Recent Trips with Hereford Caving Club
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Most of our monthly club caving trips are written up by one of our members on the trip along with some photos. These are then gathered together at the end of the year , and are printed into out annual Newsletters for all members to keep.
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Agen Allwedd - 2nd November 2019
We’d decided to postpone the September club trip due to a lack of leaders to assist any newbies. Instead, a few of us decided that the delights of Aggy were not to be missed and so, we ventured West. On the trip were Paul Hartwright, Isaac Wills, Karol Lewandowski and Grant Hartwright.
As always, logistics are an import factor. In the end, Karol drove from Northampton to pick up Grant in Warwickshire. Together Karol drove us to Malvern in Worcestershire to meet Paul and Issac. After the obligatory cup of tea (thanks Jo Hartwright!) we all loaded into Isaac’s pickup and set off, via Hereford, for Llangattock.
The weather was warm but slightly overcast which made getting changed a delight and the walk over to the cave reasonably pleasant in full kit. It was one of those days where going underground was a pleasure to find some cooler temperatures. We entered the cave at 11.20am and signed in for a trip to Midnight Passage.
The usual route, through the entrance series and into Baron’s Chamber was uneventful. Once here, we moved deeper into the cave, soon arriving at the entry to the 2nd Boulder Choke. Here, we diverged from our ‘usual’ route – down towards Northwest Junction – and instead, turned left and climbed a short, awkward step up before heading into Midnight Passage. For 3 of us, we’d never been here before: for one of us (Paul) it had been over 40 years since his last visit!
Needless to say - we were all very interested in exploring this (new to us) area of Agen Allwedd. The passage is dry, sandy and offers a variety of heights ranging from flat-crawls to easy standing height. At times it was quite picturesque with loads of lovely crystals shimmering on the walls. After 10mins or so we reached a low crawl with options to turn right or head straight on. At this point, Paul took a break to eat his Mars bar while the rest of us pushed on into, what we discovered were, the last few metres of Midnight Passage.
Curiously, there was a strong draught flowing (out) however, as we approached the furthest reaches of the passage, it weakened and dropped off to almost nothing. Here we found the way ahead to be a small, tight dig. Only Karol was brave (thin?) enough to wiggle himself partially in. Within metres he abandoned his effort and pulled back to larger passage where Isaac and I gently tried (unsuccessfully) to encourage him back into the dig. It was at this time that I realised that the strong draft we’d been feeling all the way in to Midnight Passage must have ‘gone somewhere’. Retracing my steps a few metres, I discovered the mouth of a mud-blocked side-passage on my left (travelling out). The mud looked very diggable with a few melon-sized rocks in it and I made a note to discuss with Paul (Dad) in case he could explain why this hadn’t been pushed. (He couldn’t!)
As we withdrew from the end of passage, Karol and Isaac decided to take the other branch in the passage (a right turn travelling out) which took them into a high rift passage. Karol tested a few climbing moves and convinced himself that it might be possible to chimney up the rift but discovered that it widened out higher up, making further progress difficult and the return to the bottom highly likely to become strongly gravity-assisted. At this point he wisely withdrew.
We then reunited with Paul and managed to get ourselves quite excited about the possibility of returning another day, with few basic digging tools, to have a scratch around where the draught appeared to be emerging from. The report for this will have to wait for another day.
We all emerged from the cave without incident and had a lovely walk back along the tramroad to Isaac’s pick-up before loading up and returning home, dreaming (as we so often do) of finding ‘big-passage’.
As always, logistics are an import factor. In the end, Karol drove from Northampton to pick up Grant in Warwickshire. Together Karol drove us to Malvern in Worcestershire to meet Paul and Issac. After the obligatory cup of tea (thanks Jo Hartwright!) we all loaded into Isaac’s pickup and set off, via Hereford, for Llangattock.
The weather was warm but slightly overcast which made getting changed a delight and the walk over to the cave reasonably pleasant in full kit. It was one of those days where going underground was a pleasure to find some cooler temperatures. We entered the cave at 11.20am and signed in for a trip to Midnight Passage.
The usual route, through the entrance series and into Baron’s Chamber was uneventful. Once here, we moved deeper into the cave, soon arriving at the entry to the 2nd Boulder Choke. Here, we diverged from our ‘usual’ route – down towards Northwest Junction – and instead, turned left and climbed a short, awkward step up before heading into Midnight Passage. For 3 of us, we’d never been here before: for one of us (Paul) it had been over 40 years since his last visit!
Needless to say - we were all very interested in exploring this (new to us) area of Agen Allwedd. The passage is dry, sandy and offers a variety of heights ranging from flat-crawls to easy standing height. At times it was quite picturesque with loads of lovely crystals shimmering on the walls. After 10mins or so we reached a low crawl with options to turn right or head straight on. At this point, Paul took a break to eat his Mars bar while the rest of us pushed on into, what we discovered were, the last few metres of Midnight Passage.
Curiously, there was a strong draught flowing (out) however, as we approached the furthest reaches of the passage, it weakened and dropped off to almost nothing. Here we found the way ahead to be a small, tight dig. Only Karol was brave (thin?) enough to wiggle himself partially in. Within metres he abandoned his effort and pulled back to larger passage where Isaac and I gently tried (unsuccessfully) to encourage him back into the dig. It was at this time that I realised that the strong draft we’d been feeling all the way in to Midnight Passage must have ‘gone somewhere’. Retracing my steps a few metres, I discovered the mouth of a mud-blocked side-passage on my left (travelling out). The mud looked very diggable with a few melon-sized rocks in it and I made a note to discuss with Paul (Dad) in case he could explain why this hadn’t been pushed. (He couldn’t!)
As we withdrew from the end of passage, Karol and Isaac decided to take the other branch in the passage (a right turn travelling out) which took them into a high rift passage. Karol tested a few climbing moves and convinced himself that it might be possible to chimney up the rift but discovered that it widened out higher up, making further progress difficult and the return to the bottom highly likely to become strongly gravity-assisted. At this point he wisely withdrew.
We then reunited with Paul and managed to get ourselves quite excited about the possibility of returning another day, with few basic digging tools, to have a scratch around where the draught appeared to be emerging from. The report for this will have to wait for another day.
We all emerged from the cave without incident and had a lovely walk back along the tramroad to Isaac’s pick-up before loading up and returning home, dreaming (as we so often do) of finding ‘big-passage’.
Pant Mawr Pot – 4th August 2019
Today we had two caving trips on and a walking group. We met up at SWCC for about 9.30am and after using the facilities at SWCC we started to get kitted up ready for the long walk over to Pant Mawr Pot. This is when Pauline realised that she had not packed her caving suit, so I did a quick trip home and back to retrieve such item. Once I had returned, everyone else was already here. So we soon got kitted up and was ready to go. Our group consisted of Barry, Pauline, Grant, Adam and Isaac. We left the other OFD2 group still getting changed as we had a good hour walk before we get to the cave; luckily enough the weather was being kind, although warm and dry there was still a bit of a breeze keeping us a bit cooler.
Once at the cave entrance, we put on our SRT kits and sorted kit out. Then I started to rig the line down to the ledge and onto the bridge where I could rig the Y-hang to descend, whilst I was doing this Pauline came down and rigged the ladder and lifeline, this way we all had the choice of which way to descend. At the bottom it was much more comfortable temperature wise, plus with all the dry weather there was very little water falling down with us. We left all our kit in the normal dry alcove around the corner, and then started our trip. With there not being much water around it was easy to walk in the stream without getting wet feet, we managed to get through the first boulder choke and were quickly at the second choke where we climbed up and into Straw Chamber with a traditional photo shoot, it was then down again and out of the choke, now not far until the climb up to the Vestry, So with dumping our bags here we started the climb up, and the calcited slope is always entertaining, The Vestry is still as pretty as I always remember, with it’s amassing array of heliticts with various lengths up to about 9 inches long. We then descended the Calcited slope carefully as you do not want to overshoot the end, then we climbed up into the Organ Loft with it’s lovely calcite wall and some nice deep holes into passage below. Then we made our way back down into the main passage and retrieve our bags before continuing onwards and through the final third boulder choke and into the Great Hall. This is where the passage got a lot larger, at the Fire Hydrant the water was still spurting out well, although we have seen it under much more pressure. Now the passage was still large but feeling a lot darker as all the walls and roof had a covering of mud which is where it fills with water and just leaves this residue as the water disappears over time, but we were able to continue today and eventually get into the narrow passage which ends in a small sump.
From here there was no way to go but to now start our return trip, at the end of the Great Hall we stopped for a snack, but when we set off again the others obviously did not see Barry and Pauline going down through the Boulder Choke so they took a scenic trip somewhere else, but as we noticed that no one was following us, Pauline went back and made vocal connection with them and we were then reunited again. The rest of the trip was uneventful and we were soon at the base of the entrance pitch. It was now time to put our SRT kits back on and start the ascents. I was up first, so then transferred myself over the life-line the ladder. It was pleasant on top as there was a slight amount of drizzle in the air. Adam was last to SRT up, so he de-rigged on route and I packed ropes etc. As we were running slightely behind time, Pauline and Isaac went ahead to remove our ticket off the Call Out board whilst the rest of us packed all the kit away and followed on. Once back at SWCC the OFD2 trip had been a success and they had gone, but we meet up with some of the walking group. So it seems that we all had a good day out.
Once at the cave entrance, we put on our SRT kits and sorted kit out. Then I started to rig the line down to the ledge and onto the bridge where I could rig the Y-hang to descend, whilst I was doing this Pauline came down and rigged the ladder and lifeline, this way we all had the choice of which way to descend. At the bottom it was much more comfortable temperature wise, plus with all the dry weather there was very little water falling down with us. We left all our kit in the normal dry alcove around the corner, and then started our trip. With there not being much water around it was easy to walk in the stream without getting wet feet, we managed to get through the first boulder choke and were quickly at the second choke where we climbed up and into Straw Chamber with a traditional photo shoot, it was then down again and out of the choke, now not far until the climb up to the Vestry, So with dumping our bags here we started the climb up, and the calcited slope is always entertaining, The Vestry is still as pretty as I always remember, with it’s amassing array of heliticts with various lengths up to about 9 inches long. We then descended the Calcited slope carefully as you do not want to overshoot the end, then we climbed up into the Organ Loft with it’s lovely calcite wall and some nice deep holes into passage below. Then we made our way back down into the main passage and retrieve our bags before continuing onwards and through the final third boulder choke and into the Great Hall. This is where the passage got a lot larger, at the Fire Hydrant the water was still spurting out well, although we have seen it under much more pressure. Now the passage was still large but feeling a lot darker as all the walls and roof had a covering of mud which is where it fills with water and just leaves this residue as the water disappears over time, but we were able to continue today and eventually get into the narrow passage which ends in a small sump.
From here there was no way to go but to now start our return trip, at the end of the Great Hall we stopped for a snack, but when we set off again the others obviously did not see Barry and Pauline going down through the Boulder Choke so they took a scenic trip somewhere else, but as we noticed that no one was following us, Pauline went back and made vocal connection with them and we were then reunited again. The rest of the trip was uneventful and we were soon at the base of the entrance pitch. It was now time to put our SRT kits back on and start the ascents. I was up first, so then transferred myself over the life-line the ladder. It was pleasant on top as there was a slight amount of drizzle in the air. Adam was last to SRT up, so he de-rigged on route and I packed ropes etc. As we were running slightely behind time, Pauline and Isaac went ahead to remove our ticket off the Call Out board whilst the rest of us packed all the kit away and followed on. Once back at SWCC the OFD2 trip had been a success and they had gone, but we meet up with some of the walking group. So it seems that we all had a good day out.
Dan Yr Ogof - Hanger Passage 6th July 2019
Barry and Pauline were already waiting in the carpark when Adam and Grant arrived, themselves 15 minutes earlier than the appointed 10am meeting time and the sun was shining. This trip was off to a good start! It didn’t take long to make use of the wonderfully civilised facilities offered by the DYO hosts and we all felt suitably relieved. We even managed to resist the temptation of bacon sarnies being cooked in the café kitchens.
Our objectives for the day were soon agreed. We’d make a beeline for the entrance to the Green Canal but then spend time exploring the Hanger Passages and any other side passages that took our fancy during the return journey to the entrance. Sorted!
It was strong party that prepared to enter the cave. Pauline sorted the admin at the gate and the rest of us played with the dinosaurs. We were especially intrigued by the beast with the wagging tail. Anyway, soon we were traversing the show cave, enjoying the lit passages and the flat concrete walkways. The real cave started soon enough. Three of us climbed over the fence at the end of the show cave and one went underneath, amidst numerous height-ist joking comments.
The shock of cold water hitting our nether-regions was considerable. As usual, we kept left and safely waded through the entrance pools and clambered up the waterfalls. The cold was soon a distant memory as we rose from the river and emptied our wellies. Next we had a short climb up into the entrance series. As a small and competent group we found we were moving easily and rapidly through the cave. The first real ‘test’ was the Trough. It is a small, wet orifice and never gets any more appealing.
I was playing tail-end-Charlie. Sadly, I couldn’t persuade Pauline to lie in the Trough and soak up all the water before I got into it. She nipped through like a water-shy minx and left me huffing and puffing my way into the Long Crawl. As with the Trough, it never seems to get easier. There were some seriously tight bits (#fatcaver) but nothing to concern any of us. In fact, when we arrived at the top of the ladder I was surprised that we’d fully traversed the Long Crawl and were making good time, despite there being no rush.
Barry was entertaining us with his photography exploits. It was a constant team-sport confirming whether the flash had actually fired or not. As always, the proof was in the pudding when Barry published his fabulous photographic trip-record within hours our emergence from the cave. We trekked on through the larger passages, bypassing Flabbergasm and romping up Grand Canyon and on to the start of the Green Canal. Interestingly, the water, despite being as cold as ever, was crystal clear. We could see the bottom of the Canal but even that privilege didn’t entice us to take the plunge. Today, our target was a sharp left turn up into Hanger Passage.
This proved to be a delightful route. The formations were amazing. Quite unspoilt (a tribute to cave’s management) and in places, spectacular. It was also a decent sized passage so progress was easy and rapid. Then we came to the boulder choke. Being the crack-team that we were, we split up looking for the way on. Barry and Pauline headed up into the gods while Adam disappeared down into the mud. The way forward proved to be the descent into the mud. After a few wrong turns, I found myself in the lead and, applying the historically proven technique of following the well worn rocks, soon emerged into large passage again. A few encouraging shouts guided the rest of the team through to join me.
Beyond the boulder choke, we were presented with route options. We democratically agreed to head first into Hanger North. This led us into various interesting passages which we explored in depth. Barry, as always, recorded the formations and features. Our next move was back to explore Hanger South. This had some interesting formations as well as lots of copper coloured mud.
After a good exploration we returned through the boulder choke and back to the Green Canal. Here, we stopped for a snack and sip of water. Various bags and boxes were opened and snacks emerged. Adam found that water had got into his tuck box and he unpeeled a soggy Double Decker bar. It was super-soggy. It’s structure had disintegrated and Adam, in an attempt to capture the calorie-hit, prepared to shove it into his mouth in-one. Just as it touched his lips, I happened to shine my light on it and, to my horror, saw furry green mould growing on it. The bar had been water logged during a previous trip and had taken the intervening weeks as an opportunity to culture penicillin. Anyway, he wasn’t impressed and made beeline for the Green Canal. The crystal clear water then turned a slightly mucky brown as he used the water as a mouthwash. We all wondered if he’d manage to lower the level of the Canal before he stopped swilling.
Our next minor drama occurred when we climbed down from the step near the Green Canal. It’s only a drop of 2-3m but it is awkward. I made mistake, believing that I could slide over the edge, hang by my arms and drop to the floor. In the event, I slid over the edge and kept on falling until I hit the floor and fell backwards against Barry’s well placed leg. It was all rather inelegant and gave my coccyx quite a bash.
Drama over, we continued with our objective to explore side passages on the way out. Our main detour took us into Corbel’s Chamber. This was lovely and presented us with more amazing crystal creations.
Our final ritual, during our exit, was to wash off in the pools of the main entrance series. This was our last chance to remove the copper mud acquired in the Hanger North and South passages. Finally, we emerged into the show cave and extinguished our lights to prevent intrusions into the tourists experience. A quick check out at the entrance gate and we were down to the Carpark and changing out of our clean wet kit.
As we walked towards the carpark, Jan appeared and reminded us that we were holding our committee meeting in the café. All in all, we had a fun-filled and highly productive day. Thanks to Barry and Pauline for leading us into adventure and Adam and I for providing the entertainment.
It was another fabulous HCC club trip despite a small (but perfectly formed) turnout. That’s typical of July when everyone’s on holiday. Roll on next month.
Our objectives for the day were soon agreed. We’d make a beeline for the entrance to the Green Canal but then spend time exploring the Hanger Passages and any other side passages that took our fancy during the return journey to the entrance. Sorted!
It was strong party that prepared to enter the cave. Pauline sorted the admin at the gate and the rest of us played with the dinosaurs. We were especially intrigued by the beast with the wagging tail. Anyway, soon we were traversing the show cave, enjoying the lit passages and the flat concrete walkways. The real cave started soon enough. Three of us climbed over the fence at the end of the show cave and one went underneath, amidst numerous height-ist joking comments.
The shock of cold water hitting our nether-regions was considerable. As usual, we kept left and safely waded through the entrance pools and clambered up the waterfalls. The cold was soon a distant memory as we rose from the river and emptied our wellies. Next we had a short climb up into the entrance series. As a small and competent group we found we were moving easily and rapidly through the cave. The first real ‘test’ was the Trough. It is a small, wet orifice and never gets any more appealing.
I was playing tail-end-Charlie. Sadly, I couldn’t persuade Pauline to lie in the Trough and soak up all the water before I got into it. She nipped through like a water-shy minx and left me huffing and puffing my way into the Long Crawl. As with the Trough, it never seems to get easier. There were some seriously tight bits (#fatcaver) but nothing to concern any of us. In fact, when we arrived at the top of the ladder I was surprised that we’d fully traversed the Long Crawl and were making good time, despite there being no rush.
Barry was entertaining us with his photography exploits. It was a constant team-sport confirming whether the flash had actually fired or not. As always, the proof was in the pudding when Barry published his fabulous photographic trip-record within hours our emergence from the cave. We trekked on through the larger passages, bypassing Flabbergasm and romping up Grand Canyon and on to the start of the Green Canal. Interestingly, the water, despite being as cold as ever, was crystal clear. We could see the bottom of the Canal but even that privilege didn’t entice us to take the plunge. Today, our target was a sharp left turn up into Hanger Passage.
This proved to be a delightful route. The formations were amazing. Quite unspoilt (a tribute to cave’s management) and in places, spectacular. It was also a decent sized passage so progress was easy and rapid. Then we came to the boulder choke. Being the crack-team that we were, we split up looking for the way on. Barry and Pauline headed up into the gods while Adam disappeared down into the mud. The way forward proved to be the descent into the mud. After a few wrong turns, I found myself in the lead and, applying the historically proven technique of following the well worn rocks, soon emerged into large passage again. A few encouraging shouts guided the rest of the team through to join me.
Beyond the boulder choke, we were presented with route options. We democratically agreed to head first into Hanger North. This led us into various interesting passages which we explored in depth. Barry, as always, recorded the formations and features. Our next move was back to explore Hanger South. This had some interesting formations as well as lots of copper coloured mud.
After a good exploration we returned through the boulder choke and back to the Green Canal. Here, we stopped for a snack and sip of water. Various bags and boxes were opened and snacks emerged. Adam found that water had got into his tuck box and he unpeeled a soggy Double Decker bar. It was super-soggy. It’s structure had disintegrated and Adam, in an attempt to capture the calorie-hit, prepared to shove it into his mouth in-one. Just as it touched his lips, I happened to shine my light on it and, to my horror, saw furry green mould growing on it. The bar had been water logged during a previous trip and had taken the intervening weeks as an opportunity to culture penicillin. Anyway, he wasn’t impressed and made beeline for the Green Canal. The crystal clear water then turned a slightly mucky brown as he used the water as a mouthwash. We all wondered if he’d manage to lower the level of the Canal before he stopped swilling.
Our next minor drama occurred when we climbed down from the step near the Green Canal. It’s only a drop of 2-3m but it is awkward. I made mistake, believing that I could slide over the edge, hang by my arms and drop to the floor. In the event, I slid over the edge and kept on falling until I hit the floor and fell backwards against Barry’s well placed leg. It was all rather inelegant and gave my coccyx quite a bash.
Drama over, we continued with our objective to explore side passages on the way out. Our main detour took us into Corbel’s Chamber. This was lovely and presented us with more amazing crystal creations.
Our final ritual, during our exit, was to wash off in the pools of the main entrance series. This was our last chance to remove the copper mud acquired in the Hanger North and South passages. Finally, we emerged into the show cave and extinguished our lights to prevent intrusions into the tourists experience. A quick check out at the entrance gate and we were down to the Carpark and changing out of our clean wet kit.
As we walked towards the carpark, Jan appeared and reminded us that we were holding our committee meeting in the café. All in all, we had a fun-filled and highly productive day. Thanks to Barry and Pauline for leading us into adventure and Adam and I for providing the entertainment.
It was another fabulous HCC club trip despite a small (but perfectly formed) turnout. That’s typical of July when everyone’s on holiday. Roll on next month.
