South Wales is known to always be raining, and this trip was no exception.


We set off on our 3 hour journey, and on the way came face-to-face (literally) with a herd of SHEEP sitting in the middle of the road that Rianna spotted in time thanks to her headlights. We were in awe of the wooly creatures who took their time to cross onto the grass as Rianna remarked, ?We?re definitely in Wales!? That set our descend into Wales off to a good start. It was ten past that night on the 20th.

Settling into Croyden Caving Club was one of the most bizarre and interesting experiences in any caver?s caving history. We felt as if we were exploring a little cottage that was filled with antiquities and vintage material from before we were born. Check out the ancient First Aid cabinet that hid a concoction of potions and elixirs from the early ages.

We were in awe of the stairs that winded up in an uber-narrow pathway (it was dangerous going up the steps that were founded on proper cement, trust me), and when we first went up without getting the lights on it was a hell of an experience. Here is how it looks with the lights turned on - like a perfect scene from a horror film:


We cooked dinner shortly after and everyone set off to help contribute to the fare. Curry was on the menu (yums), and for breakfast the following morning, Ed (from America) got up and volunteered to do the bacon, sausages and eggs for us cavers! It was a sumptuous big breakfast and we awoke to the smell that wafted up to the second floor upstairs. Here are shots of us helping out in the kitchen


Our caving plans to OFD 1 were set back because of the possibility of flooding in some of the cave routes, hence on day 1 of caving, we went to a smaller cave, LLygad Llywchr that was a 40 minute drive away from our caving hut. It was a crazy time and place to be changing into our caving gear as the winds threatened to blow (literally once again) our tubs, and us away. The guys changed in the car while the girls braced the hurricane, but we regretted not bringing gloves, unlike the guys. ?We have to get gloves next time? was the general sentiment among the girls.

And yet, caving was fun We were welcomed at the entrance of the cave with an amazing, scenic view of a nearby stream and also a sign that said ?Anyone who enters enters at your own risk.? This was definitely going to be an adventure. Unlike normal caves where the entrance and exit holes are at ground level, this entrance was at a little height, so Andrew set off with doing up the ropes to get all of us in by climbing up and then wiggling down face-first into the cave. What an entrance, as we saw, pair-by-pairs of legs disappearing down the hole!

Looking out for one another while exploring the cave through little obstacles marked a solid experience for the group, especially with Ed, Jerry and Vuk who were entering a cave for the very first time. We came out safe but utterly drained from the day, but more from fighting against the cold winds and rain rather than the caving, I would reckon.

After dinner together, we walked into the rain to take cover in the warm, cosy inn nearby for some drinks and laidback (or intense?) conversation. I dozed off, only awaking when the pint glass I was holding hit the floor with a ?thud? because I was quite drained from the day. Maddie was yawning and Rianna wanted to go to bed after some warm alcohol in her stomach.

It was getting late, but some of us still lounged around in the living room after returning from the inn. Andrew took out his stash that he had brought to the hut and revealed a flamboyant, impressive glitter kit that consisted of glitter stencils bought from Amazon, multi-coloured glitters in little containers and super-strong cosmetic glue (as Maddie and I would later come to realise). He also brought some other quirky stuff like a banana thong. Ed (Farrow) busied himself with filling in the Red Book, and a debate was triggered over the content of what was discussed at the inn, which I will not reveal here


Day 2 of caving presented us the opportunity to finally enter Ogof Ffynnon Ddu. We could only enter OFD 2 through the Top entrance. Ed (from America) was aching from top to toe from the narrow squeezing and wiggling in the tight cave the day before, and Rianna had work to do, so the remaining six of us carried on to OFD and checked into South Wales Caving Club (SWCC), leaving the CCC (which Ed swore never to come back to ever again).

OFD was amazing. Although it was an uber long hike up just to get into the cave (which Ed gave no warning about) and I was struggling up with my tight pants and oversized wellies, it was a sight to behold in the cave. We went to Big Chamber Near the Entrance and Gnome Passage, then down the Corkscrew (the climb), down Salubrious Streamway to see the Trident and Judge, then back to the Corkscrew and out via the sandy crawl.


The rocks near the entrance were slippery, but they were also of big, flat surfaces and relatively easier to maneuver through than the cave on day 1. All of us tried our best to keep our wellies from getting wet (except Andrew), and although I slipped and fell on my side (which was quite scary and painful), we managed to make it out in one piece!