What squeezes/tight bits of passage do people use as reference points in British caves?
- Thread starter nearlywhite
- Start date
The Trick... fun times!There was a tight squeeze in Swan Dyke where we made the breakthrough (didn't make it bigger as didn't have the technology back in the day) then it got enlarged
Caver Keith
Active member
The snuggest cave I've ever explored, and one definitely not for the salad doggers, is Ogof Rhyd Sych.
The description from Caves of South Wales reads:
Ogof Rhyd Sych is a little visited cave with a fearsome reputation built on the tight, low, wet and arduous passages that you need to pass on the route into the cave. Beyond this however the cave suddenly changes character to reveal 500m of the finest river cave passage in the UK. A fine reward for those thin cavers determined enough to make a visit.
Judge for yourself!
The description from Caves of South Wales reads:
Ogof Rhyd Sych is a little visited cave with a fearsome reputation built on the tight, low, wet and arduous passages that you need to pass on the route into the cave. Beyond this however the cave suddenly changes character to reveal 500m of the finest river cave passage in the UK. A fine reward for those thin cavers determined enough to make a visit.
Judge for yourself!
That was Flood Entrance, but not the tight bit, the bit before it where I adopted the big round peg in a small square hole approach to caving. I remember distinctly that only I had issues, you nipped through once having extracted me, but thank you for suggesting it was otherwise ;-)
Psychologically I would list the middle squeeze at the bend in CRO crawl, P5. Made famous by a certain Colin Bothroyd in 1986. Particularly challenging with any water flowing as it backs up and necessitates a deep breath when changing head direction as you swap arms over as you progress. It has been 36 years but still lingers in the memory of repeated trips during exploration. To cap it off in that winter the water used to freeze at the entrance crawl necessitating an even tighter crawl to exit sometimes only possible through the use of a crowbar to break the ice. Those were the days....
Jim MacPherson
Member
Well I thought so as well, finished off with the mantle shelf traverse. Being an incompetent I never tried either but was a bit in awe of those who could.
I was always put off by the tears and shrieks of the boy who very much regretted going for the top slot.
Mrs Trellis
Well-known member
Iron Maiden in Perryfoot, Agony crawl in Bagshawe.
pwhole
Well-known member
Agony Crawl is a doddle for me, ironically. The Iron Maiden can definitely be problematic though - first time I tried that I ended up hanging head-first from my foot - luckily someone was behind me and was able to pull my welly off otherwise we'd still be in there. I only did it once more, which was enough for me 
