Going to have a look at this tonight - anyone have tips for finding a route down through the boulder choke...or is the way on reasonably obvious?
Thanks in advance!

Its different every time 

Best route from the entrance to walk downhill and head for the Castle Inn..   

Not obvious by any stretch - but if you use your nouse - and look for thr clues - you should be alright  :-\

best bet is to go with someone who's been before.

just be very gentle with everything you touch.

Let's hope we can't find the way and end up in The Wanted Inn nice and early for some corned beef hash, and a couple of scoops

I don't know how you talked me into this one birder............

Heres a breif description - if my memory serves me.

steep muddy/broken glass slope to narrowing crawl - enters low bedding chamber. Triangular boulder propping up the roof. Crawl behind this leads to an impressive large chamber with large boulders funnelling down into the floor.


First choke.

the way into the choke is nearest the enterance to the chamber above the first choke drop down between boulders where the old rope dissappers. forward and round to the left (bit awkward) down over small slab wedged down a slope - careful with the slab - drop off the end is about 4 feet. round to the left.
Cant remember whats after that.
Then there is the 'ball breaker' - a vertical slot/squeeze. down between wedged boulders. Get it wrong and you end up with your balls trapped - you have to kind of sqeeze over a bit further than you imagine.

Then there is the a drop down with a solid wall on your left - huge boulder to your right. this lands you in quite a bit space - say the size of a high ceilinged living room. Dont however look at the ceiling for too long. you where stood on top if it a minute earlier.
Here again there is (the same) solid wall to your left - and a hole in the floor against this solid wall - with some stemples. lower yourself down this - back to the solid wall.  then its a bit of a shuffle to the right (if your back is still to the wall - but your best turning to face the wall - and going left (if you see what I mean - then you should sense the space opening out below you - carefull climb down - and your at the top of Fox Chamber. Enjoy.

Best to stay to the right (looking down) as you pick your way down it.

Cant be arsed describing the 2nd choke. But if you fancy it - the way into it is right at the back of fox chamber. down near the muddy clay stalagmites.

Unless you are thinking of doing all the up pitches beyond the sewer - its not worth taking any bags/srtkit - they just get in the way and jammed in the squeezes

Oh - dont have an accident - as rescue would be a veritable nightmare.

Superb description SamT
You must have a photographic memory!
Had a good trip down to Fox Chamber - which is incredibly impessive and a look in the second boulder choke as far as the tight vertical slot.
Thanks for your help!

No worries - glad you enjoyed it. I've been down there enough times to have a decent memory of the place.

Nice chamber is fox's chamber.

In the sencond choke - the tight vertical slot - was this the one with the rope - or the one past this that is just a very tight looking  hole in the boulders (solid wall to your left as you look at the hole).

the roped one is not too bad - but the last one is a bit naughty - especially since as you slide through - you'll be unware that behind you is a big drop - 20foot down over spiky boulders. If anyone is ever going to have an accident in Winnats - it'll be there.

In the second choke, I remember two tight slots. One on the left of the choke as you go down against a solid wall and the second one right at the bottom where you pop out backwards over a horrible large drop and have to get your feet onto the boulders behind you to get safe.
Martin Kaye and Steve Forshaw from TSG had a trip in there once a good few years ago. Steve fell through that last hole, landed awkwardly and broke several ribs. A very painful self rescue was undertaken. Apparently they realised the futility of calling out DCRO and just got on with getting Steve out.

Not sure I'd like to experience that!

Dan.

Yup - those are the two slots Im talking about.

That last one is a bit of a frightener when you think about that drop behind you - sounds lucky to get away with just some broken ribs. Yes - rescue from winnats head is always gonna be very painful.

SamT said:

Yes - rescue from winnats head is always gonna be very painful.

Click to expand...

Painfully slow or non existent!