My 4 year old is constantly pestering me to take her out caving midweek, but I'm reluctant to go underground without there being at least another adult there 'just in case'. Is there anyone else out there with a preschool caver who would like to join us for afternoon trips underground?

I just made a rule that mine had to wait until they were 8 before I would take them. I figured that by that age they were old enough to decide if they wanted to cave for their own sake, rather than to make me happy. I found that by specifiying an age before caving it stopped all whinging upto that point. Now what I get from the 9 year old is "you haven't taken me for ages - and it was too easy last time!"

Can we borrow them to insert down very small digs?

Just the right age to be trappers...

A trapper is stationed at traps ( canvas flaps ) or doors in various parts of the pit, the trapper opened the trap so that trams of coal could pass through, then they immediately closed it again when the trams had passed through the trap. Air ventilation was stringently controlled and if the trap was not closed correctly, parts of the mine would lack adequate ventilation and dangerous gases would build up.

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http://www.pitwork.net/history1.htm

Last year I was showing Jacks Workings (Box) to a friend with his son of 8 or so. The young lad was very happy in his Bob the Builder hardhat and head lamp and did exactly as he was told. Its nice to think with the proper control/people around the young can enjoy the underground.

Rachel said:

My 4 year old is constantly pestering me to take her out caving midweek, but I'm reluctant to go underground without there being at least another adult there 'just in case'. Is there anyone else out there with a preschool caver who would like to join us for afternoon trips underground?

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I intend on taking my daughter into Yordas when I visit in summer... she will be just short of her second birthday. I hope you find someone who is willing to head down a hole 'int ground with you and your daughter.

CN.

I figured that by that age they were old enough to decide if they wanted to cave for their own sake, rather than to make me happy.

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Why on earth would anyone want to take a child (of any age) underground to make themselves happy? Believe me, living in Ingleton it's hard for any child to not notice the dozens of minibuses full of led groups and to want to know what's going on and why does mum come home muddy every weekend? My daughter started off like most of the local kids, having a walk around Yordas with a torch. Then when she started asking to go down bigger caves it seemed entirely natural to have a go at Valley Entrance (great for repeated slides down the oil drum bit), Katnot, Browgill, Birkwith and Old Ing, to date. Rather than putting her off until she's older, I think it's great that she wants to do something active instead of slumping in front of the tv or in front of the computer. Likewise with the ballet, swimming and gymnastics lessons I seem to spend half my week driving between - if it's beneficial and they want to do it, then I say go for it. And that's me talking as a former mollycoddled over protected child who had to unlease all that pent up energy by taking up caving as soon as I escaped to uni.

Rachel,

Of course you can't escape all the visual stimulants, living in your area. ...[ Green with envy]
<B>And I'm certainly not saying that you shouldn't take your child underground.</B>

I've re-read the line you quoted and maybe it doesn't say exactly what I meant, and for that I apologise.
Perhaps it's just my girls who, when they were younger, would say yes to doing anything if they thought it would please us parents - and then whinge that they didn't really want to do it when we got there! That's what I was trying to avoid by delaying their starting caving.

I would love to live in a caving area and be able to pop out to a cave for an hour or so. But when it's a whole day, or weekend away, required to take a child caving (with all the associated costs) it's much harder to justify trips until the child is older and more able (and sure that they want to try it).

Yes, I did take my girls down Yordas and into show caves when they were younger, but only as part of family holidays in the area.
Yes, they do a full range of extra curricular activities.

[SAGE]<B>May you cave with you child from now until long after they are taller than you!</B>[/SAGE] ldgit:

I remember in the 70s we were digging in the dynamite series in Carlswark cavern, and Tony Buckley brought his daughters along who were about 5 & 7 years old, they were brilliant, they could sit upright in porth crawl and pass digging gear and stuff through really easy, tempting though it was to shove them down little holes and report back, we never did, they carried on caving for several years and grew up confident and independant and I think the whole experience was very rewarding

We've taken our littleist one caving, (aged 4.5yrs old) he loved it, he kept shouting "come on daddy what you waiting for", the other 2 aren't so keen

I have a hamster of about 8months old who's only experance is 3 inches under her bedding in wood chippings. Maybe using duck tape and velcro little hammy will get to experiance some mines or quarries. :wink:

:shock:

We don't want to hear of your sick hamster/duck tape scenarios

In the world of climbing, the top young climbers are *very* close to the cutting edge of the sport - there's no reason why it couldn't be the same in caving...what are hard, tight caves for an adult are most likely a path to a nipper.

Oi don't involve me in this velcro stuff....!! :wink:

Was is on here somewhere or elese where i read about the use of trained rats to find ways through chokes to reach traped cavers on the other side?

Slimpley by taping a bit of string on to there tails !

Imagine the headline RESUCED BY RATS

Ye ive got a youngen thats well up for it we'll have to sort a trip out out Rachel