Windsor
Great
Cave Trelawny -
Jamaica
From the Caving Log, with some editorial licence
27 .11.88
Bob Bidmead (just in case anyone thinks I don't cave any
more). Having been in
The cave is a major resurgence, with the lower entrance
carrying a stream during the wet season, and drying for the rest of the year,
when the water rises through the river bed about 300 yards from the cliff
face. The human entrance is about 60 ft.
up the cliff face and represents an older level. The entrance series is much like Peak Cavern,
but with a narrower opening. Having left
the twilight zone the roof became covered with calcite tracery, making it look
like a church roof. The passage wound up
over a collapsed boulder ruckle, with the streamway a long way down, perhaps 120
ft. or so. The temperature was high - in
the 60's and surprisingly there was a large population of insects, the usual
shrimps and hoppers, but also millions of very tiny flies, like fruit flies. These took to wing as soon as a light beam
struck the surface of the rock they were on, and were so small and so numerous
they got in eyes, mouth and nose. Not so
surprising were the colony of Rat Bats, so called by the Jamaicans due to their
small size and appearance. These
obviously had a built in food supply with the flies, and also took wing when
the light hit them. We ended up dodging
an aerial ballet of bats and flies which seemed to fill the chamber - about the
size of the main chamber in G.B.
At the top of the ruckle the roof came down, and a strong draught
indicated the way through. Unfortunately
at this point my two local guides chickened out - no way were they prepared to
carry on through 2' by 3' crawls or duck under the obviously stable boulders. It transpired they normally took rich
American tourists on grockle trips, which was unfortunate. The thought of being 30 miles from the coast
and having a Land Rover with hiccups did not encourage me to continue alone, so
the day was curtailed after 1½ hours. Great cave though, and a return is a must.
Several smaller holes were looked at during the work period,
but obvious commitments to the restoration of electricity to the island
precluded any further detailed trips. If anyone has a free air ticket I have
free accommodation available - offers please!
Bob Bidmead - returned 2.1.89