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<font size="-1">Cambridge Underground 1999 pp 82-88</font>
<h1>Expo '97</h1>
<h3>Julian Haines</h3></center>

<h4><span lang="de">Kaninchenh&ouml;hle</span> - 10 years on</h4>

<h3>Introduction</h3>

<p>In July 1997, Cambridge University Caving Club (CUCC) embarked upon its
10th annual expedition to the <span lang="de">Kaninchenh&ouml;hle</span> cave
system in the Totes Gebirge (<b>Dead Mountains</b>), Austria. The first CUCC
expedition to the Totes Gebirge area of Austria took place in the summer of
1976 and, with the exception of 1986, the club has returned every year since.
Since it's discovery by CUCC in 1988, these expeditions have concentrated
almost exclusively on the <span lang="de">Kaninchenh&ouml;hle</span> system.

<p>By the end of the 1996 expedition, the explored and surveyed length of
<span lang="de">Kaninchenh&ouml;hle</span> was 19.7km with a total depth of
just under 500m from the highest entrance. There were many unexplored leads
(almost 200) with the known southern extremity of the cave reasonably close
to the very large <span
lang="de-at">Schwarzmooskogel-Eish&ouml;hle-Stellerwegh&ouml;hle</span>
system. Many very promising leads had also been left at the northern end of
the cave, due not only to the length of trip required in order to investigate
them, but also the huge number of exciting finds much nearer to the new
entrance, discovered at the end of the 1995 expedition.

<p>Around 20 cavers took part in this year's trip, most with previous
experience of caving abroad but, also a number for whom this was their first
taste of expedition caving. As luck would have it, the beginning of the
expedition coincided with serious flooding across Eastern Europe and although
Bad Aussee was on the edge of the bad weather, there was enough rain to be a
serious hindrance and for a bridge to be washed away.

<h3>Steinschlagschacht and the quest for
<span lang="de">Eish&ouml;hle</span></h3>

<p>At the southernmost extremity of
<span lang="de">Kaninchenh&ouml;hle</span> is a nasty, loose, sharp area of
cave known as the Forbidden Land. This might not have been given a second
look, but for the fact that it was the only known south-westerly going lead
in the vicinity and a connection to the nearby 25km
Schwarzmooskogel-Eish&ouml;hle system was tantalisingly close. Whilst some of
the most interesting exploration was promised by the Forbidden Land, the
extremely unpleasant boulder choke entrance to this area made the prospect of
a significant number of trips here unappealing to the majority, if not all,
of this year's expedition cavers. For this reason a great deal of interest
was shown in <span lang="de">Steinschlagschacht</span> (<b>1623/136</b>),
originally explored by CUCC in 1983/4, which we knew from the survey to be
extremely close to connection with the Forbidden Land. The possibility of a
new, safer route into this area was considered sufficiently likely to warrant
a re-exploration of this cave. Old log book accounts talked of 'phreatic
ramps' at around -150m, although the exact nature of these was unclear, as
was the exact depth of them. The original exploration had not produced a
drawn-up survey and it was by no means certain that such data as existed was
connected correctly to the <span lang="de">Kaninchenh&ouml;hle</span> survey.

<!-- photos/steinsurv.psSurvey of <span lang="de">Steinslagschacht.</span> -->

<p>So with considerable anticipation tempered by a little wariness of the
cave's name (<b>Stonefall Shaft</b>), a party of two began the
re-exploration. The origin of the name quickly became apparent as the
entrance consists of a steep (45$^o$), loose boulder slope opening directly
onto the first pitch! Extensive use was made of the drill in re-rigging the
pitch in a fashion that avoided the worst of the stonefall. The entrance
pitch is a fine 35m shaft, at the foot of which was found a small connection
to a large boulder strewn chamber. The original route was ignored at this
point, despite being apparent from the presence of an old spit, since a more
convincing shaft was also present. However, after a little more rigging
further spits were found, indicating that we'd merely taken the direct
descent whereas originally a more circuitous route was followed. Owing to the
presence of the old spits, rigging was swift with only a small number of
additional anchors being required, until a divergence was reached at around
-150m.

<p>Interest grew among others on the expedition, as it soon became apparent
that there was plenty to explore in <span lang="de">Steinschlagschacht</span>
and that it was actually much safer than the name suggested. Further trips
followed. The original route had continued straight down from the divergence
discovered earlier, however that looked a bit wet and uninviting so the
tangential Eyehole Route was pushed instead. It is unclear as to why this was
not explored previously; it is possible that the eyehole had not been noticed
previously or simply that depth was the main goal. Either way, after another
couple of trips and a lot more rigging with a further 200m of rope, an
enormous chamber was discovered. This was later named The Theatre due to the
spectacular views afforded from near the ceiling on later trips. The Theatre
is roughly 10m by 20m at the floor, with near vertical walls rising up to the
ceiling at an estimated height of around 60m!

<p>Early delight at having discovered such a magnificent chamber was quickly
followed by disappointment at the lack of ways on from the bottom. The floor
was a huge pile of boulders with a low connection through to a much smaller
chamber in one corner. Here there were a number of small wet avens (shafts
entering from the ceiling), clear pools of water and some mud, much like
elsewhere in <span lang="de">Kaninchenh&ouml;hle</span>. Back in the main
chamber was a nasty and unrewarding climb down through the boulders in the
floor and an obvious black space some distance up the walls at either end,
but no obvious continuation. Much surveying was done and a retreat beaten to
base camp to ponder on what to do next.

<p> <a href="../../smkridge/161/l/jh9719.htm"><img alt="" width=150
height=200 align="left" hspace=10 vspace=10
src="../../smkridge/161/t/jh9719.jpg"></a><b>Andy Atkinson descending towards
The Theatre, <span lang="de">Steinschlagschacht.</span></b> (Julian Haines)
<br clear="all">

<p>After entering the data into the computer, Survex showed that although
we'd not connected we were within 25m horizontally and 30m or so below a
potential connection with the Forbidden Land. The implication of this was
that the connection, if there was one, lay about half-way up the The Theatre
on the opposite wall to that where we'd entered the chamber -- not at all an
easy place to reach! However, the temptation to attempt a connection was too
great to resist, so a party of two left base camp early on the morning
following the expedition dinner with the intention of doing just that. A
considerable amount of effort was needed since a near horizontal traverse had
to be rigged around the wall, a little below the ceiling of the Theatre, 40m
above the nearest floor. The drill again proved invaluable and it is doubtful
as to whether such a traverse would have been rigged without it. Eventually a
suitable place was found to descend first to an eyehole and then to a ledge
way above the floor of The Theatre. Here was the much hoped for connection to
the Forbidden Land, although in a different place to that anticipated at the
beginning of the expedition and certainly by different means!

<p>The survey was examined once again and a plan concocted. It was apparent
that <span lang="de">Elin Algor,</span> a long straight passage in the
Forbidden Land, was roughly co-linear with the main wall of The Theatre and
apparently all one development in the formation of the cave. Since there had
been a horizontal connection at one end of The Theatre, it was surmised that
there ought to be another at a similar height but at the opposite end of the
chamber, continuing in the direction of <span lang="de">Eish&ouml;hle.</span>
Some required more than a little persuasion that this was a realistic
possibility, but eventually a number of trips were made with a view to
finding said passage. More hair-raising rigging followed in order to traverse
in the opposite direction around the wall of The Theatre and eventually a
hole in the wall was found at about the expected elevation. Unfortunately
this rapidly turned into a parallel shaft series, eventually connecting at
the floor of The Theatre and with no further obvious leads!

<p>So for the time being the connection to <span
lang="de">Eish&ouml;hle</span> remains elusive, although prospects in this
area for next year still look very good.

<h3>Triassic Park -- the sequel</h3>

<p>The massive trunk passage of Triassic Park was discovered towards the end
of the 1995 expedition as a continuation of the <b>France</b> area of <span
lang="de">Kaninchenh&ouml;hle</span>, and soon led to the discovery of the
Scarface (<b>161d</b>) entrance. The new entrance provided much improved
access to this important section of cave and in 1996 it received considerable
attention. The main passage turns from trending north-east to north-west at
one point and it was around this area that a lead in the floor was pushed a
little last year.

<!-- photos/lwsurv.ps Survey of Lost World, <span lang="de">Kaninchenh&ouml;hle</span>. -->

<p>Named <b>Wheelchair Access</b> (in recognition of a steep ramp that
has to be negotiated and the relative age of the explorers) this was
an immediate target for the beginning of the expedition in 1997, due
to the ease of access and limited need for resources to push the cave
further. Initial exploration concentrated on two parallel rifts
partially explored at the end of the 1996 expedition. Investigation of
the series to the left was not promising, with difficult traversing
leading to blind pits, and success in the other right hand rift series
soon diverted attention. Initially an awkward, constricted, steeply
descending rift passage with mud concealing sharp calcite formations,
the passage quickly earned a bit of a reputation amongst the explorers,
and continuing the Wheelchair theme was named <b><span lang="de">Kein
Zimmer</span> rift</b> (<b>No Room Rift</b>)! Perseverance paid off however,
as just past a tight vertical section, the ramp broke out into a larger free
hanging drop, at the bottom of which, some small horizontal tubes led off.
Excitement mounted as a last short drop of 5m landed the explorers in a large
trunk passage, 4m in diameter, with a small stream in the floor heading
roughly North / South. It was inevitable this would become known as the Lost
World and was obviously a major and important piece of cave.

<p><a href="../../smkridge/161/l/dh1-29.htm"><img alt="" width=188 height=125
align="right" hspace=10 vspace=10
src="../../smkridge/161/t/dh1-29.jpg"></a><b>Mike Richardson at Lake
Bourneville, Upstream Lost World, <span
lang="de">Kaninchenh&ouml;hle</span>.</b> (Dave Horsley)<br clear="all">

<p>Upstream, a couple of big phreatic passages met in a large chamber in
which were found several bat skeletons - this would suggest another route in
from the surface, though whether this is accessible to cavers is another
matter! Beyond the chamber several routes unite at a 3m climb up, then down,
into a magnificent tall canyon passage over 7m wide. This had a dark pristine
flat mud floor and led to a large, old sump pool, now devoid of water, again
with a beautiful, cracked mud floor and the old water level clearly defined
by the dark mud on the white limestone walls. With reluctance, we headed
carefully (to minimise the damage to the delicate mud formations) over the
mud lake, and a 2m drop down a mud bank led to a downstream continuation
passage. This had obviously been completely under water at some stage in its
history and probably lies just below the level of the current valley beneath
the cliff in which the Scarface entrance is situated. The passage continues
down, with the current small stream weaving its way through bizarre mud
formations and ending at a small chamber with choked outlets and no easily
accessible way on.

<p>The downstream end was less complex with a single passage leading to a
pitch opening out over a large chamber with a boulder-strewn floor. A route
down through the boulders gained the true floor of the chamber where the
water disappeared into an impenetrable passage and leading up from this, a
larger passage ending at a mud and cobble choke. This may be associated with
similar choked passages in the upstream end of the Lost World.

<p>The passages were surveyed and photographed and all of the obvious leads
pushed to a conclusion, so for the time being the Lost World may be left
whilst more fruitful projects are pursued. However due to its location it is
almost certain that other sections of cave will connect through and perhaps
provide ways around the current limits of exploration at either end of what
is obviously only a small part of the original passage.

<h3>Siberia</h3>

<p>Siberia is roughly the most northerly point of <span
lang="de">Kaninchenh&ouml;hle</span>. It was discovered in 1994 and was known
to have many potentially good leads. Unfortunately by the original route it
was a somewhat long and arduous trip just to get to the pushing front. Since
the discovery of the Scarface entrance (161d) in 1995 and due mostly to the
large number of going leads near to the new entrance, Siberia has received
little attention up to now.

<p>However, this year new enthusiasm was found by a small group of expedition
members, none of whom had ever been to this area of the cave before. This
highlights the importance of painstakingly surveying and documenting the
cave, as often an area may be left several years until a good reason is found
to revisit it, more often than not, by a completely different group of
people. Much effort could be wasted if previously visited cave has to be
re-explored and re-surveyed.

<p>The Scarface entrance and connection of Triassic Park with Knossos in 1996
has reduced the journey time to Siberia by probably a couple of hours for
moderately experienced cavers. However, owing to some reluctance to re-rig
the tyrolean traverse (Strange Acrossfall), which would have been a long trip
in it's own right, all of this years trips took the more awkward and slower
route through the Burble Crawl instead. For a number of reasons it took three
trips before the pushing front, the top of a very large shaft called Somebody
Else's Problem, was reached. Since all members of the party were new to the
area, route finding (still difficult despite the existing surveys) was
certainly an issue and dragging tackle through the 100m Burble Crawl is hard
work. En route, Vom Pitch had not been rigged for several years and
complications due to the loose rock in this area caused a certain amount of
re-rigging to be necessary (A flake previously used as a rebelay had fallen
off in 1995). Unfortunately having eventually reached the shaft and placed a
number of bolts, it quickly became apparent that the shaft was much deeper
than had been anticipated and the rope was too short!

<p>The fourth trip was more successful. Enough rope was carried that it was
relatively straightforward, although slow, to rig the pitch. A 75m almost
free-hanging pitch was found in a large shaft with a strong breeze blowing up
it. At the foot of the pitch were a couple of climbs, one leading to a crawl
and another to a ~15m pitch with strong upwards breeze. This 15m pitch was
later descended and found to connect to a phreatic passage with an
undescended climb at the end of it, accompanied by the now ever present gale.
In the interests of maintaining reliable documentation, no further
exploration was carried out in this area, since there was already plenty of
surveying required! This was duly completed, including numerous side passages
in Siberia, which had only received cursory attention previously.

<p><a href="../../smkridge/161/l/dh1-17.htm"><img alt="" width=150 height=150
align="left" hspace=10 vspace=10
src="../../smkridge/161/t/dh1-17.jpg"></a><b>Mike Richardson in the tube of
Downstream Lost World, <span lang="de">Kaninchenh&ouml;hle</span>.</b> (Dave
Horsley)<br clear="all">

<h3>Other Work</h3>

<h4>Puerile Humour Series</h4>

<p>By the end of the 1996 expedition it was clear that Where the Wind Blows,
one of the Northward trending passages in the Puerile Humour series, could
potentially provide a significantly easier route to The Far End due to it's
close proximity at the 1996 exploration limit. This was an obvious question
mark to return to at the beginning of this year's expedition. The end of the
passage was drafting from three separate places, suggesting significant cave
beyond, and the nature of the passage suggested that the end was merely a
collapse area in an ongoing passage. A small hole in the mud floor was found
to lead to a large aven above and an ongoing pitch series below, however
progress down was stopped by a constriction. Continuing horizontally, the
passage quickly chokes at a boulder collapse, probably associated with the
aven / shaft series already mentioned. Some effort was made to dig through
the choke but concerns over the stability of the excavated passage soon
halted exploration. This remains an interesting area, but further progress
may require somebody experienced in the digging and shoring techniques
required to pass such a boulder choke safely.

<h4>Moomintrol</h4>

<p>In another series of passages leading off from Triassic Park, just beyond
an impressive aven, known as Zebedee, is a climb named Moomintrol. It was
discovered last year and noted because (a) it looked to be not too difficult
and (b) a large black space was visible at the top.

<p>The first party to attempt the climb this year considered, after putting
in a few bolts by hand, that it would be a much easier prospect using the
drill. As a justification to commandeer this important expedition resource,
they claimed that the shaft on the hammer of the hand bolting kit had snapped
(albeit by accident) and thus they were unable to do anything but return to
the surface to collect the drill. The second party had more success, despite
being unable to use the drill because the battery appeared flat, and after a
bold attempt at climbing, the top was reached. Another 30' shaft was found
and the sound of water ahead. Unfortunately it was by now time to derig, so
further exploration must once again wait for next year.

<h4>Alternative Universe</h4>

<p>This passage is an offshoot from the large Triassic Park trunk route, and
being only 10 minutes from the Scarface entrance was an obvious target for
further exploration. Work concentrated on a descending shaft series, wet in
places -- making this a potentially serious proposition since the average air
temperature in the cave is only just above freezing. The series descended
100m down, over several pitches, but ended in a tight, committing rift and a
further very tight descent which was abandoned due to the lack of a
sufficiently thin backup team member!

<h3>Surface Activities</h3>

<p>As a background activity we are always on the look out for other possible
entrances to either <span lang="de">Kaninchenh&ouml;hle</span> or as yet
undiscovered caves. The limestone plateau is riddled with holes, most of
which go to an insignificant depth, but also some quite large holes which are
still to be found and investigated. This surface prospecting work is
essential not only to further understanding of the cave systems in the area
but also in sustaining interest in the area for future generations of CUCC
members. Over the past 20 years we have discovered a great many such
entrances and shafts, however until recently documentation and labelling of
such finds has been sporadic. Over the last few years and indeed on this
year's expedition this problem has been addressed by the use of stamped
aluminium tags that are fixed to the cave entrances, these bearing numbers
assigned by the local caving group (VfHO) who maintain records of all known
caves in the area. To complement this work all important entrances are
located and mapped with the aid of GPS technology, backed up with more
accurate surface surveys. This ensures that re-exploration of caves is
minimised and has proved an essential tool in the investigation of possible
connections between existing cave systems.

<h3>Summary</h3>

<p>Over one hundred underground photographs were taken, many of different
subjects, some of which are shown here. Thanks are due to the expedition
photographers and in particular to all those 'extras' who stood (or hung)
shivering whilst the flashes failed and the lenses fogged! By the end of the
expedition a further 2.4km of cave had been surveyed and the overall depth
increased to just over 500m, owing to the slightly higher entrance of <span
lang="de">Steinschlagschacht.</span> There are still many promising leads,
with the exciting prospect of linking two, already very large, cave systems.
There will no doubt be many more trips to <span
lang="de">Kaninchenh&ouml;hle</span> in the future.

<h3>Acknowledgements</h3>

<p>Caving expeditions such as this are anything but cheap, especially when
viewed through the eyes of the increasingly impoverished students who make up
a significant proportion of the expedition. We owe a debt of gratitude to all
those organisations who have provided us with sponsorship in various forms,
for which we are very grateful and which has certainly contributed hugely to
the success of the expedition. Particular thanks must go to both the
Foundation for Sport and the Arts and also to the Sports Council for their
generous financial assistance. Thanks are also due to the Ghar Parau
Foundation for their assistance with grant application and recommendation.

<p>Other companies provided sponsorship in terms of food and equipment. Barts
spices, Campbells, Thomas Tunnock Ltd., Thorntons plc and Wander Ltd.
provided spices, sauces, caramel wafers, fudge and Ovaltine all of which
added dietary interest and improved morale of the expedition members. Aleph1
Ltd loaned us a computer for survey analysis, Nikwax donated a tub of their
famous boot waterproofing wax and Terra Nova provided discounts on tent
purchase.

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