The Old Ruminator
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Nigel on the bucket. MSD
Reservoir Hole Digging Prospects
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The Old Ruminator
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Magic Smoke Dig 2014.
The Old Ruminator
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Where it changed. Boulder to silt interface.
The Old Ruminator
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TFD above Magic Smoke. Big scallops.
The Old Ruminator
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Pulley. MSD.
The Old Ruminator
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A remote boulder in the sediment. Rounded and etched by chemical and water action whilst buried.
The Old Ruminator
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Huge acallops above MSD. Well I would like to think so.
The Old Ruminator
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Golgotha fault wall seen here in a rarely visited part of the cave at upper Great Expectations. Above this massive choke lies Golgotha itself. Not a safe place to visit.
The Old Ruminator
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Clean washed phreatic pendants and mud at Jill's Slither. Note the curtain and fault aligned roof.
The Old Ruminator
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Having to post images singly as Photobucket is duplicating posts. Very annoying but easier for me to delete the error post. How easier it would be for me if I could just delete the text code and do multiple image posts. One little moan at the forum set up.
All images from my master file of 1,500 Reservoir Hole images sent to MCRA. Oh yes there are many more .
Coming next.
The Pulsation Aven Dig. So we can say goodbye to MSD for now.
MSD Base Camp.
All images from my master file of 1,500 Reservoir Hole images sent to MCRA. Oh yes there are many more .
Coming next.
The Pulsation Aven Dig. So we can say goodbye to MSD for now.
MSD Base Camp.
soon!
The Old Ruminator
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Well done oh this weekend Mike
The Old Ruminator
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The last virgin cave passages in Reservoir Hole were found above the Pulsation Aven series. From wallowing in Jill's Slither Mike Kushy climbed the big aven to enter a well decorated chamber at the top. Ladders were rigged for the two aged visitors. Traversing across the next aven and an awkward uphill squeeze led to more passage . Some beyond a choke and going up hill to another loose choke. At this point it was realised that the most likely connection beyond the choke was a hole in the floor in High Country. All being in the same fault. That if connected would be a massive short cut to High Country avoiding TFD. A stream down the wall in H C is likely the one in Pulsation Aven. Possibly not a good idea so digging was halted though no survey was down or trial voice link. Some side passages might lead elsewhere.
Peter Glanvill and I went along to do the photos. I was ill with the flu so Peter was cameraman. His camera had a flat battery so I did the photos except this one of me with my camera by Peter. Here an un named junction in the new unsurveyed area.
Peter Glanvill and I went along to do the photos. I was ill with the flu so Peter was cameraman. His camera had a flat battery so I did the photos except this one of me with my camera by Peter. Here an un named junction in the new unsurveyed area.
The Old Ruminator
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I did a sketch survey in my log.
The Old Ruminator
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More photos to follow -- Photo above where it says " chamber ".
The Old Ruminator
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Well thats easy at least to answer. Longleat wont let us back in ---- yet.
The Old Ruminator
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INTERLUDE.
Get a coffee or summat stronger.
Keeping it to Reservoir Hole.
Digging is about many things. Intuition plays a part but really that comes from experience and knowledge. Good luck of course as well. Its almost ironic that Willie Stanton although knowing the mutiphase development at Reservoir Hole chose to follow other options. He certainly worked out that Golgotha was a fault contolled phreatic riser and his final days of digging were at Herberts Attic where the riser crested. His walled dig up to Golgotha is amazing. Just following a " zephyr " of draught. Of course what goes up must come down but there is a short cut across the bottom of the riser. The Topless Dig. Willie gave that up when it got bogged down in water and loose rocks. He always favoured the larger dig with nice steps and walls. He was creative as well as explorative. Now anyone who knew the cave so well could have worked that out. Our dig in Topless took just 37 sessions to reach Great Expectations helped of course by modern drills etc. Willie could have done that in six months. My view then was that we were part of the generational process. The short cut route could have been over 100m long. We were lucky. Dump space had run out. The dig bogged down in water ( Glanvill's Grottole ). In desperation we went up.
A prediction based on intuition and certainty but not necessarily in my lifetime.
Of course knowing what we know know we see other routes Willie could have taken and change caving history.
Digging in the lowest part of the floor in Golgotha would have reached Great Expectations. No worse a feat than the upward dig. Ah. When to go down again ? You make choices at the time. What would have changed everything for Willie was the push up Pulsation Aven to reach High Country. Just a few loose chokes seperate the two. What a relevation for his team that would have been. Huge passage down to a very huge chamber. Sadly for diggers fate is not always set up that way. No doubt the team climbed the avens and saw them pinch out and end in chokes. Yes. If only.
We shall continue --
Get a coffee or summat stronger.
Keeping it to Reservoir Hole.
Digging is about many things. Intuition plays a part but really that comes from experience and knowledge. Good luck of course as well. Its almost ironic that Willie Stanton although knowing the mutiphase development at Reservoir Hole chose to follow other options. He certainly worked out that Golgotha was a fault contolled phreatic riser and his final days of digging were at Herberts Attic where the riser crested. His walled dig up to Golgotha is amazing. Just following a " zephyr " of draught. Of course what goes up must come down but there is a short cut across the bottom of the riser. The Topless Dig. Willie gave that up when it got bogged down in water and loose rocks. He always favoured the larger dig with nice steps and walls. He was creative as well as explorative. Now anyone who knew the cave so well could have worked that out. Our dig in Topless took just 37 sessions to reach Great Expectations helped of course by modern drills etc. Willie could have done that in six months. My view then was that we were part of the generational process. The short cut route could have been over 100m long. We were lucky. Dump space had run out. The dig bogged down in water ( Glanvill's Grottole ). In desperation we went up.
A prediction based on intuition and certainty but not necessarily in my lifetime.
Of course knowing what we know know we see other routes Willie could have taken and change caving history.
Digging in the lowest part of the floor in Golgotha would have reached Great Expectations. No worse a feat than the upward dig. Ah. When to go down again ? You make choices at the time. What would have changed everything for Willie was the push up Pulsation Aven to reach High Country. Just a few loose chokes seperate the two. What a relevation for his team that would have been. Huge passage down to a very huge chamber. Sadly for diggers fate is not always set up that way. No doubt the team climbed the avens and saw them pinch out and end in chokes. Yes. If only.
We shall continue --
The Old Ruminator
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Potter's Heaven filmed by Peter Glanvill.
The Old Ruminator
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An awkward bit. Pulsation Aven Series.
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