Photo © Andy Waddington, 1989
+ +View across the plateau towards Hinterer Schwarzmooskogel (skyline +to left). Bräuninghöhle (1623/82), found by CUCC in 1977, is the walk-in entrance about a third of the way up the diagonal from the bottom +left corner. The 161a entrance is just over the skyline on the right. +
For a better view of the plateau from a higher viewpoint see: +
+
The steep north slopes of the Bräuning Nase can be climbed -via a shallow gully. At the north end of its short ridge, by hacking through +
+View of the nearer plateau from the Bräuning Nase
+Photo © Andy Waddington, 1978
+ + +The Hinter Schwarzmooskogel is the peak in the centre of the view, +the Steinbrückhöhle Top Camp location is at the top left, but this photo was taken +24 years before we established ourselves there in 2002. +
This photo was taken from the steep north slopes of the Bräuning Nase +which can be climbed +via a shallow gully. At the north end of the Bräuning Nase short ridge, by hacking through dwarf pine, Laser Point 0/7 can be found, in an entertaining position perched over the cliff down to the -Schwarzmoossattel. The actual summit is at the south end of the ridge, and +Schwarzmoossättel. The actual summit is at the south end of the ridge, and views of the plateau from anywhere on the top are restricted by the clinging pines. This view is from the ridge leading west from the Nase towards the higher points of the Bräuning wall. Compare this 1978 shot with the more recent (1996) view from the Bräuning Nase to see how vegetation has changed since CUCC started to visit the area. -
This shot was taken ten years before we first camped on the plateau. -Top Camp would eventually be sited just off the bottom of the picture left of centre. Behind this, an area of +
This shot was taken ten years before we first camped on the plateau just over the col
+in 1988.
+Old (Schwarzmoossättel)Top Camp
+would eventually be sited just off the bottom of the picture left of centre. Behind this, an area of
limestone karren with noticeable diagonal scarps is the location of
1623/171 whilst to the right and nearer is
another patch of bare karren containing B11,
@@ -30,8 +41,6 @@ Hinterer Schwarzmooskogel is the peak on the skyline left of centre, and
Kaninchenhöhle's top entrance
lies just in from the right hand edge of the picture on the horizon.
-
Photo © Andy Waddington, 1978
-
Above Top camp, the steep slopes of the Bräuning Nase can be climbed +
+The far plateau
+Photo © Andy Waddington, 1996
+ + +This view of the far plateau from the Bräuning Nase shows the Hinter Schwartzmooskögl +on the skyline to the right, and from the left: the Grösser Wildkögl +(looking like a ridge), the +Kleine Wildkögl (with a flat top) and the Greiskögl (the pointy one). +The Augst-Eck is the imperceptibly low rise in the middle, on which we +have had our Top Camp since 2002. + + + +
Above Old Top camp just beyond the col, the steep slopes of the Bräuning Nase
+can be climbed
via a shallow gully. At the north end of its short ridge, by hacking through
dwarf pine, Laser Point 0/7
can be found, in an entertaining position perched over the cliff down to the
@@ -28,8 +43,6 @@ Hinterer Schwarzmooskogel is the peak on the skyline on the right, and Kaninchenhöhle's top
entrance lies some way off the right hand edge of the picture on the horizon.
-
Photo © Andy Waddington, 1996
-
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+
+
+
+Access to the area is relatively easy at its southern edge, as the Loser Panoramastraße (a toll road) climbs the southern slopes of Loser to reach a large parking area and self-service @@ -28,10 +38,6 @@ plateau and the areas around the Schönberg, Gries Kogel and Augst-Eck ridges are remote - being large pathless areas of rough karren with little or no water supplies except for snowmelt. The Stone-Bridge bivi site between the Hinter Schwarmooskogel and Neid Augst-Eck makes it practical to expore this area.
-
-Plateau visualisation from Aven
Within this area (1623), by far the majority of caves are above 1500m in an area from around Augst See, along the major ridge line of @@ -41,7 +47,7 @@ Schwarzmooskogel towards Augst-Eck (forming a long strip on the SE of
-Plateau visualisation from Aven
Plateau visualisation from Aven - looking towards Bräuning Nase and Loser with SMK system caves superimposed
There are approaching two hundred caves known at present in the area, so for @@ -53,25 +59,6 @@ geographical distinction. Apart from a few caves found in the first couple of years, CUCC's work has been confined to just the first four of these smaller areas, though the map overlaps onto most of the others.
-
-
-
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+
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+
+
Plateau visualisation from Aven - looking towards Bräuning Nase and Loser
+ + +
+Photo © Andy Waddington, 1995
+This is a view from just above Old Top Camp (to the left of the Sattel) out across the centre and eastern half of the Loser-AugstEck Plateau, typical of the first view a new visitor @@ -20,8 +22,13 @@ peak is being used (or take bearings on both !). Just in front these peaks is th beginning of the adjacent 1626 kataster area. The bivvy used since 2000 is out of sight to the right.
-Photo © Andy Waddington, 1995
- + +For a better view of the nearer plateau from a higher viewpoint see: +
+
+
+
+Beyond the comparatively accessible area of plateau just over the -Schwarzmoossattel, explored by CUCC, lies a vast +Schwarzmoossattel lies a vast area of limestone karren and dwarf spruce. Exploration is deterred by the lack of paths, almost complete absence of water supplies and possible places -to camp and just general inaccessibility - there is still plenty of cave to -find nearer to Old Top Camp by the Schwarzmoossattel.
+to camp and just general inaccessibility. This is the main area of CUCC exploration since 2000. + +
+
+
+
+
+
+An area right at the far edge of the 1623 @@ -26,7 +37,7 @@ may prove to mean the SE face of Nieder Augst-Eck, which could be included in the Schwarzmooskogel to Wildensee area, but this is sufficently -uncertain that we treat it here. This is the main area of CUCC exploration since 2000.
+uncertain that we treat it here.Lancaster University Speleological Society held two expeditions (in 1987 and 1988) into an area on the very northern edge of 1623, and most caves they
