2010 Club trip reports
| Date | Trip |
| 5th January 2010 | Craig a Ffynnon |
| 7th February 2010 | Agen Allwedd |
| 7th March 2010 | Ogof Draenen |
| 6th June 2010 | Dan yr Ogof |
| 11th July 2010 | Craig a Ffynnon |
| 25th July 2010 | Otter Hole |
| 1st August 2010 | Pwll Swnd |
Pwll Swnd - 1st August
Four intrepid explorers (Kingsley, Ann, Jan and Pauline) met up at Herbert’s Quarry lower car park. After spying 3 lads already tucking into cans of lager we quickly decided to move to the upper car park so they didn’t see what we were leaving in the vehicles. Here we got ourselves changed and set off through the quarry. As usual for a day underground, the sun was shining and it was pleasantly warm. We decided to stay high and follow the ridge round. In theory this meant a less steep climb at the end……it didn’t feel like it as we slogged up to the highest point carrying the ladders and ropes etc. However, after crossing the top we found the path on the other side which brought us down directly above the entrance.
We had a brief rest outside then pulled suits on, belted up before slithering into the entrance. With the absence of Barry (priority date with racing lawnmowers!), Pauline set up the ladder and lifeline and lowered everyone to the bottom of the first pitch. Jan then took the lead through the crawl to the chamber. A couple of gour pools provided a welcome drink of cool water for Ann and Pauline.
We sat briefly while Kingsley reminded us of the route down and beyond the next pitch but we would save that for another day. Then we ducked under the ledge below the slope where we had entered the chamber, and set off on our exploration. I think we walked or crawled along all the possible passages and found some wonderfully sculpted passage, helectites and other calcite formations which had Ann in raptures. On several occasions we regretted the lack of camera – Kingsley left his at the entrance, Jan accidently sent it home and Pauline didn’t think about it. One section of the passage there was evidence that some rocks had moved as one particularly large piece of calcite had fracture lines near the bottom and some smaller pieces had shifted away from it. On closer inspection the whole lump had shifted several inches from its original position as the stalagmite at the top was no longer lined up with its stalactite. We also concluded that the whole section of rock wall along that passage looked like it was on the move and could collapse at some time in the future. We moved on quickly!
At the furthest reaches of the passages there is a fork. Initially we took the right fork and followed it to the end. It was drafting well although we could not see where from. Pauline crawled to the end and reported that the draft was still present and the floor was mud etc with gaps at the sides which suggested that it could be dug. A possible project…..? We checked out the left fork to complete our survey before turning around and working our way back.
After a brief bit of confusion we eventually found our way back into the chamber where we sat down for a rest. As we sat in darkness conversation turned to a discussion of lights people had owned, from carbide, through kirby’s to FX’s. Jan and Ann fell into reminiscing about visiting Stuart Kirby’s mansion in the dim and distant past to get lights repaired. Eventually we decided that it was time to head back to the bottom of the pitch and climb to the surface. Pauline climbed up first and operated the rope to bring the others up safely. It was a team effort stowing the kit back into the bag before exiting. With the sunlight streaming into the entrance the moss and ferns were beautifully backlit setting Ann off again!
On the way back we stuck to the lower route across the bog which meant we had a great slide down a grassy bank at one point, led by Kingsley of course. However because we were parked at the upper car park we had to climb back up a bit to pick up the tram way through the quarry. A very enjoyable trip.
On 25thJuly, Darren, Sam and Graeme ventured on their long awaited trip into Otter Hole. Having met Ian in the car park, we descended to (almost) river level with the Wye, before crouching through the entrance into the pleasantly cool and dark cave. We were immediately sliding through the previously well advertised mud. Before too long we could hear the sound of the tidal water rushing out of the cave, but it was some 45 minutes before we arrived at the sump. Venturing further into the cave could not be guaranteed unless the levels were low enough for us to pass safely through the sump. Luckily, Ian was able to wade through the sump - the water lapping somewhere around his knees. For the rest of us, being somewhat more vertically challenged, the water reached the height where certain appendages retreat to seek refuge closer to warmer parts of the body mass. However, having successfully escaped to the other side of the sump, we continued to boulder hop, climb, descend, crawl, traverse, squeeze and slide further into the cave. We were all tired by the time we reached the Hall of Thirty, but the wonderful formations that greeted us were a sight to behold. Huge stal bosses, some gleaming white, and others almost gold in colour. In other areas, curtains of calcite draped from the ceilings, many with bands of different colours which were synchronised with neighbouring formations. Having retraced our steps to the Hall entrance, Ian decided there was sufficient time for him (accompanied by Sam) to explore another part of the cave. Although they were back within 25 minutes, they reported sightings of other beautiful formations. Mindful of the time limits imposed by the rising tide refilling the sump (so prevent our return to the surface), we started our return journey. However, we were still able to enjoy many formations we had not seen on the outward journey. These formations would have been the star attraction in many other caves. We made good time in reaching the sump, and were pleasantly surprised that the water level was a mere knee height. It was only at this point that we realised the mud we had quite easily wallowed through earlier in the day had been in a generally downhill direction. Crawling, pushing and squeezing exhausted bodies through mud uphill proved to be a more arduous task. Nonetheless, it only seemed to heighten Sam’s chuckling as he tackled this challenge with relish. Neither did it impact on Darren’s desire to lead the return leg of the journey – he even sought to discover an alternative route before arriving at the exit of the cave. We had all expected a great deal from this trip and none of us were disappointed. However, despite it being an epic, it was by no means an ‘Olympus Trip’ as Darren made the schoolboy error of leaving the camera in the car. I can only suggest you have a look at the photos taken by Barry on the previous trip, though please bear in mind that these photos were taken in 2008, and that having a further 2 years growth, the formations now are so much bigger!
Craig a Ffynnon – 11th July 2010
Today’s trip was delayed for a week, as some of us was not available for the normal first Sunday of the month trip. Anyway as what seems to be normal these days the sun was shinning well on the day that we decide to spend underground. But anyway we all meet up at the Limekilns, where the parking arrangements had altered. Got changed and then headed up to the entrance with Kingsley, once inside we locked the gate behind us and filled in the logbook with our destination of the ‘Promise Land’. It was now onwards to the first pitch, which we soon had rigged and everyone up. At least we could now lose one of the kit bags, leaving this pitch rigged for our return. Next came the choke and it was then onwards through to the ‘Hall of the Mountain King’, then the fun began with the flat out crawl that would take us towards the ‘Severn Tunnel’. At the end of the ‘Severn Tunnel’ we took the right turn, passing by the entrance to the ‘Lower Series’ and then ‘Blaen Elin’ before going very steady through the loose ‘forth choke’. Again once all through, we were soon at the top of the pitch into ‘The Promise Land’, we set up a traverse line, and rigged the pitch, then all got down safely. The old corroded ladder is still hanging in the ‘Promise Land’ just goes to show that they do deteriorate over time, firstly we turn left and visited ‘The Pagoda’ which is a superb set of formations around a lovely white stal. Then we continued down through ‘The Promise Land’ taking on all of the obstacles’ on route with team work, until we reached the final tight bit where only Ann and Darren squeezed through, leaving Jan and I on this side. Once regrouped we started our return trip back out, and when we were all at the top of ‘The Promise Land Pitch’ we stopped to have our Mars Bar’s before continuing. The crawl between ‘The Severn Tunnel’ and ‘Hall of the Mountain King’ really sapped the remainder of our energy. Then in the muddy section just before the boulder choke, Darren decides to drop head first into the mud, he then had to keep smiling so that we could see him. Back at the first pitch, we all got down and de-rigged, then it was back to having two heavy kit bags for the final exit, although we did have a quick look up ‘North West Inlet’ which still had about a foot of water, even with all of this dry weather that we have been having, so after a quick wash here, we then headed back to daylight where it felt so warm with the nice feeling of a flask of coffee awaiting at the vehicles. Although we were all knackered after this seven hour trip, I think that we all very much enjoyed it.
It seems as if everyone was either on holiday or had other commitments for this weekend, so just Rupert and myself went down to Dan yr Ogof. Once there we struggled into our wetsuits in the sun, and with the paperwork filled in we then headed up to the cave entrance, once in we continued through the show cave, until we got to the railings where the lakes awaited our arrival. The lakes were quite low with us only getting wet up to our chest and plenty of airspace, but the water falls/rapids were still quite noisy.
Anyway, once out of the water, it was on with the round trip taking in all of the formations on route. At the start of the Long Crawl we could see that no one was in front of us as the water in the Water Trough was still and clear, but not for long as we crawled through it, after abo