Any views expressed by any contributor to the Belfry
Bulletin, including those of officers of the club, do not necessarily coincide
with those of the editor or the committee of the Bristol Exploration Club,
unless stated as being the view of the committee or editor.
Contents
- 1 Mendip Rescue Organisation
- 2 Club Headquarters
- 3 Club Committee
- 4 Officers Of The Club
- 5
- 6 Notice
- 7 Editorial
- 8
- 9 Trip to the Berger
- 10
- 11 Leaders Meeting
- 12
- 13 The Ian Dear Memorial Fund
- 14 Changes and Additions to Members Addresses
- 15
- 16 Swildons Long Round Trip
- 17
- 18 In Committee
- 19 Just a Sec
- 20
- 21 A long weekend in Langdale
- 22 Letter To The Editor
- 23
- 24 Monthly Crossword Number 18
Mendip Rescue Organisation
In case of emergency telephone WELLS 73481.
EXPLORATION CLUB
Club Headquarters
The Belfry,
Rd.
Club Committee
Chairman: S.J.
Collins
Minutes Sec: D.
Turner
Members: R.
Bagshaw; W. Cooper; D.J. Irwin;
N.
Jago; T.E. Large; P. Stobart;
A.R.
Thomas
Officers Of The Club
Hon. Secretary: A.R.
THOMAS, Allens House,
Barrows Lane
Hon. Treasurer: R.J. Bagshaw,
Knowle,
4. Tel: WHITCHURCH. 5626.
Caving Sec: T.E.
Large,
Bishopston,
Climbing Sec: N.
JAGO, 2 Broughton House,
St.
Hut Warden: D.J.
IRWIN, Tonsend Cottage, Priddy, Wells,
Hut Engineer: P.
STOBART, Eriksay, The Avenue, Coombe Down,
Tacklemaster: W.
COOPER,
77368.
B.B. Editor: S.J.
COLLINS, Lavender Cottage, Bishop Sutton, Nr. Bristol.
Librarian: D.
SEARLE, Dolphin Cottage,
Priddy, Wells,
Publications: D.J.
IRWIN. Address as above
B.B. Post: Mrs.
K. Mansfield, Tiny Kott, Little
Notice
With this issue of the B.B., a start has been made towards
transforming the B.E.C. journal into something which club members may
eventually be able to take some pride in. A lot of discussion has been, and is still going on about such points as
what size we can sensibly expect to maintain while giving members good value
for their money and, in a wider context, just what the content of a typical
B.B. ought to consist of. If YOU have
any bright ideas on any subject connected with the B.B., the editor or any member
of the committee will gladly give your idea an airing. Better still why not come to a committee
meeting and tell us how you think the B.B. could be improved? Ideas should, of course, be
constructive. It is of little use, for
example, telling us that you would like to see more of a certain type of
article unless you have some idea of how we might set about doing this. It is hoped that, by the end of this year, we
shall have a B.B. which will cater for most tastes, but it will be easier to do
this if we know what YOU think about it.
Editorial
Twenty Five Years Old
A quarter of a century, or a third of an average lifetime is
sufficiently long span of time to warrant some form of acknowledgment. We hope that the new form of the B.B. will
gradually set a standard for the further improvements in contents and printing
which hopefully will follow.
Belfry Matters
At least four sincerely held, yet conflicting points of view
as to how we should organise the Belfry have been made known to your editor recently
by their adherents. What one might call
the Caving Viewpoint says ‘ The Belfry is a caving hut, and all other
activities must yield to caving. In
contrast, the Social viewpoint says The B.E.C. is not just a caving
club. The good fellowship for which the
club has always been noted should not be allowed to disappear, and life at the
Belfry should encourage it.
Then there is the economic viewpoint, which says ‘ The
Belfry has cost a lot of money and is expensive to run and maintain. Whatever else it may or may not do, its first
job is to pay its way. Finally, there
is the member’s viewpoint, which says ‘The Belfry was built by the club and for
the club. Club people should always get
priority.’
We are not alone in finding problems connected with the
ownership of a new headquarters building, and there is nothing to be ashamed of
in admitting that such problems exist. It would even be odd if they did not. What we must do is to find some modus vivendi which satisfies the
various viewpoints summarised above. It
would appear that the committee must do their sums and find out just how much
the place costs and what return is necessary to pay for it – then some
reasonable balance could be struck between the claims of members and the needs
of visitors. As for any conflicting
claims between serious cavers and the mere social variety, there seems to be no
real need, in these days of easy transport, to confine social activities to the
weekend. Why not a fortnightly Belfry
social evening some time in the week? Participants could easily pay the day fee as well as chipping in for the
drinks and thus help to make the Belfry pay and keep everybody happy.
The Irremovables?
Another theory which has come recently to the editorial ear
says that there are committee members who, irrespective of performance or
outlook, can never be removed to make way for more progressive types because
they depend for their votes on older members who are equally out of touch. On the face of it, this theory leaks
plausible, but I wonder how true it really is? I can think of at least one occasion where a member of long standing and
good past performance was voted off because the club – rightly or wrongly _
judged that he was no longer in a position to contribute his particular
skills. I can think of no time in which
a member who was determined to do some job better than its holder was doing it,
failed to get there fairly quickly. On
the ether hand, I can think of a number of occasions in which the new broom did
a little quick sweeping and then failed to keep it up. The motto for potential new brooms seems to
be ‘Show us what you can do, convince us, and then keep us that way.’
Alfie
*****************************************
QUOTE
..During a discussion on Tim Large’s report in the St.
Cuthberts news sheet where he refers to some leaders as ‘deawood’, Norman
Petty was heard to comment ” All these leaders have been struck down with
Dutch Elm Disease, I suppose.”
Trip to the Berger
To most cavers, the Gouffre Berger will conjure up visions
of vast expeditions with fantastic and detailed organisation. This article by DAVE YEANDLE shows how even this hole can be tackled in
the Mendip manner. Last summer I was
fortunate enough to be invited trip to the Gouffre Berger. Having heard of the wonders of this hole, I
didn’t hesitate in accepting.
The Berger was first bottomed in 1954 by the international
expedition. Since then, many parties
have reached the sump which is about 3,700 feet below the entrance. Diving has produced an extra twenty feet in
depth and 300 feet in length. The French
have since really pushed the cave, the most important discovery being a mile of
passage starting at the top of Hurricane Pitch (the last pitch!) A large amount of passage has been found
upstream of the main cave and a new entrance has been opened up. The system is now some four miles long. Most British expeditions to the Berger have
been large and organised. Ours was different
– small and not really organised at all.
The trip, which was arranged by Tony Waltham, started as it
as it was to go on, in an informal manner with people wandering over in ones
and twos, but soon the party was assembled at La Molier, our campsite some
three miles from the entrance.
The Berger starts as a normal sort of pot, rather like a dry
Yorkshire SSP. At around 700 feet down,
the pot intercepts the Berger proper, and this descends more or less steadily
to the sump. On the first trip, Tony Waltham,
Keith Turnbull (all Imperial college Caving Club and Happy Wanderers) Tony
White (ULSA) and myself went to the top of Aldos shaft – 130 feet and the last
pitch before the main passage. Slight
difficulty, mainly due to the large loads we were carrying, was found in the
meanders, a set of rift passages starting after Cairn Hall. The French have, however, installed a large
number of wooden stemples and planks. If
one trusts them, the going is much easier. One man went down Aldos and all the tackle required to reach Camp 2 was
lowered.
The next day, we set off for Camp 1 carrying our camping
gear. As far as I was concerned, the
best part of that day was emerging into the main passage for the first
time. While I plodded off in the wrong
direction, I seemed to be surrounded by blackness and very little else. Progress downwards brought many more delights
– the first Berger stal,
Pitch and the Tyrolean. The latter is
most interesting as it can be compared (with a little use of imagination) to
the well-known photograph of the rope traverse on Annapurna South Face – one
must, of course, throw in a waterfall and a pool.
The next section, the Great Rubble Heap, turned out to be
enormous and rather boulder strewn. Many
of the boulders were the size of a double-decker bus and the walls were often
lost for several minutes. However,
there was a vague sort of path which soon led us to Camp 1 suburbs and Camp 1
itself. We were surprised to smell only
rotten cloth in this area, we had been fearing the worst after seeing the state
of the entrance series. Perhaps we were
lucky in being the first party of the season!
While we looked around the Hall of the Thirteen, which is
very near to Camp 1, others took tackle to the top of the Balcony, the halfway
point in depth. This section of passage
is simply too much. After the huge gour pools and thirty foot high pillars of
the Hall of the Thirteen. We quickly
descended, over alternate gours and boulder heaps. The place was so clean and spacious that
heavy loads did not seem to matter for we had found the perfect cave.
We soon cooked up our meal and went to bed. We slept well and after waking up set off
towards Camp 2. After the Balcony (a
sixty foot pitch) more splendid passage. Soon, another pitch was reached, a pleasant sloping one, on stal, and
clean because a small stream trickled down it, The main stream was now reached and with it, a couple of canals. These we passed in our boat, just as we had
done with
length. From this point onwards, the
cave was really wet, a few short pitches usually followed by annoying little
pools were spread out along a smaller then usual (for the Berger!) rift
passage. Soon, the top of Claudine’s
Cascade was reached a really draughty exposed spot with hardly anywhere to
belay. A pole traverse followed by an
impressive sixty foot pitch took us into a pool of large proportions and medium
depth. A little later, a short traverse
and pitch brought us to the top of the
– the site of Camp 2. We were at last
out of the water and draught, dramatically so in fact, as the route traversed
round the side of the passage some hundred feet above the stream,
Four hundred feet in depth later, we were at Camp 3. We had a quick look down the streamway from
the top of Baches Pitch (sixty feet) and while gazing down, we wondered id we
were to go further. We certainly werent
that day, so off we went back to Camp 1, a very sporting trip when
unladen. The next day we went out and
the day after that we waited for our reinforcements. They arrived, and the following day Dave
Brook, Alan Brook, Dave Headley (three more ULSAs) Dave? and Martin? (I never
learned their second names!) Tony White, Tony Waltham, Roger, Keith and myself
set off on a photographic orgy.
After a night in Camp 1, everybody except a party of five
sump seeking ULSA cavers, went out. The
trip to Camp 3 was like a speleological silent film than a Berger bottoming
¬expedition. The food bag containing
nearly all our rations was lost and found twice – once in a small pool and then
in a large one (the pool at the bottom of Claudines). After such a carry-on, the Berger must have
had the best laugh it had had since it was dived by another lot of mad
Englishmen. To cap everything, we
realised that we had overestimated the ladder required by two hundred feet and
underestimated the rope by about a hundred feet. One man stayed in Camp 3, leaving four
heading towards the sump. Baches was
easy and dry, soon followed by a horrid pitch of about thirty feet. The ladder was belayed to a dubious chock
stone, reached by an exposed traverse and the ladder went between two
waterfalls into a nasty deep pool.
Sooner or later, we reached the top of the Grand Cascade
(65′). The water plunged straight
down. Even with the ladder belayed on
the left to a belt, it looked desperate. Half way down was a small ledge with the water landing on it. The effect was rather like a rough sea. The descent to the stream was
impressive. All the way down I kept
expecting to swing suddenly into the full force of the water and have to fight
for breath and to stay on the ladder. It
never happened. The worst part was the
last ten feet. At one point just below
the ledge, I turned round and saw the main waterfall less than two feet
away. Nobody had wanted to do this pitch
free or with a self life¬line, so we had to face the fact that we couldn’t
reach the sump. We went to the top of
Little Monkey, which is the last, but one pitch and 900 metres down. This part of the cave turned out to be a
super version of Penyghent. There is
even a hands and knees crawl (a proper one!). By now we had developed a great deal of respect for the French, who had
explored the series above Harrison Pitch – we hadn’t even reached their
starting point!
Now the work began, as it always must, to regain the
surface. Quick progress was made to Camp
3, partly because there is no escape from the Berger wind until one is above
Baches. After a large feed, we set off
for the
forget. We were starting to get tired,
but hadn’t reached the mechanical stage. Each person had two large rolls of ladder and some rope. Progress was made as follows. Move ladder on left. Move ladder on right. Move feet. Decide that next bit is too steep. Move ladder on left
After the next pitch we were moving well. A surprisingly short time later, we were all
at the start of the canals. Everybody
was cold and falling asleep and this was due, no doubt, to the numerous short
immersions when even wetsuits were not enough. The tackle was taken to the bottom of the next pitch, so that everybody
and everything was above the sections liable to flooding. And so to Camp 1 and sleep. We had been away for twenty one hours. Seven hours later, we were back down to where
we had left the tackle. We had to hurry,
as Tony Waltham and his car had to leave for
was to go with him. By now, we were moving a mountain. Even so, people seemed quite happy with their
lot and we progressed well.
At the top of the Balcony, somebody mentioned that we were
halfway out. I now felt a little like a
slave who must for ever carry increasing loads up an endless succession of
pitches, with only the occasional reward like a bit of sleep or a Mars
bar. Then something happened that
changed us back into a happy band of trogs leaping around a cave. We saw some lights thousands of them
heading down the passage towards us at a
tremendous rate. We had been vaguely
expecting some sort of help in de-tackling, but all the same, we were relieved
to have it in reality. Behind those
lights were Roger Graham (M.U.S.S.) Mark Rogers (ULSA) Ian Plant, Jeff Yeadon
and someone else, all of the Kendall Caving Club. Camp 1 was reached very quickly, where we all
celebrated. The Kendal lads took some
photographs on Kodachrome II and P.F.1 flashbulbs. Everybody was in a jovial frame of mind.
Next, we all went up to the bottom of Aldos carrying all the
tackle. The five old hands – as we now
started to think of ourselves – returned to Camp 1 while the rest went out with
the tackle. They surfaced at eight in
the morning after twenty hour trip.
The next day, we left the cave. The trip out was tremendous. Everybody turned out to help, time seemed to
fly and tackle whizzed up pitches at an unbelievable speed. Dave? spent the day at the top of the first
underground pitch. This boring task
didnt seem stop him hurling abuse at all who passed, and allowing nobody to
climb the pitch (we were all hauled up.) The atmosphere was great.
As I neared the entrance, I started to feel almost sorry to
be going out. The cave now seemed very
friendly and back outside were all sorts of torments like insects, cows and
rain. However, the thought of food and
wine was most tempting. Anyway, it
wasnt raining. In fact, we surfaced in
to one of the clearest nights that I have ever seen. The sky was full of stars with the Milky Way
in full view.
Leaders Meeting
The main topic at the recent Leaders’ Meeting was the
preservation of Cuthberts. It has been
observed that several sites of stalagmite and mud formations have been
destroyed and/or disfigured, even though there is a leaders system in
operation.
Particular cases of this are the white stal flows in the
Rabbit Warren Extension which have been obviously crossed by someone, who has left a mud trail behind, completely
ruining the flow. The white flows at the
lower end of Rabbit Warren Extension have also suffered the same treatment and
the curtain and stal. flow also in the Rabbit Warren Extension. Flows above Chain Chamber and the dry gours
just beyond have all suffered. The mud
formations and cave pearls in Lower Mud Hall have been damaged, but the worst
site of all has been in Erratic Chamber. This is the passage that has been known for many years to connect Rabbit
Warren Extension with the top of Struggle Passage, but the way was barred by
many straws and helictites. Somebody has forced their way through, doing
irreparable damage.
There are other sites where the tale is the same and unless
immediate action is taken it appears that more formations will be damaged. We discussed many suggestions ranging from
closing the cave to discouraging tourist parties from particularly vulnerable
areas of the cave. One line of action,
already taken by the leaders – that of taping the formations, notably in
September Chamber, has resulted in no damage being reported in that area. It was decided to take the following action:
– 1. To tape every vulnerable area and also to build small walls and mark out
paths through areas of formations so that there can be no question of anyone
not knowing where to tread. 2. Some form
of reference system, so that anyone can consult a list that will tell them
where; particular passages where there are vulnerable formations go, so that
they do not need to force any passages unnecessarily. 3. To restrict parties in some areas of the
cave to not more than three, particularly in Rabbit Warren Extension and
Curtain Chamber. 4. To remind leaders
that they have a responsibility not only for the safety of their parties, but
towards the cave itself, and 5, To attempt to clean up some of the formations
that will permit this treatment and to repair formations if possible. The leaders also intend to review the prospective
leaders test to see if it is still adequate.
FIXED TACKLE. It has
been six months since the items of fixed tackle were removed. At the meeting it was decided to replace the
ladders on the Ledge Pitches but to leave all the ether sites as they are now.
MAYPOLE SERIES. The
fixed tackle in this section of the cave is in need of repair and replacement
and so it was agreed that several improvements could be made during the repair
work. These are to be carried out as
soon as possible. The short belay at the
head of Pulley Pitch needs replacing, but otherwise the pitch is O.K. The nylon line on this pitch is only for
pulling up a rope and not for belaying. The Maypole fixed ladder is to be replaced by a pulley system similar to
that in the Pulley Pitch. The Upper
Chain Pitch will have the chain removed and receive the same treatment. The Lower Chain pitch will have the chain
removed, but it has been decided not to replace it with any fixed aids as they
are not necessary. The pitch is easily
free-climbable and the leader can fix a handline for any of his party who
require one. All this work will be
carried out in the near future and the Ledge Pitch ladders have ‘already been
replaced.
SUMP 1. This is at
present open in all weather conditions as a flat out crawl in water with a 4 to
10 inch airspace. There is no need to
use the dams.
Tim Large
The Ian Dear Memorial Fund
As members will recall, the Ian Dear Memorial Fund is there
to provide help for younger members to go on trips like that just
described. The Chairman of the Ian Dear
Memorial Committee – ‘SETT’ (R.A. Setterington) supplies a timely reminder to
young club members about the fund.
The late Ian Dear – a much respected and active member of
the B. E. C. – in 1964 bequeathed a sum of £300 “To assist junior members
of the B. E. C. to visit caving or climbing areas of the continent”. Since that date, monies have been managed by
the Ian Dear Memorial Committee, meeting as required. It has come as rather a surprise to this
committee and to myself in particular that this fund has only been used twice
in the last six years.
At a recent meeting of the fund committee, it was decided
that the existence of the fund should be made more widely known. The possibility of extending the terms of
reference was also discussed, but this would have to be confirmed by the
general club committee and possibly by an A.G.M. We also discussed the likelihood of older
members of the B.E.C. chaperones on trips already arranged by themselves.
As January is commonly the time when we start thinking
summer holidays, now is the time to consider whether we, individually, might be
eligible for a grant from the fund or would accept the job of advising or
chaperoning a younger member. Applicants
will each be considered on individual merits, with initiative and originality
being important. As the terms of
reference may well be changed, even if you are not sure whether you qualify
why not apply? The Ian Dear Committee
will decide.
Changes and Additions to Members Addresses
R.F. Bidmead.
Fishponds Rd
J. Manchip. c/o Egan,16 Warrender Pk.Cres.,
EH9 1EA
N. Jago. 40,
Pleasant
3.
P. Coles.
N. Rich. Ballochyle Estate,Sandbank,
Dunoon, Argyllshire.
J. Bulger. 23
Close, Gt.Wyrley,
R. Brooks.
J & M. Riley.
ACT 2600
B. Smart. c/o
O. 28,
P. Ifold. The Cedars, Blackferd, Nr.
Wedmore,
J.M. Stafford, Bryher, Badgworth, Scmerset.
A.T. Williams. Hendrew Farm,
Llanderaied,
Mon. NP6 2AB.
J. Ifold. 5 Rushgrove Gdns., Bishop
4XB
Miss C. Salisbury, 59a Ashley Hill,
6.
Mrs. P. Rees,
St. Ives Huntingdon.
S. Grime, Letterewe, Wester
If YOU have recently changed your address, PLEASE let Alan
Thomas have your new address so that we make sure you get the B.B.
Swildons Long Round Trip
For those cavers who cannot get to the Berger, GRAHAM
PHIPPEN reminds members that Mendip offers some fine sporting caving, which he
describes in this article .
Dick Pike, Tony Jarrett, Pete Moody and myself sucessful1y
completed the ‘Long round trip’ on the 1st of October last. To the best of my knowledge, this trip has
not been attempted since the great floods of 1968, so it is worth article.
The trip can only be attempted one way because of the two
sumps ‘Grit’ and ‘Gloop’ that have to be passed in the Damp Link. For this reason, the twenty five foot Shatter
Pot has to be laddered on the way in to make it climbable on the way out. Having laddered Shatter you have the
alternative of descending into the streamway via Blue Pencil Passage or going
via the Troubles. Blue Pencil will avoid
sumps II and III, letting you into the stream in Swildons IV.
All of the party had free dived sumps II, III and IV a few
days previous to this trip, and so the precise nature of these sumps was known
to us at the time. This being so we
opted to go down via the Troubles and sumps II and III. Weights were borrowed from the dump at II and
left at IV to be returned, of course, by a party that weekend.
All the equipment we carried was hoods and facemasks in
excess of standard rig, and these are easily slipped inside a wetsuit
jacket. The cave divers Tony and Dick
remarked how pleasant it was to be able to stroll these farther reaches of
Swildons without being weighted down with equipment. Sumps II and III were both about thirty five
feet long and wide and open. IV was
fifteen feet long and at that time free of excessive silting, making it quite
an easy pass. Sump V was a series of
ducks at a time when conditions were dry. Local and recent advice from cave divers should be sought for sumps IV
and V, as their nature is liable to change.
The ‘Damp Link’ is an inlet passage about thirty feet up the
left bank of the streamway between V and VI. Shortly before the first sump, which is called Gloop, there are four
siphon tubes, only two of which work. They can quite easily be started with a little judicious sucking. Space all through the damp link is rather
limited. This being so, baling Gloop is
rather difficult but can be achieved by two people. If one person stands as best he can in the
sump, he can pass the bucket to the second person, who will be lying on his
back and endeavouring to push the bucket between the passage roof and his body
– no doubt piling half the contents all over his face and chest while throwing
the rest over his legs and down the cave. The process is cold, and I had a bad case of cramp from lying prone in
such a position for the length of time required. There is, of course, a happier alternative
which we did not think of until afterwards. That is, to start the siphons and then disappear for an hour until the
siphons stop working. We found that
siphons stopped working when there was just sufficient air space – or rather
lip space- to ease oneself through. Should you decide to hurry up the
proceedings by baling, then you will have to procure a bucket from somewhere.
Once past Gloop, a tight and narrow passage leads upward for
about a hundred and fifty feet to the second sump, which is called Grit. This sump, shallower than Gloop, has to be
baled out as dry as possible to allow passage through what then becomes a
tight, right-angled squeeze. I spent
several minutes trying to extricate my legs from this squeeze without
dislocating any joints – but then I am longer than the average caver, who
should have no such problem.
The water from Grit refills Gloop. It was here that the party was most worried,
for the air is rumoured to be bad and the baling of Grit was said to cut off
effectively any retreat back through Gloop. A party has been through the Damp Link since our trip. They left one of their team on the safe side
of Gloop after siphoning it, while the rest passed through and baled out
Grit. The intention was that he should
re-start the siphons on Gloop after Grit had baled, so that they had a way of
retreat should this be necessary. However, he was unable to re-start the siphons, as Gloop did not fill up
sufficiently. Thus, he able to pass
through Gloop – not without discomfort – aft¬er Grit had been baled. This must surely add to the confidence of any
future party through the Damp Link. Our
other anxiety, that of foul air, was not the problem we all expecting. There is considerable length of passage
between the two sumps, and when we entered, the air smelt quite fresh. We were all breathing heavily through our exertion
but did not at any time have sort of experience with foul air. It must be remembered, though that we were
the first party through, for possibly three years. When both sumps are full, this length of
passage is probably a closed system and any accumulation of foul air might not
disperse. The air might easily
deteriorate if many parties go through at short time intervals. I have not spoken to any of the previous
people, although it should be interesting to hear their reasons for suspecting
the presence of carbon dioxide.
There are already four buckets for baling Grit, and there is
a danger, if any more accumulate, of having to negotiate a plastic bucket
ruckle, making the trip both foolhardy and dangerous.
The tight and narrow passage of the Damp Link continues
after Grit for approximately another hundred feet, and then opens up into the
Shatter system. We found in Shatter one
duck which required baling, and this was easily effected with a helmet. A pleasant wetting after our exertions, with
ample lip space – if you dont talk on the way through – and of course a
detailed serrating of stal rock. There
was plenty of room in the Static Pool. I
do not think that this fills, but should be interested to learn from anyone if
this is correct. We concluded the trip by climbing Shatter, which we had
previously laddered and then came smartly out the normal way.
In all, we took six hours, two of which were spent in
passing the Damp Link. We all thoroughly
enjoyed the trip; a very great degree of teamwork was required and admirably
achieved – credit to Dick Pike for being the capable leader he is.
In Committee
An occasional review of the activities of the club committee
The traditional committee meeting held the day after the
A.G.M. last October saw the usual business of allocating club officers for the
year and starting to deal with the items wished onto the committee by the
A.G.M. As a matter of general policy,
the committee agreed to sort out the entire tackle situation, to keep a
detailed eye on the operation of the Belfry and to tighten up somewhat
drastically on club membership.
In addition to these items, and the usual crop of minor
business, the committee has spent some time on two items of major importance,
those of the acquisition of additional land and relationships between us and
our more immediate neighbours – both of which may well take some time yet
before they are completed.
In the main, problems connected with the Belfry continues to
dominate the committee business problems like the renovation of the toilets;
sorting out a more sensible hot water system and re-roofing the stone
Belfry. The library installation and
cataloguing continues to make steady but slow progress.
The Chairman’s invitation to club members to attend the
committee meetings was taken up in January, which meeting had several knotty
problems connected with the Belfry and the B.B. to discuss. At one stage, the ‘audience’ having been
given their head by the chairman, fell to disagreeing amongst themselves, thus
proving that there are usually two sides to every question and that the job of
taking the decisions is not as easy as it may appear from outside.
A belated bouquet to last years committee, who managed to
clear up 67 items of business out of a total of 72 which came their way during
their year of office.
Just a Sec
Notes from our Hon. Sec.
augmented here and there by the Editor.
At the annual meting of the National Caving Association
which I attended at Whernside Manor on the 30th October last, there was a great
body of agreement between the delegates than in former years. In fact, the final differences between the
Southern Council and the Cambrian Council were settled by goodwill on both
sides, and the N.C.A. now has a constitution and can act as the official national
body in its dealings with the sports council.
It is refreshing to hear that the C.D.G. still tries to keep
out of caving politics, so that Oliver Lloyd, as Diving Group representative,
abstained from voting on several matters which he had proposed as Southern
Council representative.
It was interesting to learn that an education committee had
appointed as its chief caving instructor a man who it knew had never been
caving.
A meeting was held recently at Upper Pitts of the Southern
Council working party on conservations and access. Its report, which will be presented to the
next Southern Council meeting, is now ready.
Incidentally, at the meeting I was somewhat surprised to
learn that somebody who recently enquired about joining the B.E.C. found the
answer offensive and swelled the ranks of the
instead. I have long known that we have
a national reputation for unsociability, but in this instance I wonder who they
wrote to, and who bothered to answer! I
have a duplicated screed telling them how good we are which I send to prospective
members and which has been closely scrutinised to avoid giving offence.
A reminder to members that Richard Kenney will be giving his
slide show on
February the 19th. The slides are
particularly interesting, and the fantastic clarity of the air in
to he seen. Time of the show is 7.30,
giving adequate time at the Hunters afterward for those who don’t want to miss
their regular pint.
Look out for the publication by the B.E.C. in the near
future of ‘Mendip’s Vanishing Grottoes’ This book, containing between 45 and 50
photographs of beautiful but now extinct cave formations, is saddle stitched
and printed by the offset litho process. It will be sold to members at 30p
(6/-) for the FIRST MONTH ONLY when it will revert to its proper price of 40p
(8/-).
Congratulations to Bob and Lyn White on the birth of a
daughter – Rosalyn Jane.
Dave Irwin’s address will shortly be Townsend Cottage,
Priddy, Wells,
as he is buying Steve Wynne-Roberts cottage. Likewise, please note Nigel Jago’s change of address which is given on
page 6 of this B.B. and is NOT as printed on page 1!
Please have you any library books or other printed matter
belonging to the club? The librarian is
doing his best to sort out the collection now that it has been moved to the
Belfry. Keys are held by the Hut Warden,
the Librarian and myself.
Congratulations to Mr. Tim Pardoe who is now Dr. Tim Pardoe.
George Honey has sent a Christmas card from Droppsta in
address in last November’s B. B.) and says that any cavers or climbers are
welcome for skiing/walking/boozing/wenching. His card shows his house at Droppsta, which is a wooden house about
Belfry size and which he refers to on the card as Belfry No 2.
Jill Tuck reports that George Boon of the National Museum
Wales is doing a long article on two sites of Roman forges, one of which is
Roman Mine and the other White Womans Hole in Asham Wood. The article is for Proc. U.B.S.S. Jill say that Norman and herself have seen
the draft copy, in which the author says nice things about the Roman Mine
excavation being amazed at the fact that the hearth site was excavated in
complete darkness.
A long weekend in Langdale
By Alan Tringham
Now that there is a motorway from
to Kendal, it is no longer such a journey to get to the
District
of a straight road late at night.
The first night at the campsite was uneventful, apart from a
manoeuvring car colliding with my van, and disturbing the slumbering
occupant. The morning was cloudy, so we
decided on a look at Pavey Arc – a big rambling cliff above Stickle Tarn. On passing the new Dungeon Ghyll hotel, a
shower of rain sent us scurrying for the bar and a pint of mild.
Two hours later saw us at the bottom of Cock’s Tour – a 300
V.Diff. reached by 200′ of scrambling above Stickle Tarn. This is a rather rambling route but with some
very inter¬esting individual pitches and a good feeling of exposure down to the
tarn below. The best pitches were the
second which was a narrow slab requiring an easy hand jam to start followed by
several delicate moves on polished holes before a runner could be put in. The sixth pitch was also quite memorable,
being a hand traverse where a good runner could be fixed and ten feet up a
diagonal crack before a large ledge was reached.
The rest of the climb was up easier slabs which gradually
lay back towards the summit. This we
reached to be met by the rest of the party, including my brother David, who had
scrambled up Jack’s Rake – an enjoyable moderate. By this time the weather had improved so we
finished the trip by walking round to Harrison Stickle and descending the track
past Dungeon Ghyll.
Both the Friday and Saturday evenings were spent pleasantly
in the bar of the old Dungeon Ghyll Hotel. We were somewhat alarmed at the price of Tartan bitter until we found
that they had included a 5p deposit on the glasses.
We spent the next day in similar fashion climbing Bowfell
Buttress. This is a classic route high
up on Bowfell, rather similar to a Tryfan buttress, but more continually steep
and interesting. It is only grade Hard
Diff., but some sections are very polished, and are more like Hard V. Diff.,
although well protected. Some local hard
men we met in the pub had made an ascent on a wet January day and found it more
like hard very severe. The chief
drawback is the two hour approach march, but at the top of the climb, you are
just about on the summit of Bowfell. You
can return over this and down to the Band, which has a good track down to the
site.
The last day being fine, we thought we had better take a
look at Gimmer Crag, as it is the best known in Langdale. This also entails a fair slog up to the base
of the cliff. We found that, as in
of all the more popular climbs. We
eventually got started on ‘B’ route, a mild severe, which we found rather easy apart
from a short gritstone type layback problem called Amen Corner. Here, we assisted a party of three
up with monotonous regularity. A male shoulder proved to be the answer to the
problem.
We found this route rather less interesting than our
previous climbs, but hope to return to try our luck on one of the harder routes
on the Ulent face, which appears to be a lot steeper and more continuous.
Letter To The Editor
38,
Dear Alfie,
Several people recently were suggesting that the Belfry was
under used, and I was wondering if the following suggestions might be
worthwhile. I know that these ideas are
not exactly new, as several people have been talking in a similar way for some
time, but since nothing seems to have happened except talk, it might be
worthwhile to set them out on paper.
Either on a Friday night or a Saturday night, some slide
shows or talks could be arranged, with wide publicity. I am thinking in terms of university type
programmes sent by post to interested people outside the club, and even
possibly advertisements in the local papers. Im sure that there are plenty of people who could lead discussions that
would be worthwhile on all kinds of caving or climbing topics. It would seem to be that the Belfry would be
a far better choice than, say, Priddy Hall or the Hunters back room. If things go well, guests could be invited
from other bodies might give talks of more general interest, like the Somerset
Archaeological Society; Mendip Society; Bristol Naturalist Society etc. This would have to be next winter, after
trials this winter have shown what support we could count on.
Some talks might be expected to attract a large audience
while others might only attract two or three. This should not matter as long as the lecturer is good and keen to pass
on knowledge.
I think it only fair to back up this suggestion with an
offer to take part in a series of talks on aspects of surveying; cave
chemistry; hydrology; water analysis etc. Do readers think that this is a reasonable suggestion?
Roger Stenner.
Monthly Crossword Number 18
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Across:
1. Many current measurements give
light. (5)
6. Southern Cricket Club on Mendip? (1,1,1,1)
7. Rhino Wire Etc.? (5)
9. Lead this on Mendip once. (3)
11. Cuthberts series carboniferous without heart. (5)
12. Everyone at end of 4 down. (3)
14. Held back by 16. (5)
16. They hold 14 in caves or outside them. (5)
17. Hunters full or unstable road I tread. (4)
Down:
2. Working in underground road I
tread. (4)
3. Choose a cave differently. (3)
4. Tiny, but includes everyone in the end. (5)
5. Angular adjective. (5)
8. Not for clutching! Especially the
last! (5)
10. Cave floor description in Lancs.
(5)
11. This beheaded is used to do this. (5)
13. 7 across turned through a right angle in home, cave or garden. (4)
15. Lacking in sumps. (3)
Solution To Last Months Crossword
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