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<title>CUCC's Austria expeditions: disclaimer</title>
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2004-04-23 00:11:39 +01:00
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<h1>Warning and disclaimer</h1>
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<p>Many of the caves described in these pages are in a Nature Reserve
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(Naturschutzgebiet), in which permission is legally required (and most often
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denied) for both caving and camping. Austria has a very strict cave
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conservation ethic - permission to cave is unlikely to be granted without the
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support of the local caving organisation, who are currently discouraging new
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exploration by any groups who have not previously worked in the area.</p>
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<p>Care should be taken where possible to stick to existing paths. Be aware
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that knowing the coordinates of a cave, and/or bearings to prominent landmarks,
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is no guarantee of being able to find it in the intricate and confusing
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limestone karren fields. Marking of caves or routes by paint is now strongly
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discouraged, more discrete metal tags being used instead. This makes caves even
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harder to spot from any distance away.</p>
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<p>Many of the caves were explored up to twenty years ago, using 8mm
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self-drilling anchors - the hangers were removed. Not all of these were
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well-placed, and some were placed for ladders, not SRT. All will have
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deteriorated, even though, in most cases, they were greased during derigging.
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Some of them are very hard to find (even with a detailed rigging guide) and
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omission of a critical rebelay or deviation can render a pitch much more
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dangerous either through abrasion or through greater exposure to floodwater.
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Many of the caves contain loose rock, many are subject to rapid flooding with
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very cold runoff water. Rocks can move, ice formations can form in different
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places each year and may be in a greater or lesser state of decomposition
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during the summer. What may have been safe rigging during the original
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exploration may not be safe today. Snow plugs on entrance pitches may collapse
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without warning. Other hazards may exist of which the original explorers were
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unaware.</p>
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<p>Please take these caves as you find them and treat their descent as if it
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was original exploration. It is up to the individual to satisfy his or herself
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that the descent is safe, that any belays used or reused are sound. CUCC does
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not maintain any of the anchors or fixed ropes in the caves except during their
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own continuing explorations and even then cannot guarantee their safety.
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Neither CUCC nor any member or guest of a CUCC expedition can be held
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responsible for any accident occurring to third parties descending any of the
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caves described here, even if using equipment placed by such persons. If you
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are not prepared to assume responsibility for your own safety, please stay out
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of these caves or take suitable training to ensure that you can assess and deal
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with the risks.</p>
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<p>Be aware that it can take considerable time for any rescue effort to be
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organised in this location, so visitors should aim to be self-reliant.
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Although the Austrian rescue organisation may be able to call upon the services
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of a helicopter, these cannot fly at night, and military operations will take
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priority over civilian rescue. You'll need a fluent German speaker (ie. able to
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converse accurately over the phone) to be able to make contact with the rescue
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service at all. It is in your interest to make contact with any other cavers or
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expeditions in the area, as well as the local caving groups, <b>before</b> any
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rescue effort is required. It is also your moral responsibility to offer
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assistance in the event that another group is involved in a rescue situation.
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Unlike rescues in the UK, which tend to use huge numbers of haulers, very few
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Austrian cavers are available for any given rescue. It may be helpful to read
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the <a href="handbook/rescue.htm">Rescue Guide</a> which CUCC uses on its
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expeditions.</p>
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<p>Finally, information presented here is gathered together from a wide variety
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of sources, from detailed reports written at the time of exploration to
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word-of-mouth from memory many years later. Although every care has been taken
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to ensure that it is correct (for our own use if nothing else :-), <b>neither
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CUCC nor the editors of this archive make any warranty as to the accuracy or
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currency of anything presented here</b>. In <b>ALL</b> cases, any opinions
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expressed are those of the contributing author, and do not necessarily reflect
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an official position of Cambridge University Caving Club or of any other body
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which they may appear to represent. Any representation of a legal or 'official'
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position reflects our best efforts at understanding, but should not be taken as
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an authoritative source. Errors, omissions and misunderstandings are
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inevitable, especially when there are language barriers and only one visit to
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the area each year. Legal positions, regulations, policies and responsible
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bodies all change, and the latest situation may not yet have come to our
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attention. In no case can CUCC or the authors of information presented here be
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held responsible for any conflict, loss or consequential damage arising from
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the use of or inability to use the information. We would appreciate being
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informed of any errors, omissions or misunderstandings of which you become
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aware.</p>
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<p>Please also read our <a href="copyit.htm">copyright notice</a>.</p>
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<hr />
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<ul id="links">
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<li>Back to <a href="../index.htm">CUCC Home page</a></li>
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<li>Back to <a href="index.htm">Expedition Intro page</a></li>
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<li><b>Main Indices:</b>
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<ul>
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<li><a href="infodx.htm"><b>Index</b> to Expo</a> information pages</li>
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<li><a href="areas.htm">Description of CUCC's area</a> and split to subareas</li>
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<li>Full <a href="indxal.htm">Index to cave descriptions</a> in area 1623</li>
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<li>List of (links to) <a href="pubs.htm">published reports and logbooks</a></li>
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</ul></li></ul>
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</body> </html>
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