Descent 306

[Carolina Smith]

Cover: Judith Calford in Caverna do Morro, PETAR, Brazil. Photo: Chris Howes
Back Cover: Lancaster Hole Main Drain. Photo: Bill Nix

In issue 306, once again it is news from the Forest of Dean that is stealing the show. We have three feature articles from the Forest, detailing discoveries in Redhouse Lane Swallet, Kiln Piece Hole and Slaughter Stream Cave. This issue also includes tales of Cornish mine explorers, water tracing in the Yorkshire Dales, expedition caving in Spain and Austria, culturally immersive caving in Laos and Brazil, a highly unusual animal rescue, and discoveries in County Fermanagh, North Yorkshire, the Peak District and Llangattock.
https://www.descentmagazine.co.uk/shop/descent-306-october-2025/

Features:
The Loss of a Crown
As the Golden Age of Exploration in the Forest of Dean shows no sign of slowing down, Tim Nichols and Dave Appleing tell the tale of Kiln Piece Hole: a new entrance to Slaughter Stream Cave, previously the longest single-entrance cave in England.

Tham Long
Peter Allison concludes his tale of caves and culture in Laos.

A Redhouse Summer
Tim Nichols summarises recent discoveries in the Forest of Dean’s ongoing treasure trove of underground glory.

Big Caves, Exceptional Congress
Chris Howes reports on the 19th International Congress of Speleology, held this year in Belo Horizonte, Brazil.

The Lost Boys of Carbis Bay
Filmmaker Daniel Simpkins follows the Carbis Bay Crew into the hidden and hazardous heart of Cornwall’s abandoned mining network.

The Slaughter Survey
Surveyors in the Forest of Dean have certainly had a busy couple of years. Mark Tringham describes the project to survey the extensive and complex Slaughter Stream Cave.

Where Does All the Water Go?
Phil Murphy discusses the history of water tracing in the Yorkshire Dales and the development of the Northern Caves and Karst Hydrology Database.

Fulmar Rescue
Stanley Lewis reports on the unlikeliest of animal rescues.

 

[alanw]

Mine has just popped through the letterbox.

 

[The Old Ruminator]

Nothing on Mendip ? Perhaps the correspondant has been busy .

 

[Peter Ryder]

The Loss of a Crown…. Slaughter Stream Cave gains a new entrance and loses the distinction of being the longest single entrance cave in the UK… so does that crown now pass to Hudgill Burn Mine Cavern at 13.2 km (of natural passage although the entrance is via a mine) .???

 

[Chris Scaife]

'History had been made. We had confirmation that Slaughter Stream Cave had lost its crown as the longest English cave with a single entrance.'
In Descent 306, Tim Nichols and Dave Appleing tell the tale of Kiln Piece Hole in the Forest of Dean, a new entrance that has extended the system to 14,530m.

In the photo: Paul Taylor in the Coal Bunker, Kiln Piece Hole, by Tiff Cooksley-Czajka

 

[Chris Scaife]

The Loss of a Crown…. Slaughter Stream Cave gains a new entrance and loses the distinction of being the longest single entrance cave in the UK… so does that crown now pass to Hudgill Burn Mine Cavern at 13.2 km (of natural passage although the entrance is via a mine) .???

I believe Hudgill is now the longest single-entrance cave in England (the Descent article made no claims about it being the longest in the UK).

 

[Tritim230]

Which is the longest natural UK cave with a single entrance?
AFAIK all the major Welsh systems have more than one entrance.

 

[RobinGriffiths]

Except for Draenan where decree dictates it only has one!

 

[Lankyman]

Which is the longest natural UK cave with a single entrance?
AFAIK all the major Welsh systems have more than one entrance.

Mossdale at a guess?

 

[Martin Laverty]

Mossdale at a guess?

Dan yr Ogof (currently 16 km, but a major resurvey project is in progress) has only one (natural) entrance

 

[Babyhagrid]

Agen allwedd has two entrances but one is not used and they both connect within a very short distance into the cave. And would be the longest if the original entrance was to get blocked up fully

 

[Peter Ryder]

Hudgill is all natural, except that access is via a mine. Mine length not counted….

 

[andrewmcleod]

Mossdale at a guess?

I think Mossdale (at least historically, I've not been) had more than one entrance (the current entrance being much safer than the original)? Although I assume they were all in the same entrance scar i.e. close together.
Edit: brief googling suggests entry was/is possible via the stream sink as well as the current safer entrance.

 

[Lankyman]

I think Mossdale (at least historically, I've not been) had more than one entrance (the current entrance being much safer than the original)? Although I assume they were all in the same entrance scar i.e. close together.
Edit: brief googling suggests entry was/is possible via the stream sink as well as the current safer entrance.

I went in Mossdale a couple of times but it was a long time ago. I got the impression that the entrance(es) were more like different entry points in a general boulder collapse along the foot of the scar? If it was actually two different, separate passages then they must have been very close together. Any Mossdale experts out there?

 

[Chris Scaife]

'The pristinely decorated caves could challenge any in the world for their beauty.'
The 19th International Congress of Speleology was held this year in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. In Descent 306, Chris Howes reports on the congress, as well as the stunning caving trips on offer.

In the photo: Judith Calford in Caverna Santana, São Paulo, Brazil, by Chris Howes

 

[Carolina Smith]

'Dan was tempted to say, "Just do a splay", as he thought that it didn’t go anywhere, but he knew there was a bit of a junction at the end, so slipped down again to do the complete survey. He peered around a previously missed corner that led to a new passage heading north.'
Redhouse Lane Swallet in the Forest of Dean continues to be a treasure trove of underground glory, and recent discoveries in this cave are summarised by Tim Nichols in Descent 306.
In the photo: George Tolley in the Redhouse Lane Swallet entrance series, by Bartek Biela

 

[Carolina Smith]

'In Cueva de Rascavieja, we found 663m of big and exciting new stuff, with some large chambers, much walking passage and speleothems everywhere.'
This summer, cavers celebrated 65 years of underground exploration in Matienzo, northern Spain. In Descent 306, Chris Scaife recounts the Gran Fiesta and summarises the major cave discoveries.
In the photo: Zane Pilch in Lloyd's Grotto, Cueva de Rascavieja, Matienzo, by Chris Scaife

 

[Chris Scaife]

'Sometimes I wonder where he is now. In my mind, he’s perched upon a kindling woven bar stool, drinking avian mead with his Fulmar friends, squawking about the craziest and scariest adventure of his life.'
You can read Stanley Lewis's report of an unlikely animal rescue in Descent 306.
In the photo: Dan Rose, Felix Arnautovic, a Fulmar and Stanley Lewis, by Daniel Runcan

 

[Chris Scaife]

'While undertaking the primary survey of the Ingleborough area during the 1880s, T McKenny Hughes, later Professor of Geology at Cambridge, threw pieces of wood down Gaping Gill Main Shaft, each of which had a message promising a reward for anyone returning it to him.'
In Descent 306, Phil Murphy discusses the history of water tracing in the Yorkshire Dales.
In the photo: The Yorkshire Geological and Polytechnic Society on an excursion to Ingleborough in 1898, courtesy of the School of Earth and Environment, University of Leeds.