Hirlatzhoehle Excursion
Fri 17 Aug 2012
Julian
A team of 10 led by Gottfried met at 8.15. It's a 40 min steep slog up from the carpark at the Simony Denkmal above Hallstatt to the entrance on a small footpath next to a fresh landslide then up a 4m ladder into the gated entrance with a gale coming out of it. Gottfried said it was even stronger in the winter - the whole cave drafted more than any I've known I think. The first section to the Zul??nger is common to all trips - there are 5 entrances to the Hirlatz system but the others have sumps or are difficult to access. Q. slow going with a large group up lots of aluminium ladders + then down until a final ladder to a major junction where we went left to the Alter Teil whilst the main W and E sections of the system are off to the right. Left soon brought us to a stream rift + a traverse left then up more ladders + past 2 campsites to Bachschwinde where a few of us traversed along the final narrow Streamway until it got crawly. Met the 2 other groups as we returned and then 3 of us headed towards Nordriften which was fun rifty streamway. Mark took some shots of the traverse + I wasn't allowed to go on further excursions as Mark had had enough so out to the sunshine. Our trips were the first in there since February, amazing. A fine trip - several kilometres of huge borehole.
Julian
T/U: 6½hrs
A team of 10 led by Gottfried met at 8.15. It's a 40 min steep slog up from the carpark at the Simony Denkmal above Hallstatt to the entrance on a small footpath next to a fresh landslide then up a 4m ladder into the gated entrance with a gale coming out of it. Gottfried said it was even stronger in the winter - the whole cave drafted more than any I've known I think. The first section to the Zul??nger is common to all trips - there are 5 entrances to the Hirlatz system but the others have sumps or are difficult to access. Q. slow going with a large group up lots of aluminium ladders + then down until a final ladder to a major junction where we went left to the Alter Teil whilst the main W and E sections of the system are off to the right. Left soon brought us to a stream rift + a traverse left then up more ladders + past 2 campsites to Bachschwinde where a few of us traversed along the final narrow Streamway until it got crawly. Met the 2 other groups as we returned and then 3 of us headed towards Nordriften which was fun rifty streamway. Mark took some shots of the traverse + I wasn't allowed to go on further excursions as Mark had had enough so out to the sunshine. Our trips were the first in there since February, amazing. A fine trip - several kilometres of huge borehole.