Descent 304

[Chris Scaife]

Cover: Daniel Jackson in the White Forest, Redhouse Lane Swallet, UK. Photo: Bartek Biela
Back Cover: Julien Jean in Sardinia’s Gutturu ‘e Murgulavò, Italy. Photo: Ben Richards

There is so much going on in British and Irish caving at the moment that this issue is dominated by news of discoveries on home soil. In regional news, in the Yorkshire Dales we have a new entrance at Marble Steps Pot as well as major diving extensions in Austwick Beck Head and Resurrection Rising. The Grampian Speleological Group has been investigating artificial caves in the Borders and the great Llangatock connection in South Wales creeps ever closer. From Ireland, we have news and a route description for a long discovery in County Leitrim. There's also a report from Northern CHECC, Imperial College's tour of Sardinia and the unearthing of a prehistoric skeleton on Mendip.

Features:

Beyond the Wicked Pitch of the North
We are undoubtedly in a Golden Age of Exploration for the Forest of Dean. Tim Nichols describes more phenomenal progress in Redhouse Lane Swallet, with diary entries from many of the explorers.

In Deep Water on the Peninsula
Andy Freem reports on the exploration of Ogof New Park, a major new find on the Gower Peninsula in South Wales.

Thailand Sandstone
Liviu Valenas gives an overview of his recent Thailand expedition, which included the survey of Thailand’s longest sandstone cave.

The Sheep That Launched a Thousand Trips
Years ago, when some cavers found a lamb trapped in a shakehole on Leck Fell, they could not possibly have imagined the scale of the digging project that would ensue. Chris Scaife and Richard Bendall tell the tale.

Caving in Surrey
Surrey is not known for its spectacular karst landscapes, but there is at least one fine cave. Maurice Hewins, who helped to survey Mother Ludlam’s Cave in his youth, returns to the site after 65 years.

Yat Grotto
There is much going on under the Forest of Dean these days. Even the minor side projects set aside for rainy days are now producing the goods, as Dan Sandford reports.

Caving Songs of Yesteryear
Alan Jeffreys shows us it’s not just modern cavers who enjoy singing.

Darenathon
At the end of a long and tiring entrance crawl, there is nothing quite like the feeling of turning round and doing it again and again. Elin West reports on a marathon crawling attempt in Ogof y Daren Cilau.

Cave Maze and Word Search
James Carlisle, the caving world’s puzzle maestro, has put together two competitions in one, with great prizes to be won.

 

[Chris Scaife]

'More and more pure white speleothems appeared, together with delicate helictites that were somehow even bigger than the previous ones. There were now also some curtains. We walked along, both shocked and delighted by the beauty of this passage.'
At Descent, we are always thrilled to read about discoveries in Britain's caves, and they don't come much bigger or better than the recent finds in Redhouse Lane Swallet. Read a gripping account by the Forest of Dean cave explorers in Descent 304.

In the photo: Daniel Jackson in Redhouse Lane Swallet's White Forest, by Bartek Biela

 

[Huge]

Loved the names in Lamb Trap!

 

[Chris Scaife]

'Trekking up and down the series of huge scree slopes, following the twists and turns of the mighty chamber, occasionally glimpsing distant inlets high up in the walls, and marvelling at the feeling of hiking under a starless sky, are all remarkable experiences for anyone, especially those who have never been caving overseas.'
Ben Richards gives a vivid account of Imperial College Caving Club's recent tour of Sardinia in Descent 304.

In the photo: Jan Kozuszek in Lilliput Chamber, Su Palu, by Ben Richards

 

[Chris Scaife]

'This cave may not be a natural wonder, but it is an enjoyable trip with a number of short pitches and no real difficulties. It will stand for ever as a testament to the hard work and perseverance of a determined group of diggers. Never in the field of cave exploration was so little achieved by so many for so few.'
In Descent 304, Chris Scaife and Richard Bendall describe the Herculean digging effort, and modest rewards, of Lamb Trap in the Yorkshire Dales.

In the photo: Chris Scaife in Lamb Trap's Hole in the Wall, by Sam Davis

 

[Chris Scaife]

'The Darenathon would consist of between 12 and 20 cavers going back and forth through the Daren Cilau entrance crawl to Box 10, 500m each way, covering – in total – the distance of a marathon.'
Most cavers breathe a sigh of relief when they make it to the end of Ogof y Daren Cilau’s arduous and tortuous entrance crawl. However, as Elin West reports in Descent 304, sometimes you just have to go through again and again.

In the photo: The Darenathon camp at the Daren Cilau entrance, by Nathan Torres

 

[Chris Scaife]

'After five hours and 2m progress along the tube, we all decided this would be a 'goer' and worth persevering with. What followed was a digging frenzy of 20 sessions in a six-week window.'
In Descent 304, Dan Sandford writes about a surprising find in the Forest of Dean.

In the photo: Jon Maisey in Yat Grotto's Not Sandstone Series, by Paul Taylor

 

[Ian Ball]

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[Ian Ball]

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