Sidetrack cave, Eldon Quarry: detail on original exploration?

alastairgott

alastairgott

Well-known member
Been into sidetrack today.


Does anyone know where i can find the original exploration notes/who i can speak to about the original exploration.


I'm particularly interested in the side passages off the litton stroll. Apparently there's some higher levels and on the survey there appears to be a loop which comes back to opposite the entrance crawl. Is this in the aven above?
 
Moose

Moose

New member
I had something to do with it.

The 'loop' you talk about doesn't actually close. The way to it is off the LS is by means of the 'Flat out walk' a low route towards the downstream end of the LS. It ends in a choked area very close to the base of that aven you mention (which was climbed and is blind).

It would be worth pushing it through as I think the FoW is rather grim now it's full of water.

 
adam

adam

Member
Gottzone, the 'flat out walk' is the first of the low watery bits I showed you. We could make a nice round trip by connecting up the loop.

Moose, interesting you say the 'downstream' end of the LS. Presumably that means water used to flow north towards the 'mud choke' end of the passage. Does that also mean that water would have flowed 'in' through the entrance passage towards the same direction?
 
alastairgott

alastairgott

Well-known member
DOH!

me and Adam (above) had a bit of a dig at a new dig site which was precisely on the other side of the Flat out walk. we got to a point where you could see a continuation (presumably the FOW) but would require capping, 20 caps or more should do it!?

cut out a 1m long trench towards the rocks which was about 0.5m wide and 0.5m tall.

If we aim to the right hand side of the choke on our side, would that get us through to the Flat out walk without getting wet? :) :p
 
alastairgott

alastairgott

Well-known member
What are the digs like in the FOW?

Would we get more willing victims to do the entrance crawl if they could get through without getting wet?
 
adam

adam

Member
I've looked at three of these. One was a small tube which went for 4 or so metres to a blind aven. One was a low gap full of sand which would require lots of excavation. One was a very tight, very muddy, very wet little hole which was probably the most miserable piece of cave I've ever been in.

In answer to your second question Al, no.
 
Moose

Moose

New member
The draught comes from the 'dig' next to the 12m aven at floor level. Which I can't ever recall climbing!
 
alastairgott

alastairgott

Well-known member
going to need to log into dropbox at home.

Had another thought, Halfway along the entrance crawl there is a draughting dig in water, which may still be being dug by people.
It might be possible to pipe the water out by siphoning out into the quarry?
 
alastairgott

alastairgott

Well-known member
So we we're looking at the dotted line just to the right of the C In the text saying "Annette's attic". We could see the passage going off. so just a bit of breaking rocks should get you through. (but then more moving rocks at the other side of the dotted line to get through to the FOW.
 
Moose

Moose

New member
Yes, or the route straight across through the boulders if you were to come out of the entrance crawl. My memory of the precise details is a bit fuzzy.

When we dug out the FoW it was as dry as a bone and really quite pleasant.

There's two big incentives for digging in there, one is the draught and the other is that it's about 114m above the water table. If you were to consider the water table to be that of the downstream end of P8. Which isn't actually that far away horizontally either.
 
alastairgott

alastairgott

Well-known member
The thought had struck me slightly when me and Adam (walmslers!) were in there yesterday about the horizontal distance from sump 6 in P8. on the P8 survey, the little stub from sump 6 points almost straight at the lane off the main road. (on the Eldon quarry survey the start of the lane points almost directly at the Flat out Walk)

sump 6 looks like its halfway (in distance) between bull pit and the start of that lane (for anyone reading that might not have the P8 survey to hand).

Making any dig in Sidetrack a tasty prospect, if you can cope with flat out crawling. I was dissing sidetrack only 2 days ago for its prospects :s
 
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