Oh, the PDCMG will care alright but whether they will care enough to embrace the winds of change is another matter entirely. Comments already made in public, along with the vibe I have been picking up from other quarters, are not encouraging.
Here are some hard facts to help them on their way:
One of the stated aims in the PDCMG Constitution is "To control access to Ogof Draenen", another is "To encourage a free exchange of information". It is abundantly clear that they have failed dismally on both counts. They have not been able to actually "control" access since August 2009 and current events are proving that they have absolutely no idea what is happening within either the cave system itself or its environs. In recent correspondence with one of the premier Welsh cave diggers of his generation, he said to me:
"Simply blocking the entrance to any cave is clearly not acceptable. In any case, the PDCMG have no idea what is going on, they don't even know the true length of Ogof Draenen as they are so far out of touch with what has been found over the last few years. I would never share any information with this group, they are a clique in the truest sense of the word. They have their heads stuck so far up each other's backsides, it is hardly surprising what comes out of their mouths when they try to speak!"
The "Single Entrance Policy" the PDCMG have held so dear for so long is lying on the ground in tatters and is finished. Yes, it may still be there in theory but it will never exist in real terms ever again. If they concrete up and close all the other entrances currently open, some more will just be found to replace them and this will simply carry on, ad infinitum.
Back in 1994, when the first exciting discoveries were made, Ogof Draenen did indeed possess a single entrance. This ceased to be the case once the Second (Nunnery) Entrance was discovered but the PDCMG could not tolerate this and it was concreted shut in 1999. Had they been willing to compromise at this point (or again ten years later when we requested that it be reopened), they would have had two entrances. They did not and, as a direct result, Drws Cefn was connected to the main system in 2009 to give a third entrance. Once again, they refused to negotiate even one iota and have been trying their utmost to close Drws for the last eight years. Had they seen sense they could have settled for three entrances but they chose not to do so. So that leaves us precisely where we are today, with as many entrances as there might be (nobody seems to know for sure!). Well, the pattern is stunningly clear, the lessons etched in history do not lie. Will the PDCMG finally open their eyes and act accordingly?
We shall see.