Trip Report Paris Catacombs - 14th & 15th May 2008

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darkplaces

Guest
A two day extravaganza of French undergroundness with some Paris CataVirgins  ;)

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Other Trip Reports
http://www.28dayslater.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=31416

A midweek Wednesday and Thursday GSR trip, see us meeting at the snogging statue in  St Pancras International to catch the [wiki]EuroStar[/wiki]. Joined by an UrbanExplorer from Canada called Neko. Some 2hrs and a bit later and a few cans of beer we were on French soil and soon to be under it. A quick ride on the Metro to Porte D'Orleans, some shopping in Champion's and a small walk we suddenly found ourselfs underground...

A quick visit to the statue with the guy stick between walls who is now bandaged and need of some fixing. Before carefully heading for Porte D'Orleans (were we had been busted on my last trip). Heading North and North-East onto Rue Sarrette were it gets kinda wet.
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It then gets a little wetter, one of our party doesn't like the wet and it too short to stand in it without getting wet, lol.
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Head for the Castle room. From here on its my turn to do the bulk of the navigation.
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Pass by the Flower room, Rookinella inspects the porn room with porn teddy. We head into the water, its deep but very very clear on Rue Leneveux which gets lower after the corner, but its ok because the floor drops away, the water becomes deeper, lapping at the crotchal region... Were out to find a teddy with its head stuck in a crack.
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We head down Rue Focillon to the Marie Rose Room to find the Plaque commemorative de Foxy.
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Then its back out the same way, past Bysance and SouthEast to La Plage were the robot is, we had a few group photos taken.
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Back out and turning right and into a crawl on the left into Le Cellier, also known as the Mushroom room. Annoyingly I seamed to have sustained an injury to my right knee by being all excited and launching myself into this crawl a bit too quickly. Once inside we stop for a bite of Lunch, and a look around.
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Thanks to experience I quickly find the crawl out the back, difficult now as I have to drag my right knee and its low and has a 90deg turn in it. Popping out into a passageway we turn right. Passing the B.A.S Room, left up Rue Couche, left at Rue Bigorre and left at Rue Du Commandeur. Finally reaching the Lanterns Room or the Latrine room as its now rather smelly.
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Now its a bit of a hike towards the Ossuary. Turning left onto Rue Sophie Germain, right, left, 2nd right, left, left, right, left up Rue Doguerre. Second right up Rue La Lande,  left then right and straight up the passageway to Carrefour Des Morts for a look at some bones. We headed a NNW to Rund Point, second right north, then left and left again to the Fallen Pillar and onwards finally turning right on a very long straight Avenue Du Marine which gets lower and lower. Becoming a crawl which I decide to not do as my knee is not good, so look after the bags while everyone else heads to Montparnasse Shelter and the Flag Room, mm 30mins rest to myself as the metro thunders overhead what feels like just feet above my head, the passageway shaking sometimes. Everyone returns and we head back down the passage taking a short cut up Rue Vandamne turning left on Rue de la Gaite then right on Boulevard Edard Quinet, left NE up Rue Huyghens and right onto Bld Du Montparnasse though some stinky smelly water (burst sewer?) and left up a dead end, I had mis navigated to a blocked passage (not seeing the tiny tiny red block on my map). So back Tracked right and right again. Though Great Cottage Crawl and right, I am sure passing the Library, turning left up Rue Bara then left and second right heading for the Pharmacy Shelter to camp down for the night.
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Now as people who have spent a night in the same room (or quarry) as me will know I tend to SNORE badly and apparently make pigeon noises. This entertained everyone on the trip...

Making a late start of it, 10am I think we take a look at the Carthusian Monks Fountain.
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We Heading off NE to the Philibert Aspairt Grave.
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Off we head via the Three Chairs Room, which has no chairs at all to Salle Z. I elected to again stay with the bags fecking knees kinda fecked now. A Typical passageway.
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We back track via Three Chairs Room and turn left and head south, Neko has to catch an early train so we head out. Usual route though the Sand Crawl and the watery bit after it.......

....Just as magically as we went in we magically found ourselves back on top of the Paris streets again.
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We head back to the Metro for a hot ride back to Paris Du Nord Railway. Luckly its quiet and we have seats. A quick change (for some of us) a spray of BO De basher and its across the road for a well earned cold beer shortly followed for FOOD! Bags are piled in the street while we wait for trains, sort travel and others staying on another day. The Paris Bag Lady (hehehe).
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It was a cracking trip as usual all too soon over :( time to jump on the EuroStar at 2013hrs , then a coach at  2300hrs  and finally getting home at 1am in the morning.

Thanks to everyone :D
 

caving_fox

Active member
Excellant report DP! I'm sure that was a great trip.

I've heard of the Parisian Catacombs but know little about them - what were they originally before they became abandoned?
 
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