Your favourite SRT trips in the dales?
- Thread starter porgzilla
- Start date
The story I heard was that a caver was at the bottom of Nick Pot having descended on ladder. Whilst waiting his turn to ascend he felt a presense of some sort and turn round to see a floating head right behind him. So spooked by the head he climbed the ladder all the way to the top without waiting for the lifeline.
That's all I know
Ooo, some of them sound amazing.
We've got Juniper coming up with the YSS (Excited!)
I was wondering about Cow Pot too and don't hear folk over here speak about it much
We did that recently. I didn't too far on the first pitch, clinging to the rock away from the waterfall and In like, this isn't right, and between breaths prusikking back up I saw the indelible free hanging rope off to the right.
It seems like a hole that's had many adjustments over the years to find the route down?
Samouse1
Well-known member
Cow is definitely worth a visit! Might be my favourite entrance into that side of the system
langcliffe
Well-known member
The first ladder descents went down with the water, as did Steve Gough's SRT descent in 1983.
The first 'modern' SRT route on spits was established in 1985. From the top of the pitch, it followed a tensioned descent along the GG rift, and reached a precarious stance 15 metres or so from the top of Mousehole Shaft. It then landed on a very flakey ledge before dropping down to Birkbeck's ledge, and hence to the Main Chamber.
The traverse with the pendulum along the top of the rift was found when investigating the inlet that entered at the top of Mousehole Shaft. This was used when the current P-bolted route was established, mainly by Mike Wooding. This route is much cleaner, taking a clear line down Mousehole Shaft to Birkbeck's ledge, with an improved descent into Main Chamber.
alanw
Well-known member
Wouldn't that be Wingfield's Ledge, not Birkbeck's?
langcliffe
Well-known member
You are, of course, dead right.
Put it down to an aging brain.
Ali Express
New member
Hurnel Moss Pot, one of the first few trips I did. Great pitches and a fun traverse.
Lankyman
Well-known member
Although I enjoyed plenty of trips down the obvious classic systems I never really had 'favourites' as such. When I started, I was such a caving nut that anywhere and everywhere was fantastic just being there. I also enjoyed seeking out the obscure and hence less trammelled fare away from the classic caving areas. This was easier when I lived in northern Cumbria with the North Pennine and northern Dales close by. I would peruse the guidebook looking for interesting sounding pitches to go and investigate. Because of their situation, bolts were nonexistent and so I had to cultivate the art of rigging as safely as possible using only what nature provided. It's a skill worth developing. It was probably sometimes foolhardy in retrospect but some of the pots were/are quite spectacular in their way. I had a solo session bashing the various pots up on the watershed between Eden and Swaledale and being impressed by some of the surface and underground pitches around Hollow Mill Pot and the Tailbrigg Pots. You can find similar fare at Angerholme on Wild Boar Fell (with the added bonus of potentially finding the under-the-mountain master cave!).
It's a lovely route. I need to return and finish it. Due to some logistical issues we only got as far as the amphitheatre. We could see the texture of gaping gill main chamber floor but it was not to be on the day. I might actually finish the trip report at some point
What is with the rope that leads upwards at the mouse hole shaft bolt head? It looks like it was covered in urchins!
This sounds both adventurous and inspiring
langcliffe
Well-known member
It's a lovely route. I need to return and finish it. Due to some logistical issues we only got as far as the amphitheatre. We could see the texture of gaping gill main chamber floor but it was not to be on the day. I might actually finish the trip report at some point
What is with the rope that leads upwards at the mouse hole shaft bolt head? It looks like it was covered in urchins!
We climbed that after bolting Mousehole. It goes to a unenterable passage that I suspect may link up fairly quickly with the 'Dig on the Bend' below the Rat Hole entrance.
From the stance at the top of Mousehole, one can continue traversing and enter an inlet passage at the top of Mousehole Shaft. It ends in a too-narrow rift passage which draughts strongly, and probably joins one of the side passages at the top end of Motley Pot. With a bit of effort, it will, one day, probably be possible to do a Rat Hole - Motley Pot exchange via Long Hensler's.
Lankyman
Well-known member
Definitely an adventure! Going solo and all on natural features meant being methodical and calculating (don't want too much of an adventure!). I've enjoyed both sport and trad climbing in my time and rigging a pitch that way felt like the caving equivalent of trad.
skippy
Active member
I think the CNCC photo of the ent in relationship to my motor perfectly demonstrates how convenient the ent is. I think, if I tried
I could have parked a few feet closer
.Blimey!
I don't know what this means but I'm excited! Rat Hole has been one of my favourite trips so far.
I can't seem to persuade people to match back up though
Similar threads
