Month: September 2024

By Scott Nixon In Day Trips, Uncategorised

Hagg Gill Pot

This Sunday four of us converged on Wharfedale, a distant and exotic land (though less so for Jason). Some last minute changes to the lift share plan saw Tom “I Bagsy The Window Seat In Case I Need To Chuck Up Out Of The Window” Calpin take on driving duties for the tortuous roads of Langstrothdale, allowing me to finish my coffee en route. Jason waited politely while I tried unsuccessfully to find a farmer, any farmer, to ask permission from, and then gave up after a token glimpse of a grumpy looking bloke in a tractor. Yolanda arrived in her trademark indestructible Yaris, and we all got changed.
The entrance to Hagg Gill is in a shallow dry valley, slightly uphill of a prominent barn. A scaffolded shaft drops a few feet to a ledge, then a brief constriction allows a hang into a spacious chamber. When we were all down the entrance pitch we went exploring upstream, soon finding the famed helictites which festoon the walls of the narrow streamway. Stay low, or risk further damage! We climbed up and over a boulder choke, then followed more pleasant streamway to a breakdown chamber with a short squeeze on the right. Above this is a handline climb to a high grotto of delicate straws, one of which is about 4 feet long.
After a few photos, we retraced our steps back to the foot of the entrance pitch, and then went downstream. The stream drops through two chambers to a junction with another streamway. Left leads to a fine sump, complete with froth, diving weights and a dug attempt at a roof bypass.
The way on is to the right, upstream. A couple of sporting cascades lead to a fork. Right seemed to lead to digs, grovelling and general misery, while Tom reported that left looked tight and low. According to the description, this improves after a while, leading to further helictites and plenty more passage to explore. We thought that we’d better leave something for a future trip (cough), so turned around at this point, still relatively dry.
Back up the entrance shaft, with the constriction providing some fun along the way, and then we were out to daylight. We finished with a quick romp through Langstroth Cave, since it was fairly close. Yolanda and Jason tackled the wet crawl to the lower exit, while Tom provided a kind of boudoir ambience with the red light on his headlamp. A bold plan was hatched to get to Seasons Bakery in Ingleton before closing time but alas, too late! No free cream cakes this time.
All in all, Hagg Gill is an entertaining place for a few hours on a dry day, with some great stream passage and formations to ‘oooh’ over. Let’s get it back on the meets list some time soon.

(photos courtesy of Jason)

By Ray McGarry In Day Trips

Notts Pot: Adamson’s – Centre Route exchange

Tom, Maz, Sophie, Dave, Claire, Ami & Ray

A great turnout on a miserable evening. Summer is well and truly over. At least we’re not quite into winter yet… but it feels like it won’t be long.

Tom, Ami & Claire set off as an advance party to make a start on rigging the first few pitches, while the rest of us took our time getting changed out of our nice warm, dry clothes. Sophie was particularly keen to cower in the car for as long as possible.

Eventually we set off on the long trog up the hill. On reaching the cave, we were most confused to find that, not only was the 1st pitch not rigged, but there was no sign of the other 3. Where could they be? Climbing back out of the shakehole for a better view of the fell, we must have looked like 4 meerkats, standing on the rim looking in different directions. Not content to sit and wait… and being considerably younger than me… Dave set off across the fell to track them down. Very noble, but how did he know in which direction to go? It turned out he didn’t, as the others reappeared way off in the distance from a completely different direction. They must have walked pretty much to Ireby Fell.

All reunited, and after virtually no p1ss-taking at all, Tom set off rigging the first few pitches to 3-Ways Chamber, where the 2 exchange parties would separate. Tom rigged down Centre, followed by Sophie, Ami & Maz. I rigged Adamson’s, followed by Dave & Claire.

My performance was less than slick, getting hung up on cowstails (twice) and having to be freed from a jammed tackle sack by Claire (at least twice). The initial rising traverse is interesting to rig, with only 1 intermediate anchor on a 15m rope. The 15m rope I took was only just long enough to reach the final anchor. After that, there is an interesting climb up some steel stemples, leading to a short pitch down to the start of the big pitch. The big pitch was fun, although I missed an anchor just a few metres down from the top. This led to a slight bit of rope rub, so Claire rigged a rebelay on her way down. Nearing the bottom, the Centre Route party could be heard below. On the final drop, I narrowly missed dropping directly onto Sophie’s head. She moved just in time.

The exchange timing worked out perfectly. Tom and Maz had a brief foray down into the Lower Streamway, but the rest of us struggled to muster the enthusiasm, preferring to sit and chat instead.

Eventually it was time to start the long journey upward. Everyone exchanged, apart from Maz, who preferred to brush up on his technique on a familiar route. Ami led out Adamson’s, followed by Tom, with Sophie derigging. I led out Centre, followed by Maz and Dave, with Claire derigging.

Maz did very well on the ascent, given that, by his own admission, he is not a natural vertical caver. He has certainly come a long way since his first SRT trip in Bull Pot Kingsdale! One thing that really struck me on the way out was how good the rigging was. Nice one Tom! I’ll have to step up my own game.

Derigging both routes seemed to go well as there was virtually no waiting around on the surface. All 7 cavers emerged in quick succession, one after the other. This was another great trip and it felt like a real team effort, with various people rigging, derigging and carrying tackle. Proof positive that KCC is currently in a really good place.

By Tom C In Day Trips

Smeltmill Beck Cave

Jasmine, Maz, Scott, Tom

This had been on the meets list but rained off so many times, but this time we weren’t going to let it go. After calling the farmer for permission, we met up at Light Trees below the A66 for a slippery scramble up the beck. Maz had been before and expertly found the entrance, a grim little arch with a chilly stream emerging. 

Thankfully, we were all wetsuit/drysuited up and the entrance wallows, while not pleasant, didn’t particularly disturb us. The deep water and low roof soon ended, and lifted into a lovely mile-long walking-height streamway. 

Even though we had a survey and the cave is essentially just one long passage, it was difficult to figure out where we were up to, with endless sharp switchbacks and grabby passage walls. We were all surprised by how decent the formations were throughout, especially the Hanging Gardens. Each new section of passage brought a different character – nothing particularly difficult but all quite interesting, and something different from the usual Dales caves. 

A low wallow at stream level took us into Red Deer Rift, the narrowest and grabbiest bit of the trip. But all too soon this was behind us and the passages were wider but lower, with a more sinister nature. At Main Junction we headed left towards the Handwrecker Series, and after posting ourselves into a watery slot we started to feel rapidly ready for hometime and called it a day.

Most trip reports mentioned it feeling quicker on the way out, but we didn’t feel that way – a mile is a long way to go in these snarly little passages, but it’s a good feeling of progress passing through the different sections. All in all, 7.5/10, would revisit as far as Red Deer Rift 🙂

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By Ray McGarry In Day Trips

Marble Steps

Sophie, Scott, Ami, Maz, Ray

It was far too nice an evening to go underground… but Marble Steps beckoned and we couldn’t resist. Before venturing underground, it was generally agreed that the lip of the MS shakehole would make a great wild camping spot. Great views down into the valley. Just beware if you get up in the middle of the night!

Sophie set off rigging down the Gully Route, the top of which (as usual) was pre-rigged with a manky old bit of rope. Still, beggars can’t be choosers and we all dutifully attached or held onto it as if our lives didn’t depend on it. At the top of the big drop, we split into 2 parties, with Scott rigging Sidewinder, followed by Ami, and Sophie rigging Gully, followed by Maz and Ray.

I always like it when the 2 parties almost converge again in the Upper Main Chamber. It gives a particularly impressive view of those on Sidewinder. Scott and Ami looked suitably impressive. Sophie had some fun rigging the final drop down into the Lower Main Chamber, but squeaking was kept to within acceptable levels. Maz did a particularly good job of passing this most annoying of obstacles – I mean the difficult pitch head, not Sophie. Ami had some fun passing the lower of the deviations on the final drop of Sidewinder. All good learning opportunities.

Before long, we all met up again in the Lower Main Chamber, which was as far as we were going on this occasion. A brief chat and we were all on our way out again. Everyone exchanged, apart from Maz, who preferred to go back out Gully Route.

Sophie derigged Sidewinder, which all went according to plan until a jammed krab on the final traverse back onto the Gully Route near the surface. Banging it with a rock didn’t help. It certainly didn’t from my perspective as it was my krab. Scott hanging on it didn’t help. Use of a maillon screwed up tight against the gate did eventually help. Phew!

Ami deserves a special mention for derigging Gully Route. She is at the very start of her rigging/derigging career, but you wouldn’t have known. I’m guessing she’ll be an expert rigger before long.

Winner of this trip’s “How to make life difficult for yourself” award goes to Scott, who tried to prussick out carrying half of a tree.

As good as the trip was… and it was VERY good… the best bit was actually finding an open pub after. It took a few attempts, but the Snooty Fox in Kirkby Lonsdale came up trumps. The evening was rounded off nicely with an eclectic collection of drinks.

Photos by Sophie.