CUCC Expeditions to Austria: 1976 - 2024

The final camping party (Rob, Sarah and Colin) packed up and headed out in the morning whilst the Top Camp derig team (first Becka and Nat, heading in around 11, then Chris, James W, Adam and Fiona, heading in around 4) came in from the surface. Nat and I met Rob at the top of Hangmans with 2 drills in bags and a third lighter bag. We arm-twisted him to derig Mongol Rally with Colin as neither of us felt 100%. Nat then headed back up with Rob's bags whilst I went to the top of Mongol Rally to break the bad news to Colin (who stoically agreed to bounce back down Mongol Rally for more bags) and to meet Sarah who had 3 bags. Sarah and I shuttled her 3 bags and Colin's 2 bags up to the top of Hangmans with me feeling increasingly nauseous and spaced out. I decided I'd best not become a liability underground and set off out with just the one bag. I was relieved to make it back to Top Camp without flaking out and went straight to bed about 8pm. Nat and Sarah were the next out having dragged many bags out with Rob and Colin following later and the rope washing crew - James W, Chris, Adam and Fiona getting out last around 1am I believe.

For future reference, a team of 3 won't be able to derig the Balkon camp - there were around 11 bags to come out. So the surface derig team should set off early and expect to bounce camp and help get bags out. We left Hangmans and Honeycomb plus minor other pitches all rigged which meant there wasn't that much rope needing washing so we overestimated how many people were needed for that. However, it was slow going because the figure of 8's tied on the Mongol Rally single bolt rebelays were apparently a nightmare to untie.

SUMMARY OF RIGGING IN SITU / NOT IN BALKONHOEHLE AFTER EXPO 2024

- Mongol Rally - fully DERIGGED apart from an old rope on slope into Pitstop to aid the next rigger get onto the ledge

- traverse and short pitch at top of Mongol - LEFT IN PLACE

- traverse and slither out of crawl into chamber with Hangman's - LEFT IN PLACE

- traverse to bottom of Hangman's - LEFT IN PLACE

- Hangman's pitch - LEFT IN PLACE

- short pitch above Hangman's - LEFT IN PLACE

- handlines in rift - LEFT IN PLACE

- short pitch below Honeycomb - LEFT IN PLACE

- Honeycomb - LEFT IN PLACE

- short pitch in upper horizontal series - LEFT IN PLACE???

- traverse with water spout at one end - LEFT IN PLACE???

- pitch/handline and final traverse in upper horizontal series - LEFT IN PLACE???

- entrance series - DERIGGED

SUMMARY OF WASHED ROPE LEFT ON LINE AT 2ND TRAVERSE (WATER SPOUT) IN BALKONHOEHLE AFTER EXPO 2024

- all the Mongol Rally rope (approx 240m of 9mm cut into sections)

- 100m of green 8mm

- short length of 9mm 20m?

- no metalwork or tackle bags left at the waterpoint