Hampshire Scout Caving Club Spring 2010 Newsletter Andy Chapman in Tier Garten ice cave in Dachstein by Sally White Website: www.scouts-hants.org.uk/hscc Hampshire Scout Caving Club Newsletter produced by Sally White. Please send articles to [email protected] Contents HSCC Contact Details of Officials and Programme 2 Cave Related Issues and Members News 3 Our Caving Expedition That Unexpectedly Went a Bit Adrift 4 Ogof Craig-a-Ffynnon Rescue 6 New Caving Gear 7 My First Expedition in Dachstein, Austria 8 El Soplao 9 Ogof Draenen Trip 10 How Well Do You Know Goatchurch? 11 Tooth Cave – A strange type cavity that probably needs filling 12 List of caving related resources and shops 12 HSCC Trips 2009 SRT practice at Sandleheath Scout Centre, Agen Allwedd, Alum Pot, Animal Den, Aveline's Hole, Bath Swallet, Bridge Cave, Bull Pot, Bull Pot OTW, County Pot, Crag Cave, Craig a Ffynnon, Crex Coulon, Cwm Dwr, Dan yr Ogof, Draenen, East Twin Swallet, Eastwater Cavern, Eldon Hole, Fairy Cave, Foel Fawr, Gavel Pot, GB, Giants Hole, Goatchurch Cavern, Goughs cave, Gouffre Gros Gadeau, Gouffre de la Baume des Cretes, Gouffre des Griffes, Gouffre des Faviere, Grotte ge Balerna, Grotte de la Champs Gillibot, Grotte des Planches, Heale Farm Cave, Hilliers, Hillocks, Home Close Hole, Honeymead, Hunters Hole, Hunters Lodge Sink, Hurnell Moss, JH, Jingling, King Pot,Knotlow, Lancaster Hole, Little Crapnell Swallet, Little Neath River Cave, Llygad Llwchwr, Lost John Pot, Manchester Hole, Manor Farm, Marble Steps, Miss Graces Lane, Mitchelstown cave, New Goyden, Notts Pot, Notts II, OFD II, Otter Hole, Peak cavern, Pierre's Pot, Pwll Dyfn, Radford Cave, Rhino Rift, Rods Pot, Rumbling Hole, Sell Gill, Sidcot Swallet, Singing River Mine, Slaughter Stream (Big Sink & Wet Sink), Swildons Hole, Symonds Yat Caves, Through & Through cave, Thrupe Lane Swallet, Titan, Town Drain, Tynings Barrow Swallet, White Lady, Wigmore Swallet, Wretched Rabbit, Yordas cave... 1 HSCC Officials Chairman David Chadwick Home Tel: 01425 654025 Mob: 07768 040088 The Roost, Abbotswell Rd, Frogham, Fordingbridge SP6 2JA [email protected] Administrator Sue Chase Home Tel: 02380 616056 Mob: 07817 636655 10, Drake Road, Bishopstoke, SO50 6EU Equipment Warden Phil Candy Home Tel: 02380 616056 Mob: 07891 826195 10, Drake Road, Bishopstoke, SO50 6EU Bookings Secretary Andy Watson Home Tel: 01256 354510 Mob: 07881 420048 [email protected] Membe rship Secretary Sue Watson Home Tel: 01256 354510 Mob: 07766 523694 HSCC Programme 2010 Date Time Activity Venue Contact 6 Jan 20:00 SRT Practice Sandleheath Scout Hut Ros 30-31 Jan Caving MNRC Phil 3 Feb 20:00 AGM 12th Eastleigh Scout Hut Dave 28 Feb 07:30 Explorer Day Westbound Rownams Services Dave 3 Mar 20:00 Training 12th Eastleigh Scout Hut Phil 20 Mar 10:00 Caving Day Priddy Green Andy 21 Mar 10:00 Caving Day Priddy Green Andy 7 Apr 19:30 Treasure Hunt Tesco at Winnal Richard 24 Apr 07:30 Explorer Day Gosport Dave 5 May 19:30 SRT Practice Sandleheath Scout hut Phil 15 May 10:00 Caving & Climbing Day Priddy Green Andy 16 May 10:00 Caving & Climbing Day Priddy Green Andy 29-31 May Wales Brecon Scout Hut Dave 2 Jun 19:30 Cycling 13 Jun 07:30 Explorer Day Dave 4 July Otter Hole Forest of Dean 7 July BBQ BBQ 13-18 Aug Caving Yorkshire Dave 8 Sept Training 12th Eastleigh Phil 18-29 Sept Training Mendip Phil 6 Oct First Aid 30-31 Oct Scout Days Mendip 3 Nov Talk 1 Dec Quiz 2 CAVE RELATED ISSUES AND NEWS Swildons Cave – There has been a lot of movement in the entrance series and it could move again. It was closed in December and since has been reopened, but it is strongly advised not to take scouts there yet. Cuckoo Cleeves – Now open again after CO 2 levels dropped. Caution still required. Tynings Barrow Swallet – loose boulders in a small boulder choke about 60 metres from the entrance. Les Williams advised taking care when squeezing through the hole of the right on the right as the rocks below appear to be very loose and may fall out if disturbed Gautries Hole – Approximately 170 metres of passage has been found by members of the Eldon Pothole Group in this Derbyshire cave and Sally White was the first female there. Draenen –a second entrance has been opened but there is no permission to use this entrance and there is a lot of politics going on. The normal entrance is fine to use but do not use the new one. Starless River - New mobile shop and also online. Sells a lot of equipment used internationally but not previously sold in the UK. Heale Farm Cave – some of our members, Phil, Sue, Andy and Sue 2, fitted the gate for this cave in conjunction with other clubs. MEMBERS NEWS Congratulations to Gemma Jones who is engaged to Tom Nye. They are getting married in August. Congratulations to Abby and Chris Carter who are now parents. 3 Our Caving Expedition That Unexpectedly Went a Bit Adrift By Andy Watson We were going to Ogof Craig-a-Ffynnon above the Clydach Gorge behind the now closed Rock & Fountain Pub. The weather was cloudy when we left our lodgings. 09:30 Left our digs. We gave our call out time to our friends (latest Estimated Time Out – ETO) of 18:00 with expected time back to lodgings at 19:00. 09:45 Weather check on Metcheck.com for South Wales was light rain clearing later. 10:05 As we walked up to the entrance all the signs were good and dry, low water by the limekilns and a dry path up to the cave entrance, I commented on this. 10:30 Entered cave, filled out ‘inside’ log book with party names and areas to be visited with an ETO of 17:00. 11:00 Gascoline Alley 4-6” water flowing clear and bright. Pitch, a little water flowing as normal. Second Boulder Choke first bit was wet and drippy as usual. At the exit of Boulder Choke (2 nd ) I thought it was slightly wetter than usual but it just looked like the water had found a slightly different route. 11:45 Into Hurricane Highway from Hall of the Mountain Kings – no noticeable water flow, except in big chambers a slight dribble from the roof on the flowstone boss in the lake area up past the gower pools. 12:30 Through the Forth Boulder Choke with no noticeable water flow anywhere, looked at some formations in a side passage then rigged the short rift pitch down to the Promised Land and just visited the nearby Pagoda formations. My time check at Pagoda was 13:15. Back through 4 th and 3 rd Boulder Chokes and rigged rift pitch down to Blaen Elin stream way from near the Severn Tunnel crossroads. Water in stream was clear and not frothy, so no clue here regarding rain on the surface or potential flooding. 15:20 Out via Severn Tunnel and Hurricane Highway and out into Hall of the Mountain Kings where I noticed an unusually loud water noise from the back of the third boulder choke and I commented on this to the caving team. At the Second Boulder Choke there was more water as we crawled in, coming from the left and it was splashing on to us noticeably. On exiting this Boulder Choke at the short free climb down the water flow and splashes were noticeably wetter and a small flow was running from here over the 12m pitch which was only slightly wetter, particularly on the landing area two thirds of the way down just above the fixed ladder. 16:30 When we got back to the gravel bottom stream passage (Gascoline Alley) not far from the bottom of the pitch we discovered this stream way was sumped to the roof. The water was still rising when we got there and over the next 10 minutes or so it rose about another 2” to fully sump and it also completely covered the square tunnel entrance which goes towards Things to Come Passage, commonly referred to as the canal I think. We knew we were in for a long wait so we checked out two places to 4 sit it out and finally decided on the mud and rock bank just back round the corner between the square tunnel entrance and the wet flowstone wriggle up to the bottom of the 12m pitch. This was unlikely to get flooded out or washed out as it was well back from the main fast water flow and we could also just still see the square tunnel entrance and a rock ledge in the stream to monitor water levels. We pulled out our emergency kits and had some 10 snack bars, 2 wooly hats, two balaclavas, drinks, two survival bags, candles, lighters and lots of spare light capacity and a first aid kit, etc. We got into our survival bags (2 in each) and cuddled up for a long wait. All of our experience, cave training and first aid training was now very valuable. 17:30 Water still rising but the rise rate had probably slowed. 18:30 Water now steady and perhaps dropping slightly. 19:00 We were all a bit chilly but generally okay and rather worried about one member of our group, George’s safety who had actually exited some 60 minutes in front of us, we estimated. 20:00 Water now going down slowly and slightly noticeable on the rock ledge we were watching in the stream and about 2” down in one corner of the square tunnel canal entrance.