Drown or Glory

[Cave Mapper]

Taking advantage of the fantastic weather we've been having, we had a pleasant evening trip to Boulder Chamber. Water levels were quite low, but the Drown or Glory section had very little airspace and was only passable by ducking under the water. The reason became apparent on the other side: the water was ponded behind a big shingle bank left by the winter floods. We spent a few minutes kicking a channel and lowered the level by a couple of inches, but it needs a more concerted effort to do it properly. It would be a big shame to lose access to this cave, so if there are any budding dam busters out there, you could do your bit for Wharfedale caving and sort it out before the water gets any deeper.

 

[Alex]

I can report the other cave nearby beginning with an L, has very low water with no obstructions or anything in the way. But we only got to the falls chamber as we were scouting and not brought rope for the boulder choke pitch.

Will be happy to pop down the cave in question and help clear out Drown or Glory. However, I remeber having to riggle over the shingles over a year ago at the end of it, so by the sounds of it, it don't sound much worse.

Was it higher than the below?

 

[Pitlamp]

Excellent picture of a historic spot Alex.

 

[Alex]

I am afriad it was Dunc who took the photo.

 

[Cave Mapper]

Yep, definitely deeper than the picture, and definitely deeper than when I've done it previously.

 

[Cave Mapper]

For interest, here's a picture of the surface beck taken today, showing how low water levels are:

 

[molerat]

The water level through the first Drown or Glory is currently not too horrific: you'll get a cheek wet passing through while wearing a helmet. The dam immediately downstream is pretty sizable! We spent 5-10 minutes lowering the channel through the dam which probably lowered water levels by a couple of centimetres but lowering water levels significantly will require more effort.

I'd also like to express my thanks to the person who has begun removing the old telephone wire from the cave (Mr Beck, I believe). This is litter, gets in the way a few times and also presents an underwater tripping hazard in places. There is currently a tackle bag containing old wire in Fossil Chamber.

 

[dunc]

I'd also like to express my thanks to the person who has begun removing the old telephone wire from the cave (Mr Beck, I believe). This is litter, gets in the way a few times and also presents an underwater tripping hazard in places. There is currently a tackle bag containing old wire in Fossil Chamber.

Great news, must admit it slightly asssisted in navigation on my first (and currently only) visit, but it did have a tendency to get in the way, be a pain in the arse and make for a tatty looking photo!