Magnetometer Pot - 20th Feb 2010
Saturday February 20th 2010
Members present: Flori De Castro, Gary Douthwaite, Laura Bennett, Matt Ewles, Sam Briscoe
Report by Matt Ewles
The entrance is a concrete pipe about 20 minute walk up the (usually dry) valley from the farm. We reached there by early afternoon after much faffing at the YSS. Gary started rigging while we all played with the snow. The short entrance pitch is rebelayed below the pipe. A couple of easy climbs down and a few wiggles soon reaches the top of an awkward descent down a narrow rift (in-situ handline- easy on the way in but a pain on the way out!). Ignoring the hole in the floor, a narrow crawl around a snaking passage is followed by a right turn into the start of the wet crawl. This is low and quite wet and so a neofleece was a lovely bonus, but you are able to keep your upper body dry. This then reaches a chamber and immediately becomes the dry crawl - good kneepads are an absolute must! This ends at a junction, with a wade through the River Styx ahead (stooping, waist height water) and beyond here straight on in stomping passage reaches Holes junction. Ignore the drops down on the left and continue ahead and follow the obvious passage bearing right with the unusual cratered floor. After a combination of stomping and stooping a short drop into a junction of a narrow stream is reached. Going straight ahead (don't forget this junction on return) passes two easy climbs down and then an exposed traverse reaches Caton Hall. We turned the trip around here, having forgotten a spanner (no eco-hangers) and not being bothered to go down the pitch just to come back up straight away.
The return trip was very pleasant and the narrow rift near the entrance sapped energy (and we got to hear Flo swearing in spanish!). Back on the surface for 5pm in time for a freezing cold sunset. Great, and relatively easy trip with an excellent diversity of passages and no chance of getting bored. Would really love to go back sometime and do some of the more challenging round trips that are possible beyond Caton Hall.
