The Mousehole Bypass

[Cave Mapper]

On an evening trip down Rift a couple of weeks ago to try and find the new Mousehole bypass, we found the start of it OK (you climb up a loose rift just before the mousehole), but we didn't get all the way through.

After following some low wet crawls we came out in the roof of a small chamber, and although it was only about seven feet to the floor, there didn't seem to be an easy way down without jumping. Were we on the right route, and if so, what's the trick for getting down that drop? There was a side turning a little way back which I explored through a squeeze, but we had run out of time so I turned back at a second squeeze into an aven with a rope up it. Does that one go anywhere?

 

[jarvist]

+ out of interest, what's the route from the Large Pot side? I was down there last weekend, and as the duck was deep and cold and the route to the bypass a complete unknown that was where we turned back. Do you turn left after the Eldon extensions?

 

[smollett]

You were on the right track and were looking into a chamber in the Eldon extensions. If u climbed down and went through a squeeze in the floor then you would be back on the trade route on the large pot side of the mousehole. You are the second person to have found that climb tricky. It isn't as bad as it looks and I find it easiest to traverse out a bit before lowering myself down. I also approach it facing outwards. I may put a handline in or build up the floor to make access easier.
Where you saw the rope is the foot of an 8m high aven. This can be climbed using rope as a handline. A couple of metres horizontally leads to the base of a thirty metre aven which is more spacious. At the top of this is an inlet which is slowly getting capped and is the limit of exploration to date.

To get to it from the large side:
From the end of necropolis you go through the boulder choke towards the mousehole. About five metres after this is a passage on the left. This is before you get into the first chamber of the Eldon extensions. Almost straight away up this passage is a squeeze in the roof which brings you into the chamber with the inlet in the roof. It isn't easy to find from this side.

 

[jarvist]

Cheers for that smollet 
I'll definitely have a sniff around the next time I down either side.

 

[Cave Mapper]

Thanks Smollet, that all makes sense.

I'm sure the Mousehole will be open now, so I feel a round trip coming on.