L
LoneRanger
Guest
I recently had a successful trip to the top of Nirvana in Dentdale, and would advise anyone planning a trip there to be very wary.
The in-situ rope on the climb is frayed and is anchored to a single old bolt which is going to snap sooner or later.
The pitch is rigged with a ladder and double lifeline, which look to be in good condition at the bottom. However, the top of the ladder is seriously rusty and both the ladder and the lifeline are anchored to two alloy crabs that are deeply corroded (big white flakes falling off). If the crab holding the ladder breaks, then any shock loading on the other crab will likely cause it to fail also - with dire consequences.
I believe that this gear has been in place since the cave was discovered nearly ten years ago, so I guess it's due for retirement.
The best option would be for the original explorers (who I think are still working in the area) to replace the ladder and lifeline with a new rope anchored directly to the perfectly placed thread for SRT. This should be done as soon as possible by a light person - one more winter might be one winter too many for those crabs.
The rope on the climb should probably be removed completely, it hangs in the water and so is going to wear quickly. The climb can be free-climbed (at least in the upwards direction) that's what I did and what the original explorers did. A rope is useful for the descent.
Alternatively, all the in-situ gear could be removed completely, thus protecting a very delicate site.
So, what's the cave like?
A short squeeze followed by a climb down a vertical rift. Then a long, low, very wet, flood prone crawl (I did the trip at the end of the dry spell this summer, when water levels everywhere were exceptionally low, and this place was still very wet). The climb and the pitch then follow, after which are the nice formations.
The top section of the cave contains very bad air in the form of concentrated diesal fumes. These are mentioned in the Descent write-up, and the problem obviously hasn't gone away. I didn't hang around in this section.
The in-situ rope on the climb is frayed and is anchored to a single old bolt which is going to snap sooner or later.
The pitch is rigged with a ladder and double lifeline, which look to be in good condition at the bottom. However, the top of the ladder is seriously rusty and both the ladder and the lifeline are anchored to two alloy crabs that are deeply corroded (big white flakes falling off). If the crab holding the ladder breaks, then any shock loading on the other crab will likely cause it to fail also - with dire consequences.
I believe that this gear has been in place since the cave was discovered nearly ten years ago, so I guess it's due for retirement.
The best option would be for the original explorers (who I think are still working in the area) to replace the ladder and lifeline with a new rope anchored directly to the perfectly placed thread for SRT. This should be done as soon as possible by a light person - one more winter might be one winter too many for those crabs.
The rope on the climb should probably be removed completely, it hangs in the water and so is going to wear quickly. The climb can be free-climbed (at least in the upwards direction) that's what I did and what the original explorers did. A rope is useful for the descent.
Alternatively, all the in-situ gear could be removed completely, thus protecting a very delicate site.
So, what's the cave like?
A short squeeze followed by a climb down a vertical rift. Then a long, low, very wet, flood prone crawl (I did the trip at the end of the dry spell this summer, when water levels everywhere were exceptionally low, and this place was still very wet). The climb and the pitch then follow, after which are the nice formations.
The top section of the cave contains very bad air in the form of concentrated diesal fumes. These are mentioned in the Descent write-up, and the problem obviously hasn't gone away. I didn't hang around in this section.