Driving through the Hope Valley in the mist and watching the temperature gauge plummet to -7c this morning, we did briefly question our sanity for undertaking a working day at this time of year. However, within an hour of being on site the sun rose up above the hill and we spent the rest of the...

Just to bump this back up before the weekend - A small party of volunteers will be rebuilding the Oxlow/Maskhill/Nettle access stile this Saturday (2nd Dec). Please avoid the normal parking area if you can. Apologies for any inconvenience. Pete K DCA Projects

Hi Please take this as notification for the following meetings to take place on the evening of Monday 19th February 2024. Special General Meeting Annual General Meeting Post AGM Council Meeting The agenda and associated documents can be found at the following link...

The work at Garlands Pot has now been completed and all the new anchors have been tested. Thanks to Rich Crane for the assistance with the testing. For full details and more photos, please see the post on the DCA website: https://thedca.org.uk/2023/11/23/rigging-changes-at-garlands-pot/ We hope...

A report of a collapse in the entrance shaft of Maskhill Mine near Castleton was received by DCA at dinner time on 16/11/2023. Around the level of the 3rd rebelay, a caver stood on a ledge which then collapsed under them and sent large rocks falling down the shaft and left an unsupported area of...

The anchors at Garlands Pot in Giants Hole received an informal inspection this week whilst I was there for a couple of hours running a BCA Vertical Leader training course. Two separate issues were noted and details are given below. This also prompted a proposal for other improvements to the...

In the past week we have been in contact with the agent who is handling this on the owner’s behalf. There has never been any formal agreement about access for cavers, who have simply been allowed to use the quarry. We have not been informed of any change in that situation. It seems that there...

The agenda and Officer Reports for DCA (Hybrid) Council Meeting on Saturday 28th October 2023, 10am to 12pm., They can be found at the following link: https://thedca.org.uk/event/3999/ The meeting is being held at British Caving Library, The Studio, Glutton Bridge, Buxton, SK17 0EN. The venue...

Now that 2023 is three-quarters through, it's an appropriate time to remind all cavers digging in and around the Peak District that there are prizes out there waiting to be won at the end of the year - see https://thedca.org.uk/peak-district-cave-exploration-prize/ for all the details. In a...

Can you think of any tatty handlines in local caves or mines that would benefit from some new rope? Well, thanks to a donation from SpanSet Ltd we now have a big reel of chunky rope that is perfect for handlines sat ready in our equipment store. More details over on the website...

We have just heard that the dry tooling event at Masson Quarry went well, with the organisers shuttling 50 people up and back each day and no problems with the parking (only 3 vehicles parked, 2 of which were the shuttle cars with the 3rd not belonging to cavers). A good result.

On the weekend of 7 & 8 October there will be a dry tooling event at Masson quarry. This year the event organisers are putting on a “park and ride” service for the climbers taking part, driving them up from near the supermarket but even so it is likely that the few sensible parking spaces on...

The two DMM resin anchors on the small training pitch at Upper West in Giants were noted to have begun to move in the resin recently. Both were removed this week and the pitch has now had new anchors installed and tested. The rigging has been changed a little to give a much better free-hang...

A break in 'real' work and some good weather allowed Pete Knight, Phil Wolstenholme and Luke Brock to return to complete the work at Owl Hole today. All of the new anchors were tested to 6kN for 60 seconds, and the old rusted ones were pulled out or cut off as best we could manage. You'll see...

Pete working at the top.

DCA volunteers are replacing the anchors used on the climb up to the Owl Hole entrance. We looked closely at possible descent routes from the top of the crag, but decided that there wasn't a line with good enough rock that we were prepared to recommend it! The usual climb up is on slippery...

DCA received a report that the locking mechanism on the Jugholes gate had been damaged, so this was visited and repaired this morning. The chain is now much shorter, and a new M16 bolt is held captive with nuts and washers around a maillon, which can be held with one hand whilst...

Just a note to inform that the latest issue of The Derbyshire Caver is finally out, and subscribers should now have received their printed copies. Sadly due to increasing production and postage costs, we have had to increase our cover price for the printed version to £3, so future four-issue...

Just a quick note for black marble fans that the Cave Registry name for 'Ashford Black Marble Mine' has now been changed to its correct name of Rookery Mine - this will also be the name going forward for future editions of Caves of the Peak District. An updated survey has also been posted, drawn...

DCA have received a report of bad air being encountered in WICC. For details please see our new page for bad air reports on the website: https://thedca.org.uk/safety/bad-air-reports/