Hunters Lodge Inn Sink Closed
- Thread starter estelle
- Start date
working trip today doing more surveying of the requirements and starting cleaning up the formations we can just clean up rather than have to repair.
I wanted to get one particular photo having dug out historic ones and had a look to compare the memory of how it was, and this attached really shows the scale of the damage as these are the same place.
Really cannot understand what goes through someone's mind to do this scale of deliberate damage to a cave...
I wanted to get one particular photo having dug out historic ones and had a look to compare the memory of how it was, and this attached really shows the scale of the damage as these are the same place.
Really cannot understand what goes through someone's mind to do this scale of deliberate damage to a cave...Attachments
These two photos really do show how terrible this damage is. I think it is immensely important to get to the bottom of why this was done. Without getting an understanding of the motivation for this damage it is going to be very difficult to prevent this sort of thing happening again, possibly even by the same person/group. Good luck.
bograt
Active member
Like you, Estelle, I am at a loss to understand the mentality of the perpetrators, I do hope they can be located and dealt with accordingly.
Good luck with the rebuild, I think the carrots should be pretty straightforward (though tedious) if you can find all the bits, but I don't hold much hope for the straws.
Good luck with the rebuild, I think the carrots should be pretty straightforward (though tedious) if you can find all the bits, but I don't hold much hope for the straws.
I think this is very important, i also think that if you are visiting a cave and you think there has been some damage, report it to someone, preferably your regional body (CSCC in the case of Mendip) or at least someone who you are fairly sure will follow up and check. For all we know we could have someone going around a lot more caves doing this sort of damage and unless people are visiting and reporting back to someone, we haven't a clue... Also if you do ever have an accident and do some damage in a cave, it is better to report it so if it's possible to repair, people can have a go at it, or if it just stal needing cleaning, letting someone know means that perhaps a spray bottle can pay the cave a visit on the next trip in.Badlad said:
From feedback to date, we believe this damage had not happened at 16th Jan, but by a trip on 16th Feb there was at least some damage, but it wasn't reported to anyone who has actually investigated it further until the 12th March... Quite a few people did say they saw damage and forgot to mention it or didn't realise it was so recent, etc. etc.
If you have had any trips into HLIS this year and have any photos or video of anything in Happy Hour Highway, please can you drop me a message. Also if you hear of anything that might give us more clues, probably either myself or Cap'n Chris are the best to contact. One thing we won't know until we start gluing stal back together is whether possibly the motivation is theft and we find stal missing as while there is a fair bit of stal on the floor, we can't be sure if it's all there.
Another thing is has highlighted is that while this is recent and deliberate damage on a different scale, we're generally not great at looking after our caves. A group of us did a massive clearout last year of all the digging detritus that had been left in for about 10 years or so at the bottom of Pewter Pot, but all the taping goes back to when it was first put in after discovery 12-14 years ago and it really needs retaping as the taped pathways have gradually been widened and mud has crept a bit too, so some stal washing would be good too, so while we're doing the repairs, the entire cave will be retaped and thoroughly cleaned and it's probably not the only cave that could do with that done to it!
Maj
Active member
estelle said:
May I make a couple of suggestions regarding re-taping?
I think the tape works well when raised off the floor on the pig tail stainless steel wire supports.
But rather than drilling into the cave passage/calcite etc as has been done in other re-taped caves, can the holes for the wire supports be drilled into individual rocks placed in suitable positions. This is what has been done in OFD 2 and I think it looks a lot better and is less likely to be seen as further vandalism (as has been suggested about other taped caves).
Perhaps rather than using white electric fence tape or the orange tape, electric fence string could be used. This will last as long as the white fence tape, but will be far less intrusive, but I feel just as effective.
Maj.
rhychydwr1
Active member
Or Cord Coch
Red Baller Twine - cheaper still. c 10 ft lengths given away by farmers.
Red Baller Twine - cheaper still. c 10 ft lengths given away by farmers.
Maj
Active member
SamT said:
I was also thinking of perhaps the orange version of electric fence string might be an option. I think the builders twine would be about the same, so perhaps cost is the only real difference.
I think the orange would work well in warden lead caves, since the warden can point out the orange twine/string. But since it is more discreet, I wonder if it might easily be missed in non warden lead caves.
Anyway, food for thought.
Ps. probably straying a bit from the OP.
Maj.
Les W
Active member
Maj said:
Food for thought. :-\
One of the main criteria for what ever is used as a tape is that the colouring is stable so it does not leach out and colour the cave.
Before extensively taping with a new product, testing should be carried out somewhere discrete to ensure that it is cave friendly.
cap n chris
Well-known member
This week's caving in Matienzo brought to our attention this MARVELLOUS taping system - fishing line (cyalume green - so easily noticed close up) held in place with flexible plastic sticks; easy, strong, super-cheap, lightweight, simple, effective, and invisible from more than a few metres away so should keep the purists/photographers happy. WE SHOULD USE THIS in the UK.
Also, explanatory signs so people could understand the rationale behind the work(s):
Also, explanatory signs so people could understand the rationale behind the work(s):
cap n chris
Well-known member
It has been argued that UK cavers might take issue at the placement of signs in caves; whether or not this is to reduce any embarrassment caused by illiteracy is a moot point and may be considered a compelling reason (albeit possibly mostly incorrect) behind the resistance to such an otherwise excellent idea/suggestion.
cap n chris
Well-known member
Illiteracy need not be a bar to effective and useful signs being placed, though, for example even a cretin should be capable of understanding this:
RobinGriffiths
Well-known member
Not sure about the no underarm deodorant one though.
ian.p
Active member
I think explanatory signs are fine when confined to the entrance of caves but there is no need to scatter them through a cave there is a particularly offensive keep Agen Allwedd tidy sign i can think off that appears to have been put up because the boulder its fixed too looked like a good natural bill board
taping wise whilst fishing line is discrete i think its important not to end up installing trip wires through the cave tape is to a certain extent meant to be seen
taping wise whilst fishing line is discrete i think its important not to end up installing trip wires through the cave tape is to a certain extent meant to be seen
NewStuff
New member
ian.p said:taping wise whilst fishing line is discrete i think its important not to end up installing trip wires through the cave tape is to a certain extent meant to be seen
It will be, from a few feet away, it almost glows. No-one will miss that stuff unless they are wandering around with their eyes shut, in which case all bets are off.
Maj
Active member
Laurie said:A year or more ago I offered Mendip cavers a huge coil of stainless steel wire (about 2.5mm dia) for making stand-off tape supports. Despite chasing never got a reply.
I will follow up again and try and find out whether the sample we provided was any good. Ali M?
Maj.