Pen Park Hole

[Razzerip1]

This was to be our first trip to this gigantic Rift located under Southmead within the city of Bristol
We met Clive Own our leader for the evening at 7pm
The Cave is located within a small park next to a pub, so changing is a little tricky or a strip show for others

Clive opened the gated entrance and we climbed down the concrete entrance pipe through a small crawl to a small pitch with three staggered ladders, we then made our way through a couple of small chambers, Clive pointed out many crystal formations and various unusual rock formations, we arrived at the head of a 25m ladder pitch.
We rigged the pitch with three ladders and made our way down to the bottom of this enormous inclined rift.
The ladder was very awkward in places as it was very close to the rock, once at the bottom the view is breathtaking.

The bottom of the rift is covered with thick muddy boulders gently running down to the lake
The Lake has been dived within the last year to point where a boulder littered floor prevent any further progress
There is a way on across the lake if you like swimming and climbing muddy slopes to further passage.
After exploring the floor of the rift we made our way back up the pitch to a ridge where you can traverse across to a bird's eye view of the lake and ladder pitch.

All in all it was a fantastic trip - http://axbridgecavinggroup.wikidot.com/pen-park-hole-19th-june-08 - More Photo's

 

[graham]

Great picture of the ladder, Steve, I know just how much of a bugger that is to photograph.

However, have to tell you that the Lake was actually dived back in 1993! The diving this year was simply to place & remove monitoring kit.

 

[Duncan Price]

However, have to tell you that the Lake was actually dived back in 1993! The diving this year was simply to place & remove monitoring kit.

I know that the lake has been dived a few times and doesn't go anywhere.  Do you have any more details (references etc.) that I could use.

I am putting together a new edition of the Somerset Sump Index and would like to include Pen Park Hole.

Duncan

 

[Christian_Chourot]

You managed to get out of the gate again then! That's the biggest challenge.

 

[graham]

However, have to tell you that the Lake was actually dived back in 1993! The diving this year was simply to place & remove monitoring kit.

I know that the lake has been dived a few times and doesn't go anywhere.  Do you have any more details (references etc.) that I could use.

I am putting together a new edition of the Somerset Sump Index and would like to include Pen Park Hole.

Duncan

It was apparently dived in the 1970s, I think possibly by Cobbett, but without conclusive result, for various reasons associated with the fact they shouldn't have been there.

It was dived by Marco Paganuzzi on 2nd July 1992. There was a lovely inviting arch under the east wall. He dived once following the floor until he reached a vertical blank wall & came back saying "no way on". We had noticed, however, that his bubbles had vanished so he dived again following the roof and found a tiny vertical crack going up, but still no way on. It's from these dives that the bottom part of the survey in the report http://www.ubss.org.uk/resources/proceedings/vol19/UBSS_Proc_19_3_291-311.pdf was drawn.

The recent dives in the lake have simply been done to retrieve pressure sensors, monitoring depth of water.

 

[Duncan Price]

Thanks.

 

[Cookie]

I know that the lake has been dived a few times and doesn't go anywhere.  Do you have any more details (references etc.) that I could use.

More reference than you can shake a stick at in the Bibliography www.mcra.org.uk/Bibliography.html.

Actually probably more than you want!

 

[Duncan Price]

More reference than you can shake a stick at in the Bibliography www.mcra.org.uk/Bibliography.html.

Actually probably more than you want!

Or more than could be displayed.  It was useful to be able to find the page number it is on in the 1999 edition of Mendip Underground though without waiting until I got home...

 

[Cookie]

Or more than could be displayed. 

Yes, currently it cuts off at 100. You need to refine your search at that point.

I have some plans to do an advance search facility to make that easier.

 

[graham]

Or more than could be displayed. 

Yes, currently it cuts off at 100. You need to refine your search at that point.

I have some plans to do an advance search facility to make that easier.

Can you give us a "sort by" as well, I find it useful to determine sorts by either date or author.

 

[Cookie]

Can you give us a "sort by" as well, I find it useful to determine sorts by either date or author.

Yes. Although I'm not promising it soon.