even a slight reservation at tackling such a huge pitch.
The traverse around the top of the shaft is very straightforward although I deliberately avoided looking down until I had safely rigged the Y-hang, with Dave looking on. Leaning back on my cows tails I switched my powerful headlamp to full beam, what a fantastic view! The fluted walls went on and on with light glistening off the wet rock at the foot of the pitch many metres below. Water levels were very low and I could only imagine what an even more amazing experience it would be experiencing Juniper in full flood.
I double checked my stop before slowly edging over the lip of the pitch until I was level with the single anchor re-belay, Dave watched my every move and I could feel his gaze. I carefully rigged the single bolt and double checked the length of the re-belay??looked good. Now I again locked on my stop and spent a few moments admiring the pitch before slowly abseiling down, it is simply an awesome feat of natural beauty.
Once safely at the bottom I signalled to Dave on the walkie-talkie that it was safe to descend (what on earth would the guys in my Grandfather?s era have thought?..light weight ropes, synthetic undersuits, SRT kit, head cams, GPS, walkie-talkies!?). Watching Dave abseil down really gave some scale to the pitch, he looked miniscule. Judging by how slowly he descended whilst the powerful beam from his headlamp slowly scanned across the walls, he was clearly as mesmerised as I was.
Once Dave was down we headed off downstream to the sump. A few minutes of easy caving and we were there, a frothy sump which had left its mark on the walls to a level just above my head.
Now, time to get out! Ascending the big pitch was certainly hard work, despite the absence of a heavy rope bag. After I derigged we sat safely at the top chamber, next to the big block which I had draped my longest sling over. We munched on some well-deserved chocolate and got some fluid down. We both felt elated.
Derigging the traverses passed without any major problem although there are certainly some tricky moves. We were soon out in the fresh air after what appeared to be only a hint of rain, water levels at the stream way were unchanged. We were soon changed and back to my favourite pub to celebrate. What a trip!
Having now reflected on my caving career how do I rank Juniper Gulf? Personally, I feel it has to rank as one of the top 5 greatest caving trips in the UK and one that every caver should complete. Having said that I still have many a Dales trip to complete so perhaps my opinion will change over the years? What about the peak district gems?
Juniper requires a good level of fitness, proficient rigging / SRT skills and a cool head. A GPS is a valuable investment for a hassle-free walk in and a powerful head lamp displays the big pitch in all its glory. I can also thoroughly recommend Spelenium Gold rope, at least on the final pitch! I take my hat off to any caver who has tackled Juniper on ladder and lifeline.
I only learned last week on the sad closure of the peak district shop Hitch n Hike, from where I have purchased some of my caving gear. I do have concerns for the future of British caving but I think there are enough of us getting out there and enjoying the same trips that both my Grandfather and dad so much cherished.
I hope that readers will find this account sufficiently inspiring to get out and tackle Juniper Gulf one day. I love to get outdoors to climb, cycle and walk but my most memorable day out to date has been Juniper Gulf.
Safe caving.
Andrew Gemmell
29th August 2017.
It is a stunning cave.
