Pitlamp said:
Les - if you really have now found the biggest chamber - you have my warmest congratulations.
I'm sure Les won't mind me saying that he was not involved. The main diggers were The Old Ruminator, MRODOC and a bloke called Nigel who doesn't post on here.
Pitlamp said:
I was so pleased when I first heard about it. Many years ago when I was caving actively with the Wessex (before petrol became exhorbitantly expensive) I expressed a wish to have a trip down Reservoir one night in the Hunters'. Quite a few of the local caving "experts" scoffed and said we'd got no chance as Willie Stanton wouldn't co-operate. So I wrote to Willie and, 3 days later, back came the most civil and helpful letter. We were round at his house a couple of weeks later collecting the key and he couldn't have been more encouraging. Obviously we were extremely impressed by the digging efforts in there and when we told him so afterwards, his eyes shone! That was the only time I ever met Willie Stanton but I was left with a real impression of a genuine bloke. It would have been grand if he hadn't passed away before the big new chamber was discovered.
Willie was indeed a top bloke and a role model for cave diggers everywhere.
Pitlamp said:
Anyway, well done all concerned. It's things like this which have led to my losing interest in overseas trips. There's just so many exciting caving challenges to take up in Blighty.
Thought from your point of view travel south of the Trent counted as 'overseas'.