Cave Exploration

I.—New Discoveries

Northern Ireland, Fermanagh, Marble Arch Cavern (alt. 430 ft., rising of the Cladagh, west of Florence Court, 12 miles from Enniskillen).—nth and 12th April, 1936, Gowing, F. S. Booth, Nelstrop, C. E. Burrow, and E. E. Roberts found at the S. end of the New Chamber of 1935 a huge river cavern, 30 feet wide, named the Skreen Hill Passage, which ran first N.E. and then S.E. to a point surveyed as 400 yards E. of the New Chamber. Here a huge pool was waded, immediately followed by another in which Nelstrop swam 25 yards without reaching anything.

Enters, pointing E. to Monastir Swallet, was followed to a point 75 yards off whence the surface could almost be reached.

Cradle Hole Upper Cavern water was followed a few yards into the choke downstream, and a very fine high belfry found.

In Pollasumera, which was quite dry, no continuing passage and only two new short dead-ends were found. In Cat’s Hole the rift at the end was descended and a crawl made back to the main cavern (Easter, 1936).

Irish Free State, Clare, Slieve Elva, Poll na pooka (alt. 870 ft., N.W. end of Slieve Elva, above Ballyelly Farm, one of two big shake-holes below the uppermost scarp).—April, 1936, Gowing, Roberts, Bartlett and Messrs. Balcombe, Sheppard, Watson, and Boscoby. The third pot-hole to be found on this hill, 84 ft. ladder from the end of a slope, no passages.

Clare, Slieve Elva, Poulnagollum (alt. 750 ft., E. side of the hill, 300 yards N. of the road junction 2¼ miles S. of Fermoyle, 1,540 yards N. by W. of Poulnaelva).—Baker’s furthest passed by a bedding-plane on the left, stream passage regained and followed beyond a sink into a dry area.—13th April, 1936, Bartlett and Messrs. Balcombe, Sheppard and others. 16th April, Gowing and E. E. Roberts.—The latter party chained the incredibly winding passage up to 1,558 yards, completely missing the so-called Poulnaelva Branch and stopping at another, a small one. The high waterfall on the left was passed at 350 yards. At Baker’s farthest, a considerable distance beyond the 1,558 point, the bedding-plane exposed by low water was used to regain the main passage, but it was proved possible to return through the narrow throat upstream. After the water disappears on the right, the passage repeatedly forks. The furthest extension was reached by passing over some beautiful gours, the last of them brown. Temperature of the water, 41 °F. (5° C).

Bartlett’s party also followed a passage at the foot of the waterfall finishing the so-called Poulnaelva branch, as far as some very bad mud.

Clare, Slieve Elva, Poll Dubh Lower (alt. 780 ft., W. side of the hill, obvious swallets of stream, 700 yards N. of Blake’s Bridge).—April, 1936, Mr. Pick’s party, and later Gowing and Roberts. A winding passage with two entrances, about 750 yards. After a deep pool the cave closes with two very painful crawls, one dry, one wet.

Mr. S. J. Pick had parties at Lisdoonvarna at the Easters of 1936 and 1937. 1936—Messrs. S. J. Pick, Balcombe Bartlett (Y.R.C.), Sheppard, Watson, Brown, Boscoby. 1937—Messrs. S. J. and D. Pick, Balcombe, Bartlett, Sheppard, Harris, Hazleton and Radcliffe.

Clare, Coolagh River Swallet or Polldonough (alt. 580 ft., close to a road, exactly 2 miles slightly N. of N.N.W. from Lisdopnvarna).—April 1936, finished by five of Mr. Pick’s party with the aid of a fixed rope, after Balcombe had been lowered to and had swam across the pool at 800 yards. A fine stream passage which closed down after over f mile.

Slieve Elva, Faunarooska Cave (alt. over 800 ft., difficult to find, must be a mile N.E. of Poll Dubh, Balcombe gives its position as, lat. 53° 4′ 4″, long. 90 16′ 50″).—16th April, 1936. Balcombe, Bartlett, and Sheppard made this important discovery, length nearly a mile, and exceptional in containing internal pot-holes, estimated then at sixty and thirty feet. A very fine cave.

28th and 30th March, 1937.—Mr. Pick’s party descended the pot-holes ; that into which the stream falls, f of the way in, proved to be 100 ft. deep, that at the end of the dry con­tinuation proved to be 85 feet. Nothing beyond.

Slieve Elva, Poll Dubh Upper (alt. about 850 ft., 700 yards N.N.E. of Poll Dubh).—March, 1937. Mr. Pick’s party. Entered by a swallet and a pot. Runs close under the surface and connects with the upper part of the Poll Dubh.

Further towards Faunarooska Cave this party also found the small Firework Pot, now covered, and Poll Balliny which goes in a painfully narrow course which felt like quarter of a mile.

Slieve Elva, Poll Binn or Upper Poulnagollum (alt. 820 ft., two swallets, No. I a little S. of Cosgrave’s cottage, No. II 200 yards N.W. of cottage).—No. I, April 1936, Mr. S. J. Pick and another. A very fine journey down little pitches to Poulnagollum Pot. A ladder is necessary to get down into it. No. II, Mr. Pick’s 1937 party. The whole trip past No. I is about 1,000 yards of passage.

Clare, Fisherstreet Pot (close to the sea, just S. of the road).— April 1936. Gowing and Roberts. 30 feet deep. Stream channels at the bottom, but a dead cow also.

Clare, Ballycasheen Cave (half way between Kilfenora and Corofin).—Mr. Pick’s 1936 party. On the tributary to the R. Fergus marked on the map, E. of Pollnaboe. A short passage with three chambers is reached down a rift 20 feet high.

NOTE.—All the above caverns are in Carboniferous Lime­stone.

Sutherland, Inchnadamph, Cave of Water, or Uamh an Uisge (alt. 800 feet, 2 miles E.S.E. of the hotel).—The path up the glen leads close to the impenetrable Traligill Swallet. Three caves are half a mile off where the ridge between the active and dry beds of Traligill steepens. The arch seen at a distance is the trifling Cave of Roaring, but the roar is from the Cave of Water, which a burn enters by a waterfall from a 40 foot pot-hole above, to rage down a wide thrust plane, 3o°-45°. E. E. Roberts, July 1937, went down the side of the slab no feet with a hand line, and found the cave narrowed into a steep tunnel. Excellent standing ground for a party when the burn is not in spate. He climbed past the fall and followed the watercourse off the pot above round two or three corners to a ten-foot fall, which in fine weather might perhaps permit a wet climb.

Uamh Cailliche Pearag in the top bit of limestone in the dry S. branch of Traligill is a short tunnel and climb. Fhuaran Allt nan Uamh on the burn 2½ miles S. of Inchnadamph is an unobtrusive rising, not affected by spate. No ” swallow-holes and chasms ” could be found on the plateaus S. or N. of the hotel.

In Cambrian Limestone. Except Cave of Smoo’ the only caves reported in Scotland, barring sea caves.

Ingleborough, Gaping Gill Hole, Hensler’s Passage.—16th May, 1937, Mr. E. Hensler of London entered a bedding-plane off Booth-Parsons Crawl, South Passage end, which has been noted and tried by various people but not reported. Along this bedding plane, extremely flat, unrelenting and without cross joints, he crawled for quarter of a mile, alone, an amazing feat, and entered a waterworn passage, leading to a very fine big passage with branches. The new series was surveyed in two days’ work by Messrs. Grainger, Binns, Longbottom, Davies, and Bottomley, another great feat.

In September Messrs. Douglas and Wheel with the Editor got in a long way and found it much more trying than they expected. On the 26th Douglas, Dawson, Johnson and Howard (Northern C. and F.C.) went through and found a new large shattered chamber. ” The best party is four, neither more nor less.”—” I never took any pot-hole punish­ment so fierce as the journey out.”—” The sooner someone breaks through from the surface, as at Flood Entrance, the better.”

Ingleborough, Simon Fell, Nick Pot (alt. 1,300 ft., the swallet of Shooting Box Beck.)—Easter, 1936. Northern Cavern and Fell Club descended a new pitch, 280 feet deep. Total depth about 400 feet.

24th August, 1935, Douglas and Proctor found the final choke partly released by the last winter’s floods and got through into two chambers and to a great pitch. Next day Dawson went to a ledge at 80, and the end of the ladders at 200 feet. Two other ways in were found. On 28th September, over 200 yards of trench had been dug and a wooden sluice gate at the great pitch provided, when fearful cloudbursts put an end to the work.

In spite of the cold at Easter, Proctor, Douglas, Dawson, and Parker, descended the pitch of 280 feet, plus 15 more among rocks. A great disappointment to find no passage, but a brilliant finish to two great years, 1934-5, for the Northern Club.

Simon Fell, Allotments, Marble Pot (alt. 1,350 ft., close to the long boundary wall).—Whitsun, 1936. The waterfall in the recess in the open pot being dried up, Thornton and Roberts had a nice climb to a big belfry, up into a smaller, and by a roof traverse into a third with a huge stalagmite pillar.

Chapel-le-Dale, Douk Cave.—Correction. 1906. Davis Burrow and Mr. R. F. Cook were the first to make the through journey to the middle Sheep fold Cave (which begins as a rift and not as a bedding-plane) ; Douglas and Thornber were the second, by the reverse way (VI, p. 351). Gowing and Roberts repeated it downwards in flood water last July, and there being hopeless confusion as to which branch was used, the Editor tried the Ingleborough branch later with Spenceley and stuck hopelessly. Going out again they came down and returned by the Ribble-head branch, left side ; the Beetham tunnels must be very close but to the right in this miserable stretch.

Spenceley (aetat. 16) entered the north cave at the Sheepfold and got through to a dead stop in a grotto, 8 feet wide and high. His shouts were heard easily in the middle cave.

Ribblesdale, Sell Gill Hole (alt. 1,160 ft.).—August, 1937. The really dreadful bedding-plane at the end of the stream passage was forced by the Leeds Cave Club into a good-sized chamber. Two later visits worked through into a second and a third. The lesson seems to be that all bedding-planes lead somewhere.

Ribblesdale, Jackdaw Hole (alt. 1,250 ft.)—May, 1936. Mr. Graham Watson cleared away boulders at the bottom of the scree and found a passage going over blocks filling a rift. With Mr. W. H. Watson (Y.R.C.) he explored it 60 yards to where a short hand line is needed. With others he found the total length to be 100 yards. Some good stalactites and much soft deposit. In 1937 the Leeds Cave Club excavated between the blocks down to water.

Ribblesdale, High Birkwith Cave (alt. 1,125 ft-, rising of the beck above the farm).—About 1932 the final pool, 80 to 100 yds. long, was explored by Messrs. Hainsworth, Bradley and another on a petrol tin raft.

In June, 1937, Gowing and the Editor with Rowe, Emmott, Lever, and Fecitt (N.C.F.C.) and later Bloom and Wheel of Giggleswick School used Cymry with success. The boat had to be forced into a fissure at the far end. I hear that later the Moor and Fell Club used a raft there ; a non-swimmer upset and was towed back clinging to it.

Whemside, Scales Moor New Pot (alt. about 1,250 ft., near the scarp and Ullet Gill, lost at present).—August, 1936. Johnson, Douglas, and Emmott (N.C.F.C.) had a perfect ladder-climb down 30 ft. into a rift, and on the rope 25 ft. deeper. A small stream enters below ground.

Whernside, Spectacle Pot (alt. 1,240 ft., close to the cross wall N. of Braida Garth Pots).—March, 1936. Messrs. Graham Watson and G. Wilson. Sink only seven feet deep. Fifty feet of ladder. At the foot a crawl into a chamber 40 ft. high.

North Riding, Hawnby, Windypits IV and V. (alt. 970 ft., S. edge of Gowerdale. Leave car E. of Silver Hills Farm, I mile from Boltby Bank, and go N. Leave must be obtained to remove the substantial coverings).—No. IV, April, 1936, H. L. and F. W. Stembridge and E. E. Roberts. 85 feet of ladder with a landing on the roof of the lower storey at 60 feet. Zigzag rift with three right angle corners, body width. Total depth 95 ft.

No. V, March, 1936. Gowing, Stevens, S. and H. Thompson, and Roberts. Ninety feet deep with two landings. Rift ran only twenty feet, then down and up a little. Two small branches. Total 100 ft.

The Lower Corallian has slipped towards the dale over the Oxford Clay. I is the best, the Duncombe Park Pit. II is at Antofts, the keeper’s house, and is not likely to be explored, being used for the offal of slaughtered deer. Ill is on Ashberry. (Y.R.C.J., VI, p. 355).

Somerset, Priddy, Swildon’s Hole beyond the Sump.— 18th October, 1936. Messrs. Balcombe and Sheppard (North­ern C. and F.C.). On the 4th Sheppard in his special diving suit got through. On the 18th both swam the Sump, forced two more points, and followed the stream in a Clare type cave to a dip under the water. A summary of this and later work with Messrs. Harris and Braithwaite is—Sump I— Duck I—Crawl I—level and twisting passage with ” the Aven “—The Bend—Crawl II—Duck II (2 inches of air)— 40 feet—Sump II (over ten feet long)—25 feet—Little Bell—Sump III (fifteen feet), about 350 yards. Balcombe went through the last into the Great Bell and found Sump IV. The effects on him of the repeated immersions were temporarily serious.

Somerset, Banwell, New Cave.—Summer of 1937. Miners have broken into an opening, which by a pitch of 22 feet led Messrs. Weaver, Lumbard and Bowen into four chambers, 10-20 ft. high, with total length of about 80 yards.

Devon, Ashburton, Pridhamsleigh Cave.—Devonian Lime­stone. As long ago as 1870 this cavern, containing three chambers, the largest 60 X 26 ft., was explored and planned up to a ” lake ” 93 yards from the third chamber. Oct. 1936. Capt. Bannister and his son, Messrs. Paynter, Harris, Braithwaite, Duck and Backhouse, using a folding canoe and Paynter also swimming, proved the pool to close at 10 yards. The bedding planes on the N. of the third chamber were followed to the ” Deep Well,” and by a sensational roof traverse over it a new series of passages was reached.

II. Wales.

Breconshire, Glyn Tawe, Dan-yr-Ogof (alt. 700 ft., conspicuous rising \ mile S. of Glyn Tawe, 18 miles from Brecon).— June, 1912. Messrs. T. A. Morgan, J. L. Morgan, Edwin Morgan, and Morgan Williams (keeper), left a record in a bottle of their exploration of this very fine cave to a waterfall. The stream can only be followed up 80 yards from the grand entrance. The dry cave presently divides, the upper branch passing through the Cauldron, a splendid chamber, and reunites in the Bridge Chamber, \ mile in.

Mr. T. A. Morgan in a coracle went 40 yards over a wide pool beyond and 20 yds. up a tunnel, landing at the foot of a cataract, where the others joined him.

May, 1937.—Floods beat off a Y.R.C. party, Nelstrop and Gowing getting into the tunnel. In August Mr. T. A. Morgan, Miss Coote, and Mr. Ashford Price crossed the pool, waded 50 yards beyond the cataract, passed a second cataract, and found another huge pool.

The same party climbed 30 ft. of wooden ladder in the Cauldron to a passage of 29 yds. leading into the Red Chamber. With more special ladders Platten, Cooke and Lawrence in

October went up into a 30 yard passage and two avens.

18th Sept., flood water. 19th Sept., using two boats, an extensive cave beyond the second ferry was entered by Miss Coote, Messrs. Harris, Wigmore, Weaver, Brown, Barker, Backhouse, Lumbard, Lawrence, and Foskitt.

20th Sept., Messrs. T. A. Morgan, A. Price, D. Price, Wigmore and Miss Coote with Platten and E. E. Roberts, using three boats, repeated the journey to the Boulder Chamber, adding a straight passage of 100 yds. above the 12 ft. climb. Beyond they went through a two-storied chamber to a low stalactite chamber and to a belfry. A narrow crawl led on some distance. October expeditions, all led by Platten, went further to within sound of water, and made other additions.

Glyn Tawe, Cwm Dwr Quarry Cave (alt. 1,100 ft., at Craig-y-Nos station, 20 ft. above quany floor).—ist June, 1937. Platten, Roberts and two local men, W. J. Doyle and Oswald Brown. First descent. Ladder used down 20 feet of rotten rock, steep slope of scree, three connected chambers and a short but interesting stream passage. Likely to be filled soon with quarry refuse. The little Penwyllt Quarry Cave down the road from the station is now entirely despoiled.

Glyn Tawe, Fan Fraith Pot (Pant Mawr Pot of Braithwaite’s party) (alt. 1,400 ft., 80 yards SW. of swallet of nameless beck from Fan Fraith, one mile E. of Pwll Byfre, one mile N. of Pant Mawr).—Easter, 1937, Mr. Braithwaite’s party with Lewis Lewis, and 30th May, 1937, Platten and E. E. Roberts with Tom Lewis (Blaen-Nedd-isaf). A fine pot, 72 ft. from the fence, 60 ft. ladder climb. Magnificent down stream passage of one hundred yards, 25 ft. wide, which suddenly closes among boulders. A narrow passage upstream to a chamber with waterfall and a climb up a fissure.

Ystradfellte, Gwaen Cefn-y Carreg Pot (alt. 1,200 ft., f mile S. of Mellte Castle, E. of road).—May, 1937. Gowing, Platten, Roberts. Three pots under a flat roof of basal conglomerate of the Millstone Grit, outer climbed, innermost laddered 30 ft., giving entrance to the middle pot.

Ystradfellte, Porth yr Ogof (alt. 760 ft., a great arch, 50 ft. wide and 20 ft. high, much visited, admission 3d.). The Mellte is swallowed here in flood times, is seen in two sinks 150 yards S., and emerges 70 yards further in a deep pool through a narrow crack. Almost completely explored by Mr. Duncan’s part in 1935 or 1936, but Mr. Braithwaite’s party, Sept. 1936, put a boat on the big pool, and one of them swam in and out again through the final crack (see Caves and Caving, No. 3).

Inside on the left bank is a dry cave and two routes to the river. On the right bank is the wide tourist route with two ways to the shallows beyond the big pool; where daylight is seen it is not a very wet job to go out. If you keep hard right off the tourist route a most intricate area is entered with some fine things.

Cwm-y-Porth Wood Caves are 200 yards S. of the farm, just below the top of the bank. One of them contains two amusing crawls and so does the Silver Bog Sink, a swallet on the moor, J mile east. Sept., 1936, Einon Matthews and E. E. Roberts.

Upper Nedd.—A great joint, Pwll y Rhyd, cuts deep into the river bed. A very wet crawl leads out of it into a cave ascending to the R. bank. On the L. bank at the bridge above is the 50 yard Bridge Cave. A few minutes’ scrambling below Pwll y Rhyd is the fine Upper White Lady Cave, three big pools in a dead straight line, with the little White Lady Cave just below, and Arcade Cave a little lower on the L. bank, 460 yards long. The last was done by Gowing, Platten and Roberts, also by Braithwaite’s party, but probably first by Birmingham climbers. The local people had done the others. There is also a small covered pot-hole, high up on the bank, S. of and level with Cwm Farm.

Llandeilo, Llygad Llwchwr (Eye of Llwchwr), alt. 750 ft., 1 mile S.E. of Trapp. A powerful rising. Explored by local people, dates from 1835 to 1933 at all points reached by Platten, Gowing, and Roberts, May, 1937. Entrance above the water exit. The route, narrow at first, becomes big and irregular, then passages lead to the river at 4 points, two looking on to the same pool. Even with the aid of the rubber boat, no connections could be made.

III. Other Expeditions.

Leek Fell, Easegill Force, Cow Dub Holes.—Probably all -j done before 1929 and 1937. Count of these little caves runs ji E. on S. bank from the Force. First two, trifling. No. 3 amusing, easy climb to small grotto, then to an alcove where a pin was found in 1929. No. 4, a stream cave is entered with difficulty, then 30 yards to a bridge of blocks and a fork 1 of short dead-ends. No. 5 at a marked gap, descend into a winding watercourse, sidle to a fork, right branch goes furthest to a waterfall 70 yards in. No. 6, almost opposite No. 5, and No. 7, an artificial looking opening inside a wall, trifling. No. 8 fifty yards above No. 7, a swallet on N. bank, six feet climb into a 30 yard passage. No. 9, a fenced pot some distance along the S. bank—a side tunnel leads to a climb into it, whence another crawl leads into a tunnel of 40 yards. In a branch Johnson (N.C. and F.C.) got down a very narrow climb into two short passages.

Dentdale, River Dee.—J. D. Ellis has noticed that the bed is dry even in flood time between the Cauldron Fall and the other fine waterfall above. Neither fall is the Dee, which is dry for miles above, and appears below the Cauldron at the rising called ” The Lopes.”

The higher fall is the beck from Hackergill Cave, which is lost wholly on the R. bank in impenetrable cracks. The fall into the Cauldron, which sometimes overflows, is the Hackergill Beck.

Nordrach on Mendip, Golgotha Pot.—In the last issue, doubt was expressed as to the safety of the point reached. The Journal of the Mendip Exploration Society states that a collapse has occurred above this place, and the cavern has , become very dangerous.

Czecho-Slovakia.—In the summer of 1937 Albert Humphreys i visited the High Tatra and many show caves. Demanova Cave, vast halls and passages of exceptional beauty; Dobsina Ice Cave, 390 ft. x 196 ft. and 35 ft. high; Macocha Abyss, 900 ft. x 400 ft. and 448 ft. deep, exit of 800 yds. by electric launch; Catherine’s Cave, hall 314 ft.  X 144 ft. and 65 ft. high, and many others near Sloup.