TAP: Rob n Jon
Little Waterfall has been our “all weather" dig, strategically picked after realising our other main projects (SMMC, Bagshawe, Victory Level) were “dry weather only" digs. Last week gave us a foreboding taste that things might be changing with the 1st Reich squeeze being quite wet and the passage upstream covered with bubbles. The last 2 days had been very wet so this trip, which was actually a backup after Rowter being too wet for us to venture there, was always a risky choice. However we reckoned that even if we can’t get in, the high water levels may give us some useful info and maybe even some always welcome enthusiasm.
After our pre-tea (!) we spent 15 minutes loading piles of old digging junk into the van to be skipped, thereby completing our first cave conservation project of the year. 😊
Van full of old digger's crap
We then arrived at the shakehole to quite an impressive waterfall with unfortunately a good quarter of the water going down the main V1 entrance. Not a good start! We therefore built a better dam and dug a trench to divert the water down V2, the old scaffolded shaft now mostly abandoned.
Jon digging under close supervision
Heading underground it was interesting to note which bits were wet, and it was obvious other bits had been wetter quite recently. We got to the pitchhead and could hear a good sized stream running along the bottom of Brooklands Straight, indicating that indeed we weren’t going to be digging today. We left the drill and gear at the top and went off for a lightweight explore, armed only with the 360 camera.
1st Reich squeeze was taking all the stream with the roof approx 30cm underwater, and the bubbles on the walls indicated levels had been at least 1 metre higher very recently. This may be very inconvenient for future digging and exploration trips in the future so we’ll have to see if/how we can improve the situation soon.
No digging today!
We then went up into 2nd Reich which has a visual connection to beyond the new sump and indeed we could hear quite a large rumble ahead, as had been heard one time whilst I was digging up here earlier in the year. Considering how much more water there was today I was a little surprised it wasn’t a larger rumble though.
We then went to have a look at the Far Left, which was super wet and it looks like at least a large portion of the water going down V2 enters into the cave here. Today this was flowing down into the large Far Left Rift where it flowed away below a sediment blockage. This is weirdly similar to the current dig face in 1st Reich and heading in the same direction so, although it wasn’t draughting, this now presents quite an interesting prospect which we’ll need to have a proper look at sometime. The water is certainly not the same as in Brookland Straight, actually more; maybe it’s what we can hear up ahead?! With plenty enough to be pondering on, we headed out to the surface. Cold, wet through and filthy, but now very enthused for the next few trips.