Tom C – Page 2 – Kendal Caving Club

15 October 2025

By Tom C In Day Trips

Red Moss Pot

Chris G, Damian, Maz (Report by Maz)

WHAT CAN I DO TO MAKE YOU LOVE ME?
The original plan was a bimble down Calf Holes, but with settled weather and no rain forecast, I figured an active stream cave might be the order of the day. Therefore I did a switcharoo with my leads and opted for Red Moss Pot

After last week’s trip where 12 showed up for County, I thought I’d get some enthusiasm off the back of this, and so with optimism I duly posted out my invite.
In the event this was not to be, only Chris G and Damian answered my call; Tom choosing to spend time with a rather pregnant Rubee instead of coming caving. Pathetic!

I did RMP last year with Dave and remember very little. Only three words sprang to mind: wet, cold and pretty. I wasn’t referring to Dave though.
In fairness the description in Northern Caves doesn’t read too nicely, and the odd comment on UK Caving doesn’t inspire either.

I choose to disagree. RMP is a cracking trip.

The trip began with Damien leading us uphill to “one of his favourite caves.” In a feat of surgical precision, got us straight to a bin lid sized entrance in a shallow depression. In the dark. He claimed not to have been here in 15 years. If this is the case, then this is the best bit of navigation I have seen in the 22 years I was a Geography teacher.

Chris led the way. Through a few little squeezes to the climb. The guide suggested it was possible to free climb the 8m drop; indeed Damien attested to have done that in the past. Fortunately however I was present and no such bravery. The others quickly rigged a 10 metre rope off a natural and down went Chris, followed by myself then Damian.

The next couple of hours were a pleasure. The water was noticeably low, and I was significantly warmer; clad in neoprene as I was. Most of the time we were in water, ankle deep, waist deep, sometimes chest deep, but almost always walking. Through Cascade Chamber and along Kierby Walk, our route was accompanied by formation after formation. Endlessly pretty. We stopped briefly at Sludge Inlet to contemplate it’s horribleness.

Soon we found Long Mire Inlet and thought about exploring. Alas, Damien was desperate for a dunking and we headed onwards towards Sump Passage. Quickly the floor dropped away and Damien was up to his neck. Chris and I hesitated but I was overcome with uncharacteristic bravery and followed. I managed to find an underwater ledge which kept my head above water for a while. Unfortunately when this ran out, I slipped and became completely submerged. I saw a returning light and Damian kindly informed me he had pretty much found the end and it wasn’t worth coming onwards. Chris kindly took photos.

We turned tail and kept moving, aware we could get cold. Returning to the pitch, Chris swarmed up it and was soon guiding me from above.

Earlier, I had, as a last minute thought, bought my cowstails and a jammer. This proved a godsend as I was able to use hand and footholds in combination with a bit of security on the rope. It clearly impressed Damian, who asked for them to be sent down and he soon scaled the pitch.

A return crawl/shimmy through the entrance series and we were out. Time flies when you’re having fun, and we’d been underground for close on 3 hours.
Don’t be put off by the prospect of getting wet. This is a great trip. What else can I say to make you love Red Moss Pot?

8 October 2025

By Tom C In Day Trips

County Pot – Ignorance Is Bliss

Ami, Billy, Chris, Chris G, Jasmine, Jason, Maz, Paddy, Ray, Scott, Sophie H, Tom

My plan to turn what’s generally a pleasant and enjoyable cave into an arduous chore was thwarted when 12 people turned up at Bull Pot Farm looking for a good time. Was it right to spoil so many people’s evening? Should we break into smaller groups? No, let’s take one of the more unpleasant routes as one huge platoon, what could go wrong?

Billy was along for his second KCC trip, Chris G was out for his first trip as a full KCC member and Paddy’s mate Chris (already an experienced caver) was joining us, so it was great to have some new faces among stalwarts.

After getting down to Broadway it was fun seeing KCC members popping out of the walls in 3 different places, we regrouped and Billy, armed with a survey, led us onwards to Spout Hall. With a minor arse soaking for everyone on the way down, we headed downstream and picked our way up into the ceiling at the start of Ignorance Is Bliss. The 15 minutes of pain began with a squeeze past a slightly wobbly boulder, which provocatively pulled down Maz’s harness. A few minutes of low crawling and twists ends at the halfway break point, a few seconds of standing room before climbing up to a hidden shelf above and into the flat-out crawl.

Some inconveniently-placed nobbles in the floor create a pinch point that was variously sailed effortlessly through or sworn at, and before we knew it we were back into standing room in the dusty passages of Upper Pierce’s. On regrouping at Cotton Chamber, it was clear that a handful of the team were going to need more than gravity to get through the squeeze down to the lower part, and we rigged a hasty abseil bypassing the squeeze, with the misery of Ignorance Is Bliss behind us a strong driver to not turn back.

The original plan had been to return via Paper Floor Passage, but after dropping down to the streamway time was getting on and we didn’t fancy another post-midnight finish, so we headed back via the Whiteline route, with a quick detour through Whiteway for the pretties. The first 6 up the Whiteline pitch/climb headed off to split up the wait at the entrance pitch, the second group catching them up just as they were heading up. A selection of brownies and rocky road were provided at the bottom of the pitch for those facing a wait, and KCC gradually oozed out of County once more.

Pics by Sophie H & Tom

5 October 2025

By Tom C In Expeditions

Ogof Ffynnon Ddu 1

James, Scott, Tom

After an excellent weekend in Mendip, the three of us were lucky enough to book Monday off work and migrated to the South Wales on Sunday night. After luckily bumping into the warden he hooked us up with an OFD key, and the plans up in the air crystallised into an OFD 1 round trip with some side missions.

With aching muscles on this third day of caving, we made our way down to the bottom entrance, James in his dazzling new orange suit was handed the survey, with it being his first time in the system, and pointed towards the streamway. After figuring out a route into the water we enjoyed the stomp up the cracking streamway, rapidly reaching the upstream sump and heading off into Flood Passage.

We’d passed the traverse up to the Waterfall Series before but never been up for a look, and with the round trip being tame after the weekend we’d done, we diverted up for a good look around. After half an hour or so we were deep in this mini-labyrinth and surprised at how much stuff there was up here. Making a round trip through a more Dales-esque tight crawly streamway, we popped back out and were ready to hunt for something else that had caught our attention, Starlight Chamber – the largest chamber in the system.

After getting up Low’s Chain and Chamber, we spotted Don’s Crawl and headed along a ledge high above where we’d been looking up from minutes before. The slippery muddy boulders up here led us on a merry dance and we couldn’t find the route on – ah well, something to leave for the next generation. We headed on into the Rawl Series to continue the round trip, enjoying the fantastic formations and quiet eery atmosphere in these monster tunnels.

Eventually reaching Pi Chamber, I recognised the route down into Helter Skelter that I’d dragged an unhappy Rubee down a few years ago, and we slithered our way down to emerge above the streamway and straight onto the bolt traverse. Next stop was Airy Fairy – last time we were here we’d sacked this off and gone round some mildly unpleasant bypasses, but this time we clipped in for a good straddle, and it lived up to its name with some grand airy leg stretching. We descended back down to stream level, wandered round some of the lower bits we’d missed with some frightening foam lines, before inching round Pluto’s Bath and on to the exit route.

Every time we come here the mystery and obsession only deepens! See you again soon sweet OFD

23 September 2025

By Tom C In Day Trips

Snailbeach Mine

Maz, Scott, Tom

A 7:30 start and a Maccies breakfast at Chester found us halfway down the country in Snailbeach at the Shropshire Mines Trust to meet with the mine manager of the lead mine – not a ‘working’ mine in the sense of extracting minerals, but since they ran public tours on the upper levels, they were legally classed as a working mine.

We met our wonderful guides for the day, Alan and Vicky, and after signing our lives away in the museum building we headed up to Perkins Level. Just inside the door we had to claim a clocking-in ‘token’ and hang it on a panel indicating we had begun our ‘shift’ (again for some sort of legal reasons). Through a couple of shored sections and onto a walkway over a drop, and Alan removed a section of the side-wall revealing a hidden ladder down into the void. Once down, the pitches began and we made our way down a series of never quite vertical drops, popping into an intermediate level, walls packed with pretty Barytes. Black oozings from between the crystals are apparently something like tar, and will catch fire if you hold a lighter to them!

Following a sort of corkscrew route down through the upper levels, we eventually popped onto the 40yd level. This was fitted with rails and led into some massive spaces, with yawning chasms that couldn’t be illuminated that were apparently stopes right down to the 112yd level below. We made a couple of detours, first to the Chapel Shaft which was used for winching people down for NAMHO, then a long crosscut heading for Black Toms Shaft.

After snacks it was time to begin heading out, this time via the ‘scenic route’. This headed up then traversed high up in the massive stopes above the route we’d followed down, with a couple of airy manoeuvres and a spectacular atmosphere that was enjoyed by all. Maz popped out at the top declaring ‘that was some really nice SRT!’, a phrase I haven’t heard from him before.

After a quick look at the ‘big room’ and the barytes stope in the touristy part of Perkins Level, we headed back to the museum, temporarily paralysed by a cute cat that melted our tough caving hearts. To top things off, Alan took us into the Day Level for a look down the illuminated 112 yard deep New Engine Shaft.

Many thanks to Alan and Vicky for showing us round, and the SMT/SCMC for all the work they’ve done in there.

3 September 2025

By Tom C In Day Trips

County – Trident

Damian, Maz, Paddy, Tom

A very soggy march over the moor, but arriving at the entrance, the gill wasn’t running so we headed in. There’s something dead at the bottom of the entrance climb somewhere, we couldn’t find the source but we discovered Paddy’s low tolerance for bad smells – perhaps he’s in the wrong sport (or the wrong club at least).

It’s not often the entrance passage is active but it was trickling tonight, definitely not an evening for going anywhere too flood-y. Down the pitch and into Broadway and we headed off towards Trident, with a quick dive through the Showerbath. Splash chamber was quite spicey and again another soggy duck through the waterfall saw us at the top of Whiteline chamber. Paddy basically skipped across the Cadbury Traverse, and Maz followed with a more pensive crossing. Damian and I headed back through to Splash Chamber and popped feet-first into the streamway – the other route through to the Right Hand series – and rejoined Maz and Paddy.

We made tiring progress up the awkwardness of Key Passage, occasionally being foot-stools for others to gain height. Up a climb and we were into Paper Floor Passage. The Paper Floor itself is a few metres above the streamway we’d just come up, allowing a multi-storey chat with Maz below. Over the Paper Floor with a quick bounce to test the strength, and Paddy announced there were pretties a couple of corners ahead. After admiring them, we reached a pitch on some questionable wedding-ring looking anchors installed back in the 1400s, but it had some reasonable looking in-situ on.

My curiosity at figuring out this part of County sent me down the pitch to see where it linked up. After a couple of corners I popped out somewhere I recognised, the shelf heading into Whiteway. Chuffed to have linked up another route over here, I headed back to the pitch and shouted up to Paddy that I was going to head round and back up to Whiteline and meet them there, while they headed back the way we’d come as some had ditched their SRT kits.

The Trident streamway was absolutely churning down here and it was clear there’d been some decent rain while we’d been down. I traversed over to the crawl connecting back to Whiteline, reluctant to end up in the powerful current swirling below. Back at the top of Whiteline the waterfall coming into Splash Chamber was considerably more ‘refreshing’ than before and I shouted down the scaffoldy climb that Damian and I had descended to tempt them to go that way rather than the traverse. It’s an awkward little climb that almost stole Maz’s SRT kit, but we got out of the rowdy water and had a rest and calm down in Battle of Britain.

Back at the pitch, Paddy had offered to haul us all up to practise his rescue skills, and who were we to turn down a business class exit from the cave? The heavy rain of course restarted just as we approached the farm, just to ensure we had an uncomfortable change and lots of sopping wet gear to sort out at home.

25 June 2025

By Tom C In Day Trips

Easegill Open House – Pool Sink

Ami, James, Jasmine, Jason, Josh, Paddy, Pete, Scott, Tom

By the grace of the Red Rose we were once again up at the farm for a tackle-free trip. We really hope this becomes an annual thing! We’ve made good use of it and got down loads of stuff we don’t visit as often as we should.

We decided on Pool Sink and marched over Casterton Fell, some of us for the second or third time in 24 hours. Midges were out in full force so we dove straight in to the tight entrance passage and all nine of us successfully folded ourselves correctly around the Z-bends, and recongregated above the first pitch to get kitted up. We usually do this as a pull-through but being hard-rigged this time we had a little fun getting past the quite wide deviation, especially those lacking in the gangly legs department. At the bottom we battled our way up the various inlets until we found Magpie Grotto, and had a moment of ceiling gazing. Someone pointed out that with the number of instructors we had out tonight, the outdoors industry in the North-West would crumble if anything were to happen.

Onwards and downwards, we enjoyed the lovely series of pitches and realised we’d forgotten how nice this route is (especially without carrying tackle). Before long we were down at the ground floor and scrambling through the bacon slicer, hitting the junction with the route in from Spiral. Left we headed, and we all chose different routes up the climb to the Eccles Bypass. We split, with some torturing themselves with the pitch bypass and the more sensible folks prussiking up. Cracking view looking back down the Wretched climbs at a string of KCC winding their way up them, with Rope Free-s echoing round the Big Rift. Sadly we missed last orders so we just fed the midges and called it a night.

Thanks again RRCPC!

28 May 2025

By Tom C In Day Trips

Washfold Pot

Ray, Pete, Scott, Tom, James, Dave, Steve. Report by Steve

With Washfold Pot being a longer trip more suited to a weekend and the knowledge of rain due around midnight we opted to only a pack 55m rope for the first pitch and take a short 12m rope as back up, as suggested by the NCNCC notes. If we got as far as the third pitch we’d consider it a successful recce trip.

We managed to avoid talking each other out of it and headed up to the cave, probably not taking the ideal route over, rather than round, the limestone pavement to find the entrance around 30 mins from leaving the cars at Selside lane.

The first climb down into the cave was enough to tell us this cave was going to be a bit different.

Following the water downstream soon found us in a canyon passage, occasionally tight, awkward but manageable once we’d settled into it. We initially missed the climb up out of the stream but it was fairly obvious that you couldn’t follow the water so a quick back track found what we thought was the roof level bedding crawl and tight squeeze. After some selective expletives and a bit of thratching around we got through the squeezy bits to the tight squeezy bit. The way on being to remove the helmet and squeeze through the right hand side where the water could drip on your head straight down the back of your neck. I feel there’s something calming about being able move your head about even if your body is fairly stuck. It wasn’t the first time we’d removed the helmets for short tight bits but care was needed as on each occasion they could have easily been dropped down into somewhere inaccessible.

The passage opened up and dropped back into the streamway about 5m below. It was an awkward climb down but plenty of room for everyone. A quick look round the corner showed the stream falling away and some anchors in the roof, the sound of falling water confirming we were at the top of the first pitch.

Called ‘the depot’ it’s the suggested place for putting on SRT kit. Given what we’d just come through I think I’d have taken it off long ago if I had of set off with it on. We tied into an old rusty bolt in the roof (not shown on the topo) just because it was there. We had a 55m rope for the 48M pitch so thought why not. It was a good 2 – 3 M of traverse before the large flake where the rigging guide starts. You wouldn’t fall down the pitch but could end up well wedged. The traverse at roof height to the Y hang bolts takes the rigger right out above the pitch where a dim light is appreciated as it’s a long way down. Easy enough to get cows tails in but then awkward to get the Y hang sorted. The addition of a loop for getting off on the way out took another bit of extra rope but surely 55m would be enough.

On what we thought was a dry day following very little rain, there was a fair amount of water spraying and with the pitch dropping right through it was enough for my memory bank to kick in and remind me of the deviation about 6M down. There was some tat already tied round a chock stone in a horizontal joint about 6M down so it was soon clipped into. The descent was still wet and finished on a wet ledge full of spray with my descender hard up on the stopper knot at the end of the 55 M rope – longer legs would have been useful. A quick climb down and into the stream passage to avoid the spray and it soon warmed up.

The way on is obvious following the water and eventually climbing up into a false floor to where a large boulder had a bit of polypropylene rope tied round it. Fortunately it also had a 9mm static rope which on inspection looked fine, so we used it to descend the 9m back into the streamway. Its likely it could be climbed but was certainly easier with the rope. Downstream continued with a low crawl in water, plenty of airspace on this occasion but plenty of water to get into. Given the time (nothing to do with flat out crawls in water) we chose to turn around at this point eager to get out and cancel the midnight call out arrangement. The fixed rope was a bonus going back up the climb, its isn’t mentioned in the CNCC notes or the topo as the ‘second pitch’ with optional rope is after the wet crawl, so I’d be tempted to take TWO optional spare ropes in next time just in case.

At this stage the team was down to three, James, Dave and myself. I’m not sure exactly when others turned round but completely understandable as its certainly different type of Wednesday night fun. The pitch went on forever, and was a git to get off, after that I found the way out much more pleasant and achievable which will be partly psychological, partly survival mode and highly likely because I wasn’t de-rigging it ! So much so that I went straight past the entrance climb for quite a way before turning round and back tracking. Fortunately there was still some daylight for me so I dropped a rope down the climb just to indicate where it was for the others (worth noting for next time)

James and Dave got back to the road around 2300hrs after initially going underground around 1930hrs so a good 3 hours to get to the wet crawl on the way to pitch 2 and 3. I personally wouldn’t fancy the first pitch if it had more water on and as for the state of the cave if you got as far as the wet crawls to decide they had low air space, well…..

From the mixed comments by all after the trip we may not be rushing back, but who knows…

14 May 2025

By Tom C In Day Trips

Southerscales Pot

Ami, James, Dave and Steve (Report by Steve)

Dave from Red Rose was the only one who’d done it before but some years ago.
So armed with a copy of the CNCC guide and a selection of slings we found the entrance as described but perhaps helped more by OS Maps and the grid reference.
At the time we’d not seen rain for weeks so there was hardly any water in the entrance crawl and we soon found the first pitch. The rigging wasn’t too bad. We tied in to a large stal away from the pitch and then used 2 slings up on some natural threads high up on the right hand side for a nice free hang into a large chamber.

So began the 300m or 10 minutes worth of wet millipede crawl.
I think we all lost track of time and distance but can confirm it’s a long, wet crawl probably best measured by at least 150 adjustments made to knee pads in an attempt to minimise the bruises.

Ami reckoned it was just over an hour when we reached the second pitch which was to prove interesting to rig.

Fortunately a piece of old rope had been left so that was used to back up a butterfly loop over a nobbly bit closer to the pitch head.
With James weighing down on the loop I was confident enough to get out above the pitch to look for something else.
This turned out to be our long sling over a large protruding lump of rock on the right about 2 – 3m out past the pitch head. I couldnt find anything else to back it up, but it was a nice straight drop down to the chamber floor.

We All suspected getting off the rope on way out would be interesting so
I returned to the top of the pitch to rig a loop to aid getting off.
The others set off on the short trip to the Sump. The few reports on the internet suggest it’s not free diveable and even after no rain they still found it full.
The single sling proved OK on way out and was easily flicked off the lump to de rig so there is some advantage to natural rigging after all!
The return crawl seemed longer and wetter and none of us found the president passage crawl, so there is cause to do it again but I for one would be waiting for a another good dry spell.

We soon emerged wet and muddy to a lovely sunset over the fell.

11 May 2025

By Tom C In Day Trips

Nenthead – Caplecleugh

Ami, Chris G, Scott, Tom

We assembled at Nenthead after the usual long drive and met up with Chris, a friend of Maz’s doing his second club trip, but being an already seasoned Northern Pennines mine explorer he’d been keen to get into Nenthead.

After reading that Caplecleugh had run in earlier in the year, my hopes of someday doing the Greater Nenthead Traverse had been dashed, and instead we’d planned to do Smallcleugh to Nentsberry Haggs, which was most of the traverse minus the first few hours.

But chatting to some Nent experts who were also getting changed, we learnt that the first section m

ight actually have been reopened. We hastily rescheduled, especially at the thought of ditching the long rope, and made the 30 metre commute to the adit. It was easy going in sturdy open passage for a while, until the roof began to look increasingly sketchy as we hit the shale drives. As the roof lowered and the route started disappearing under damp low arches, we began to pray softly to the shale gods to wait just an hour longer as we wriggled delicately beneath hanging slabs a metre wide.

After around half an hour of dodging hanging death, things became more stable again and we were stomping up lovely arched passage. We came upon a fresh collapse, and while there was plenty of space to clamber over it, it’d blocked the stream which had pooled behind it to within an inch of the ceiling. After a bit of debate, somebody* decided to pull the plug on the blockage. A dribble of water began flowing over the top. Then a stream. And as the stream increased, it washed more and more of the blockage out, until we had to make a retreat from the torrent we’d created. Moving back into more open passage, and locating a rise upwards that we’d be able to scrat up if needed, we perched on a little mud bank out of the water and waited for things to drain.

After 10 minutes or so the flow was noticeably lower and we headed back up to see…open passage! Still chest deep or so, but we were through and up to the toilet box junction in a few minutes. There was some confusion about the route on from here, having being given the directions of left then right. We headed along a long damp route to the left at the toilet box, passing under numerous falls, chutes and ladders until eventually things got cold and deep. We hit a right hand junction but eventually decided to get out of the water, and headed up a ladder equipped with a modern rope.

This took us up about 25m into some fantastic flats, full of rails, artifacts, gunpowder, and some sketchy in-situ stuff. A pitch headed off up a shaft but we weren’t fancying it without further research. We headed back down to the horse level and had more of a poke around various side passages. Happy that we’d had a good explore, knew a lot more about this end of the traverse and now keen to get the return through the shaley stuff behind us, we headed back out. With a minor roof collapse onto Scott’s back, we made it back out unscathed for yet another session of ‘why did we waste another day of scorching weather on this hobby?’.

26 April 2025

By Tom C In Day Trips

Boundary Pot

Jason, Tom, Will

Bright and early I was up at the farm and marching across the moor to Lancaster, pre-rigging it for our through-trip, planned to be an unusual route of Boundary to Lancaster.

Back at the cars and with Jason and Will kitted up, we stomped over the fell to upper Easegill and the second-highest entrance of the system. Jason led the way into the entrance squirm, clearing out the spiders for a clean run through. The promised ’10 minutes of rough caving at the start’ inevitably took about 25 minutes, and Will’s trust in Tom’s time estimates was broken. The route’s largely flat-out, with a bunch of awkward free-climbs and puddles along the way, and we were all hauling bags of SRT gear etc which snagged on everything.

But before long we’d broken out into the bigger stuff, and made the sketchy traverse round and free-climb down, then Crossover passage into Fusion Cavern. Shortly after this we bumped into a couple of folk on their way out of a Wretched-Boundary trip – those entrance climbs would be a bit interesting to squeeze up. On to one of my favourite bits of Boundary, a crystal false floor at chest height across the passage, which looks just like a miniature map of the Grand Canyon.

Not long after, we were into Hiroshima Chamber, and tiptoed round the bouldery chaos and up onto the ledge, before popping down the wonderful Manhattan Connection, which spits you out high up on a wedgie traverse high above Far East passage. Getting up into Nagasaki, we were all pretty sweaty and took a R&R break.

Now it was just a few minutes’ caving to reach the Assembly Hall and we were dangling precariously on the handlines to shuffle round to one of the jewels of the system, the lovely Easter Grotto. The perfect spot for a sit down and enjoying the beauty of this passage for a few minutes.

Back to the Assembly Hall and we headed down the two off-balance handlines and hopped down White Way into the stream. Thackrays Passage is always a nice stomp after everything you’ve been through, and with water levels super low we were almost tempted to try straight through with the stream where the stal grill bypass branches off, but it still wasn’t an appealing-looking place.

By the time we were at Holbeck Junction and making our way towards Stop Pot, we were all feeling well exercised and having recently done the through-trip a few times now, we decided to cut the trip short and just take a different route out of County so Will could see the Eureka and Whiteline route out. All went slickly until we got to the County Pitch, where we were greeted by a ladder and at least 4 ropes down the pitch! The sound of shuffling up above and we realised it was the aftermath of Red Rose’s try caving event. We knitted our way through the chaos to make our way up the in-situ and soon caught the back of the party up, had a good chat with them all at the entrance, and saw plenty of smiling faces of new folk bitten by the bug.

We marched back via Lancaster to de-rig the sadly unused rope, before getting back to the cars and helping one of the novices find his car keys, which he’d descriptively hidden behind ‘some moss’.

Shame we dragged our SRT kits the whole way through for mostly no reason, but still a good day, I love this end of the system and the endless combination of different routes you can take between any 2 entrances!

Author: Tom C