Surface - Everyone not really caving
Adam Cooper
Poking further into various holes. The obvious pit by the "high level" route to 161 was descended using IRT (indestructible rope technique) after declining to use a Bunda belay. Ended at about 12m with a ledge about ½ way, choked as usual. Marked with '+'. Two other adjacent pits were free climbed. The nearest just a shallow pit. Other showed some minor horiz develop at bottom (about 15m) but collapsed. A hole was observed at about -4m (squeeze not suitable with T-shirt) into a pit with boulder floor. Not entered as too nasty & was in direction of first pit anyway. No number allocated as just pits. Continued via another shitty pit nearer to 161. Descended into opposite side of hill to plateau just poking about when we saw Wooks emerge from 161 new entrance! (see below). Dashed over to greet the dazed looking caver & found a spray painted cairn => foreigners (F or G) cave somewhere. Shortly found another entrance only ~12m from the new 161 entrance marked:
VSS2
88AF
1623/ [161c inserted here later - Ed]
-
Inside ent found a french mineral water bottle.
This was on a bearing ~30° from the 161 ent. Had a look inside & couldn't see any bolts at the obvious pitch head. There was a vocal connection through rubble only a few feet from the new 161 ent. Bolted pitch but as soon as had got far from the (very loose) pitch head found a spit. Continued a bit and found signs of frequent use (mud smeared all over walls as from oversuit contact)
Rough survey : from ent to pitch head ~6m on 50° 230° cave was steeply descending hading (steeply) rift going ~ mag north south. Obviously deeper than 50m
[comment with arrows to the two changed directions: I'm a div who can't tell red from white !]
Olly T/U: ~15 mins
Adam T/U: 1½ hrs
Next trip (connection to 161)