Wet weather ideas

Alex

Well-known member
I need to do quite a difficult trip and am out of ideas given the abysmal weather this weekend.

Now Boggarts is usually a good choice but there is only going to be 2 of us and it's still on spits as far as I know. I only have about 8, which is not going to be enough.

Trapdoor - It's not weather proof enough the second squeeze takes water and my mates have turned back there due to too much water, last time it rained like this. Again it is also on spits?

Any ideas for a long/tough trip in this weather?
 

SamT

Moderator
Not sure if its 'tough' enough, but Juniper Gulf is the best wet weather trip I've done in the dales.  Fantastic and mega high water conditions.

What about Quaking, isn't that fairly weather proof??
 

Alex

Well-known member
No Quaking certainly isnt, your in the stream after the crux and the 3rd pitch is wet even when it has not rained much. Juniper gulf is interesting idea, but I assume the last pitch would be impassible though.
 

langcliffe

Well-known member
Alex said:
No Quaking certainly isnt, your in the stream after the crux and the 3rd pitch is wet even when it has not rained much. Juniper gulf is interesting idea, but I assume the last pitch would be impassible though.

Interestingly, I was down Juniper with Wooding once when the waterfall on the penultimate pitch was found to be bouncing  off the wall and straight over the rope. We withdrew...
 

Ian Ball

Well-known member
Hensler's Pot to the North West Extensions and back through West and Main chamber, and Mud Hall?
Try and borrow some 11m rope?

I've never seen the duck in Hensler's sump even in super wet weather, but am told it sumps so might be worth thinking of that. I'm not sure I'd be ballsy enough to try it if it was sumped, but in my head it's only short and nothing to worry about.  (y)
 

nobrotson

Active member
The trip I did over the weekend in County is suitable if you take Iraqnaphobia back to County stream way instead of the way through Dismal Junction: https://ukcaving.com/board/index.php?topic=24794.0

Otherwise I've done trapdoor in torrential conditions before and had no issues at the FTSE choke and the gripper as you describe. Not done boggarts but I reckon it's suitable. Maybe do boggarts and trapdoor in 1 day if you want something challenging in wet weather?

Broken Finger Pot could also be doable in this weather until you get to Massive Attack Pitch where the initial drop goes straight through the waterfall in the wet. I'd check this one with Badlad maybe before committing.

 

SamT

Moderator
Alex said:
No Quaking certainly isnt, your in the stream after the crux and the 3rd pitch is wet even when it has not rained much. Juniper gulf is interesting idea, but I assume the last pitch would be impassible though.

Hmm - thought the quaking stream way was inactive.  Don't remember any water down there at all.

We did juniper in god almighty wet conditions, water was sprouting up out of fields all over.  The last pitch had several water falls entering in from the roof above.  Such a site to behold.  Not impassable though.  We (there were two of us) went down one at a time whist the other waited at the top.  There was no chance of communication and waiting at the bottom for the other to ascend back up would have been impossible (fatal?).

Being at the bottom was just stupendous - it was an utter maelstrom.  Needless to say, I just changed over and started ascending again straight away.  One of the best and most memorable trips of my life.
 

nobrotson

Active member
SamT said:
Alex said:
No Quaking certainly isnt, your in the stream after the crux and the 3rd pitch is wet even when it has not rained much. Juniper gulf is interesting idea, but I assume the last pitch would be impassible though.

Hmm - thought the quaking stream way was inactive.  Don't remember any water down there at all.

We did juniper in god almighty wet conditions, water was sprouting up out of fields all over.  The last pitch had several water falls entering in from the roof above.  Such a site to behold.  Not impassable though.  We (there were two of us) went down one at a time whist the other waited at the top.  There was no chance of communication and waiting at the bottom for the other to ascend back up would have been impossible (fatal?).

Being at the bottom was just stupendous - it was an utter maelstrom.  Needless to say, I just changed over and started ascending again straight away.  One of the best and most memorable trips of my life.

I'm told by one of the recent re-equippers in Quaking that the 3rd pitch has an alternative route equipped now to make it passable in wetter conditions, but that in wet conditions the W bends can become impassable/sumped. So probably one to avoid this weekend. Juniper sounds fun.
 

nobrotson

Active member
I tried to go in county yesterday... Barely got beyond shower bath passage before heading back. Water pissing into the entrance passage from all over the place. A completely new inlet in the streamway past the shower bath which was carrying at least as much water again as upstream of it if not more. Probably some kind of flood overflow from the beck on the surface. Either way there was double the amount of water past confusion corner that there generally is in very wet conditions. Went a bit of a way down Mushroom Passage and had difficulty on the small climbs in the streamway on the way back due to the flow. Apparently it would have been possible to swim across fall pot which sounds really fun.
 

Alex

Well-known member
Boggarts Its bloody not weather proof that is for certain! It was okay down the first 4 pitches, drippy and a hell of a draft making it cold after fighting the rain and hail on the hill. Upon reaching the 5th pitch we understood where the draft was coming from, a large waterfall had formed in Penguin hall, thankfully on the other-side, so we were able to descend that pitch,  though got wet. The water from that fall all sunk between the boulders as did another stream coming out the crawl on the way on. Could be a large passage below here, might be worth digging? Anyway the passage beyond was impassible, water was pissing in from everywhere and one would have to hold your breath to descend the hole. Quite where you are meant to build this damn I have no idea as water came in from the roof in many places and other places. So we could not even get to the next pitch and were stopped at the 3 and a half meter climb down.

On the surface the other hole had a large waterfall in it, which I guess is where all this water was coming from.

So don't go down there in if really bad weather coming in otherwise you might not get out.
 
Top