New work at North End Pot

[Badlad]

Very impressive. I'm guessing that you're sorting it out because there might be some opportunities worth looking at? Or is that the kind of thing about which you couldn't possibly comment?

No, we have no ambition down NEP. Of course, we had the dig at the other end of the shakehole, which we connected to the Eastern Front so have had some involvement at the site. A couple of us went down NEP before the shoring perished too much. The chamber at the end, St George's Hall, is spectacular so it would be a shame to loose access to it. Keeping it open for prosperity is our main motivation. Once we are done restoring access and making it all safe, it should get resin anchored and a new topo so can be enjoyed by all.

 

[ChrisB]

Excellent, most commendable. Thank you.

 

[CNCC]

Excellent work Badlad and team, and a great project to retain access to St George's Hall. Great to see the trademark 90-degree beautiful scaffolding that we've come to recognise from your (many) other recent discoveries, all done to the highest standard.

 

[Badlad]

Here are a couple of videos. Looking upwards, (admiring), the fine shoring work above the narrows

Taken from below the narrows. Looking back up at first and then down towards the original second pitch - which is still rigged with Earby Pothole Club rope!

See the draught in that last video...

 

[Brains]

CNCC page is very thin on details at present, but sounds like it would make an interesting trip. Does anyone know how it responds to wet weather?
Looks like you are doing a proper job of it, well done

 

[Badlad]

The entrance is right out on the bench. It doesn't take any stream. Definitely any weather trip. Two pitches (15&20 ish), a tall breakdown rift leading to a big rift chamber called St George's Hall. A few old calcite flows and the site of neolithic human remains.

 

[Lankyman]

Keeping it open for prosperity is our main motivation

Are there any rare earths down there? Is Donald Trump trying to do a deal with you?

 

[Badlad]

Hi all. Most of the team have had a break from North End pot with holidays to China, Jordan and Scotland between us. However, Dave cracked on solo with reinstatement works on some of the old surface walling. On Sunday, myself, Dave, Nick, Geoff, JJ, were joined by Frank Pearson to put in another shift. A final tidying up of the top of the ramparts sees the surface work pretty much completed.

Sunny days. North End Pot to the left behind JJ and North by North End Pot to the right. Now fully terraced.

Down below, there was still work to be done shoring the steep slope below the narrows. I mostly worked the front with Dave feeding gear down through the narrow bit. Everything, including me, needed to be firmly secured as the steep slope drops straight onto the top of the second pitch. The surface crew cut poles and boards to order and these were installed up against some undercut jammed boulders. Once in place the dodgy steep slope above was raked back and the spaces filled up behind the boards. By the end of play all the loose stuff in this areas was disposed of as fill. There is still some work to do in the narrows above this step. At the moment you have to squeeze past some loose boulders which is a little unpleasant. Below the new step there is just one more section to sort and our work is done. Special mention in dispatches for JJ who rode back to Ingleton to cut the one piece of rebar we needed to finish.

Nick readying planks for lowering down.

The step is in and it is off to the pub.

 

[Goydenman]

Great work team ..... your scaffold boarding is always so excellent

 

[Badlad]

I'm a little behind with these updates so I'm combining last Wednesday's trip with yesterdays. In any case I think you'll agree one days digging is very much like another's

Last Wednesday saw a merry team of Dave, Mick, Frank, Bob and myself tackle the narrows. This really needed making bigger and with removing the jammed boulders some shoring to make it safer. Poles were fitted and boards driven down behind whilst the boulders in front knocked down. These then fell neatly behind the lower shoring we had installed the week before for just such a purpose. Here is a photo of Dave below the narrows looking back at the shoring - job done.

Still with time to spare before pub o'clock we made a start on the next step just above the traverse to the second pitch. This would be the final shoring. Here is a photograph showing the state of it with just the first pole installed. This has traditionally been descended in this condition in the past, very carefully though! You can see Dave at the top of the step above - this is the one which caught all the debris from the narrows.

One Sunday we had a larger team in anticipation of a trip to the bottom - a first for most and just reward for some hard work. In attendance, Dave, Mick, Frank, Bob, JJ, Geoff and myself. First job though, to complete the final step and backfill with loose stuff from the two slopes above.
Here is a couple of photos of me working on the step.

Note there are still some big boulders about.

So, our work was done. Just a case of following the old rope to the bottom. More on that later....

 

[Badlad]

Nicks survey profile showing North by North End on the left which connects to the Eastern Front. On the right NEP. The development origins are unclear. Probably some very old stage one development from a very different past landscape. Heads out towards Tow Scar nowadays.

 

[Badlad]

Here are a few shots on our trip to St Georges Hall at the end of play last Sunday. The better photos taken by Frank Pearson...

Geoff heading down the second pitch

Climbing down towards the chamber

St Georges Hall

Waiting to go back up the pitch

Thanks to CNCC for supporting the project to reopen North End Pot. The committee had agreed to refund the cost of all the shoring materials.

The next job is to get approval for resin anchor installation at the June CNCC meeting and hopefully one of the installers (Sam?) will take it on. Until then I can assure you that most of the current anchors are well dodgy. I'll post a few photos of them later.

 

[Lankyman]

View attachment 22576
Probably some very old stage one development from a very different past landscape. Heads out towards Tow Scar nowadays.

Are there any features on the surface towards Tow that are possibly linked to this? It must be getting quite close to the edge of the limestone and the Craven Faults.

 

[Badlad]

Yes, there is an old, abandoned dig in the right place. Andy Walsh was involved. I think it is in the book or on the survex model but don't have either to hand at the moment.

 

[Andy Walsh]

Yes, there is an old, abandoned dig in the right place. Andy Walsh was involved. I think it is in the book or on the survex model but don't have either to hand at the moment.

North End Pot
The "old abandoned dig in the right place "is Tow Scar Cave dug in 1980s by Alex Price +NCC to 10m deep using a Robin Reliant engine for hauling .
Later myself and others dug another 5m --write up in RRCPC JOURNAL NO 10 page 66 .
The dig is on same fault /line as North End pot and small rifts on same .further out is a prominent depression it is possibly an old rising or a sink as is NNE /NE pots.
The dig is now a 2 m in diameter shaft 15 m deep about St Georges Hall Level and ends in a miserable 10 cm chocked rift going to same? In my opinion "a draughtiness no hoper " a successful failure !!! Almost defiantly goes to far end of North End Pot + no permission now or point to dig!!