1) What was your first black book trip?
2) What is your favourite black book trip? (Bonus Q: Why)
3) What is your least favourite black book trip? (Bonus Q: Why)
4) Why is Providence Pot to Dow Cave in the book?
-------------------------
black book = not for the faint hearted

~Washfold Pot
~Hensler's Pot because it is tough and varied, new and in GG.
~Hensler's Pot because it is too tough for me
~Exploration past Hobson's Choice is not for the faint of heart, fits perfectly.

I haven't got a copy of the book, but I think i did a few trips that might be in it when I was young, slim, fit and believed myself immortal. These days, I'm very, very faint of heart indeed.

1) Pasture Gill Pot
2) Many of my favourite caves in the land are in NFTFH. I can't choose a single favourite, but Birks Fell, Brown Hill and Trapdoor all have real variety.
3) They're all excellent trips in their own way, so I can't answer this.
4) The Dowbergill Passage is the scene of a huge number of rescues. It's one of the easier trips in there if you know what you're doing, but is still a serious undertaking. Much of it is in a tall rift and being at the wrong height in the rift can lead to problems. The extensions beyond Hobson's Choice are fantastic.

1) I think it was Jean pot, a good introductory trip, I think I then may have gone down Hammer thinking I could do all of them now. That was a big NO and the less said about that trip the better! (been back since though, and bottomed it)

2) A hard one, I can think of several I like. Mossdale for example, as it has many trips you can do in there and I still have not done it all yet despite being in there 8 times now?
(Not a patch on Simon). I loved the Birks Fell trip and Pasture gill and even though I have bottomed both, they are some of the few I would happily go back to. But I think if I had to choose it would be Mossdale as there is no rope hassle, with Magnetometer a close second with all the trip choices in there, some I still have not done.

I should really go back to Penyghent pot and maybe look at the extensions.

3) Does this have be one's you have completed, or not? If it's not completed, prob Strangle pot, getting stuck in the mud in there and being unable to move was rather scary. There must be a tactic to progress through there but I have tried 4 times (on the same trip) and failed. Perhaps it's my over suit, and I should just try a wetsuit to be more slick and not get stuck in the silt/mud in tight passage? I guess Strans gill would be a close second as that cave tried to kill me, by throwing a TV sized boulder at me! (I do plan to go back if the shitty bolts are replaced so I don't have to do the route that almost killed me, but I think I might not fit now )
As for completed NFTFH hmm, Trapdoor, because I have done it to death and is rather boring now. So Trapdoor is my answer.

4) Prov to Dow should not be underestimated, yes if you know the way and done it a few times, it's a trip that can be done in less than 3 hours, but if you go by the upper route its blooming hard and scary. Been many rescues in there due to people underestimating the trip and/or not fitting or not being able to do the climbs or even getting lost in Provi! I have been on a few of those rescues myself.