Chartreuse

[langcliffe]

Does any kind soul have any information about the Grotte des Masques - Grotte du Mort Ru traverse they would like to share? If I can get the necessary details I'm considering trying it in June. I visited the Mort Ru in 1968 with some French cavers when they were pushing the system uphill, but I'm not sure that I could even find the entrance now.

 

[Beardy]

Hi Langcliffe

I did this a few years ago
It is an excellent traverse with some interesting rigging

I'll email you the info if you pm me you email address

regards
Beardy 

 

[langcliffe]

Thanks, Beardy - PM sent.

 

[ptpeaty]

Hi Langcliffe,
The traverse is described in the book "A Travers Le Karst" by Darne and Tordjman published in 1991. Let me know by PM if you want further info, but Beardy is probably sorting you out with that anyway. Note the book is worth getting as it describes all the other classic traverses of the Chartreuse (my favourite French caving region) as well as 60 traverse trips throughout France.
Cheers
Paul Tarrant

 

[langcliffe]

The traverse is described in the book "A Travers Le Karst" by Darne and Tordjman published in 1991.

Thanks, Paul. I've invested in it, and despite the price and shipping costs it was well worth it. The latest edition is 2002, by the way.

A general request to any French speakers: whilst translating the description of the Grotte Masque - Mort Ru traverse, I encountered the phrase "Une petite baume, la grotte des Masques, est alors d?sobstru?e a partir de 1989.... The meaning is clear, but I have never come the use of the word baume, the dictionary definition of which is salve or ointment, in such a context before. It is obviously being used to indicate a hole or depression of some type. Can anybody refine the meaning in this usage?

 

[graham]

Baume-les-Messieurs, in the Jura, has caves and I seem to remember being told that the word was a dialect term associated with caves in some way.  Despite what the Academie would have you think, not every word used by the French is official French, especially local geographic terms.

Try looking up 'igue', a common term for pothole in the Lot, in any 'proper' dictionary.

 

[langcliffe]

Baume-les-Messieurs, in the Jura, has caves and I seem to remember being told that the word was a dialect term associated with caves in some way.

Thanks, Graham. Given that clue, I've established that one Proven?al word for cave is baoumo, so I suspect that baume is somehow related to that.

 

[damian]

As Graham says ... a local word for "cave".