CUCC Expeditions to Austria: 1976 - 2023

Tempted Earl down [Comment, in what looks like Mark's handwriting: ooh err!] with promise of long bolted traverses across Sirens. Unfortunately he managed to do it all on naturals (why do we bother with drills?) (Mind you, Earl was eyeing up the v. long traverse to the opposite side of the chamber where it looks like another phreatic passage may head off.) Popped over + it looked like it went - again - so we settled down for a long survey. Strong draft throughout most of the area. Straight on from the traverse, through the bracket-fungus rift gets to a convenient ledge behind a column overlooking what looked v.like the shaft we'd finished our survey on (Martin + me, 29/7/03, see in write-up). Earl rigged another traverse line on naturals along this ledge (superfluous?) + we kept surveying up the slope beyond. Ran out of time with plenty of horizontal QMs - Earl frustrated as we could have stomped around everywhere if we didn't have to wait for him to draw his damn pictures. V. odd little pool filled with ?mud/?calcite which we didn't survey to the end. Plenty to go back to next year - a whole new phreatic level? Derigged; I got 2 bags out + Earl got the remaining 2 bags tied to the bottom of the 70m Gaffered pitch. Another v. fine trip.

T/U 10hrs