From cd07979a559052371b7149597ab5d53043a6c02a Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: "Philip Sargent (muscogee)"
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Access to the final sump is guarded by short siphons in each of the two passages going to the far end of the cave. These can be drained, but care should be taken to ensure they are drained towards the entrance, otherwise the final sump will become muddy. Visited by Mike Thomas and Pete Lancaster in 1989, as far as the short sumps.
A note on the geology : The north shore of the lake follows a large fault with a big throw, so that this cave is in the same block of limestone as the Stögerweg area caves. The Austrians think there is no hydrological connection between this cave/resurgence and the lake level, since vauclusian resurgences in the lake appear to be in a very different block of limestone which has been down-faulted relative to the plateau. However, it seems more likely that these risings are actually on the fault, and that the lake level, and the level of the sumps in this cave and in Stellerweghöhle are closely related.
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Small entrance in boulders in a dry gully drops into a small chamber, in the bottom corner of which is the excavated head of a pitch. This quickly bells out to 6m diameter and lands after 18m in a large passage which contains ice-formations early in the season (or at least did in the late 1970s). This large, phreatic passage leads to 83 (via Down Under) to the southwest (by climbing up the hading left wall into a higher level passage) and Ropeless to the northeast. The 1970's way on is down pitch in a rift almost opposite the entrance pitch, from which some of the draught pours.
+To the northeast, the passage is smaller and is soon broken by a 5m deep rift. Upstream (right) ends in a boulder choke below 2012-70, downstream (left) appears to connect to the 1970’s pitch series. To continue, the rift is crossed by a pendule to a chossy slope up on the other side. From the top of this slope a series of short dusty ramping pitches lead down. In 2012 a rope was only used at the top, but in 2013 it was rigged down to the bottom (p10, c3). At the bottom a short section of dusty crawling passage (draft in your face) leads to another rampy pitch. This is initially freehanging, but becomes more rampy (p10, c7). At the bottom of the rampy section, a rifty pitch continues below, and a traverse level heads off to the NNE and into Ropeless. There are two ways Ropeless can be gained. In 2012 the rigging ended when all available gear was used, and a bold traverse continued until it was (just) possible to climb down into the sandy passage. In 2013 more gear was available, and the drop was rigged down from the end of the traverse followed by a short (rigged) down and up to gain the same sandy passage.
+This sandy passage is followed against a strong draft. Shortly (~15m later) the passage bends to the right, and a smaller walking sized side passage leaves on the left (which is more obvious when going out) - this leads to Wonderland via Sea of Fudge and connections to the 1970’s route.
+Continuing east along the main Ropeless passage, a short climb down (rigged in 2013) and traverse across brings you into a large, drippy chamber with rocks all over the floor. At the end of this a small rift is descended (rope) down a narrow rubble slope which isn’t very stable, so beware of dislodging rocks onto people or the rope below (this may in fact be better rigged by traversing at a higher level from the chamber and then dropping when it opens out). After a few metres you land on a col with pitches to each side. West quickly ends in a too tight rift, East is descended to a rubble slope. Facing down the slope, Ropefree is through a window on the left-hand (north) wall, reached by a short rope traverse. From the top of this it is possible to scramble down the other side into another chamber. A strong draft emanates from a far too-tight right in the floor on the right. At the end of the chamber a tight rift can be gained at floor level, but it is better to bridge up and along, traversing over some rocks (avoiding one squeeze) to an unavoidable short squeeze (Pushing the Envelope). This is best entered feet first - there is a convenient ledge the other side (but do keep in mind there is a pitch below). Tackle is best passed through with at least one person on each side.
+Immediately through Pushing the Envelope, is a rift pitch that appears to continue down a fair way. Descend the top narrow part of the rift (rope) until it opens out where a traverse ledge takes you around the left side of the continuing pitch into Sleepless.
+Sleepless is a fairly high passage. It is best to follow it at floor level - there is an upper level but this ends in a tricky climb down through the boulders. Following the lower level (which soon splits off down a sloping climb on the right side of the passage) a short section of straight rift is soon followed by some pretty mud banks. The passage opens out and narrows again and continues until it is broken by a small hole. This can be crossed with a short traverse (rope). Beyond this, Sleepless appears to continue north with a pitch. The main way on is to ignoring this and follow ledges round to the right into a short section of curving phreatic passage. Shortly this hits the end of a large cross rift which heads off to the South. At this intersection, the draught is really strong and cold - this is the Coldest Place in Earth. Skirt around the end of the cross rift on the left (rope) to where a short pitch descends to a gloopy muddy floor.
+The Coldest Place in Earth is followed until a large pitch is reached. This is crossed by Easy Traverse (rope) round ledges on the LH wall. Beyond this, the passage is followed until a pitch is reached. The Twin Pitches are split by a wet muddy pool. At the bottom of the second part of the pitch the cave becomes more rift like - Restless.
+From the base of the second of the Twin Pitches, a floor trench soon starts. The best route we found was (description written from memory nearly a year later) to descend about 2m into in it fairly soon, then traverse along at that level for a bit, climbing down about another 2m near a chock stone (if you descend too quickly the rift is very awkward to move along - and coming out, it’s quite easy to miss where to climb up and find yourself trapped in the bottom of the rift, unable to get higher - if this happens, just backtrack looking carefully for where to climb up). The rift widens as it kinks left, and you want to descend onto the large ledge which is (hopefully) not far below. Traverse round as the rift bends back to the right, and the short Rift Pitch soon follows. This pitch ends on some ledges (but there is a continuation below), follow these ledges on. Continue along the rift, traversing on ledges and climbing down when possible past a small pool. The passage now widens and is broken by a large undescended pitch, Too Bold for This Spit. This is thought to connect with China 68m below. A traverse is made along the right hand wall to reach a passage on the other side with a chossy floor sloping up. From the top of this slope, head down the other side and follow the passage as it bends to the NE.
+The passage is broken by a short pitch Down and Up, abseil down this and climb the other side (free-climbable to rig, but really deserves a rope for normal use) to reach Land of Confusion. The main rift passage is high, but in places narrow, and can be followed past several easy climbs and side passages to reach the head of a large pitch, Korea.
+Korea can be descended to land at the south end of a large breakdown chamber with several ways on. To continue deeper cross to the North end of the chamber and wriggle down through the rocks until it opens out further. A series of pitches can be descended through the rocks into a continuing rift. To reach China, follow the southern wall to the west through breakdown and down a short climb until you break out into a large passage, China. Turning right in China quickly ends in a large muddy/bouldery wall, with a passage on the right which connects back to the Korea chamber via a short pitch. Turning left, China can be followed along and down until the passage eventually narrows, and progress is blocked by a pitch.
+Following the side passage from ropeless leads down several short climbs to come out in the wall of a slightly larger passage. Left here leads to a connection with the 1970’s route, and to another with Ropeless. Right leads to Wonderland via a short wet and muddy duck, the Sea of Fudge. When going through the pinch point, beware of a stalactite. After this the passage enlarges until it ends at a junction with a cross rift. To the right this soon ends, but left can be followed down a couple of climbs (the second is easiest if you follow the LHW) to land at the bottom a drippy aven. Climb up into a tall narrow rift on the other side, and wriggle through The Rabbit Hole (the wide point in an otherwise too narrow rift). This quickly becomes a keyhole passage with a walking sized phreatic part which is followed. The floor trench quickly leaves the main passage on the right (following the departing floor trench is awkward at first, but opens out at an undescended pitch).
+The main Wonderland passage is followed, past a small chamber on the left (with side passage doubling back), and then a second larger chamber. The is a climb up on the back wall of this chamber which appears to gain a passage above. A low way on at the end of the chamber reconnects with the main passage further west. The main passage suddenly gets much smaller and splits with a choked passage on the right and a small aven on the left.
+A pitch of 23m has an inlet entering part way down, which makes the rest of this pitch and the following one of 19m unpleasant in wet weather. Two ways then lead on, either down with the water or by traversing round this drop to another passage.
Climbing down with the water leads to a short passage with the water in a rift below. Round a sharp corner is a short drop to the head of a larger rift. A 5m pitch down this leads to another rift which, in turn, leads out to the side of a large shaft. Stones dropped from a small hole in the corner of the passage above the 5m pitch also fall into this shaft. Laddering from the side, the pitch is 67m with a large ledge just above half-way, and is unpleasantly wet in poor weather. From the base of this pitch, the continuing rift/canyon trends south west and has pitches of 5, 9 and 8m before the other route drops in from above.
Over the traverse, a short pitch of 4.5m, followed by a short climb up, leads to the head of a pitch of 10m to a boulder floor. Two ways on from here are down through the boulders into a shaft, or across the shaft and into a narrow rift. The way through boulders soon chokes, but the narrow rift soon opens into a massive shaft of 100m with a rebelay roughly halfway. This drops directly into the rift reached by the original route.
Below the junction, the rift continues with a 5m climb and pitches of 5, 14 and 44m, this last pitch being quite wet and emerging into a massive cross-rift trending south east. The water disappears into the choked floor of this rift via a nasty wet crawl, rapidly becoming too small.
1978 (grade 5) survey
Originally described here as 7m deep "Schwa Höhle 108": Horizontal entrance to a large chamber with narrow rift dropping away. Ends too tight.
However, a cave numbered 108 was relocated in 2004, which does not match this description at all. It's marked with paint "108" and has a spit in the centre of the "0". The spit isn't great, but there's a good chunky flake to use too. The shaft descends ~9m to a ledge. At this level there's a horizontal passage which leads immediately to a 4m deep blind rift pitch. Back in the main shaft, a few natural rebelays get you to a floor just under 30m down. At one end of the rift a draught emerges from rocks, but removing some rocks it appears it would need quite a lot of work to make progress and the continuation may be too small anyway. This cave seems a perfect match for the "deep sounding shaft" described as explored on 1979-08-05 in the 1979 log book.
The way on is up a climb of 3m to a horizontal passage. There is an area of hading rifts, not fully explored. The first hole descends a ramp over treacherous ice and rubble for 30m to the head of a pitch, Ibbeth Perilous Pot. A second parallel ramp connects to the same point. Both these ramps suffer from loose rock and are best tackled with a handline. The main pitch drops for 20m in a series of steps, best rigged. A final 13m drop then lands on a rock/ice blockage Marathon Ledge, which at one time contained the original explorer's helmet and lights, dropped from the head of the pitch. A hammered route past the blockage leads to two short drops, then a 6m pitch into the Opera House (see below).
A descent of the second major hole from the entrance is the normal route and leads to a ramp down, traverse across and the head of Point Five Gully. The gully is decorated with ice formations early in the season, as are all the useful hand- and footholds on the following ramp, so a rope is recommended to descend Fox's Glacier. At the foot, about 60m below the entrance chamber, is a low bouldery chamber, and a low arch leads to a larger chamber, Barnsley Methodist Chapel, which is 20m high and 30m long.
The Chapel is floored with large boulders at one end, but an obvious low sandy passage to the left leads to the head of a 14m dry rift pitch with a bouldery takeoff. The pitch is free-hanging after the first two metres, to a gravel-floored chamber opening off the rift. Water entering high on the right takes a floor trench 10m deep which may be traversed above to gain the Balcony of the Opera House, an impressive 20m diameter, roughly circular chamber. A 12.5m pitch (awkward takeoff as rigged in 1980) gains the bouldery, sloping floor. A scramble down boulders and a further 7m pitch over a very large boulder leads into a rift, where an awkward 10m pitch with natural belays and joke bolts leads to a flat mud floor at a larger section at the head of a pitch. At this point the draught changes direction, the cave becomes clean, and a stream is met falling from an inaccessible (and out of sight) passage, apparently at the same level as the pitch head.
Down the pitch, a rebelay (which is a very long stretch to rig unless you're very tall) avoids the worst of the water on Purple Pit. Quite possibly this could be rigged as a deviation (we didn't do these in 1980). There is a long section to a large ledge, from where the pitch leaves the fault it has been following and heads down a series of short steps with rebelays a few metres apart. At the bottom of this section, 60m below the start, a further fault is met at right angles, with twin holes in the floor. The first one is wet and nasty, while the second is tolerable. Both unite and go off to the left in a diminutive streamway. To the right above the holes is the entry point from Bananehöhle(152), explored in 1985.
The diminutive streamway ends shortly in a tight sump, but before this, a climb up leads unobviously to a traverse and then a crawl trending back over the entry point, Müsli Crawl. A number of acute bends are disorientating, then a short drop leads to a final rift and a pitch head. This is a thrutch to start, then drops 10m to where the water reenters. A series of drops, Sprucy Wind, follows, and some of the bolts (1980 vintage, greased in 1982) are easily missed, which makes the pitches wetter. There is a branch shaft at one point which is unexplored, but appears to reunite somewhat lower down. The pitches of 8, 26, 12, 10, 10, 20, 5 and 9m drop to a final rift chamber where an inlet from up on the left doubles the size of the stream on a rocky floor. This inlet responds to floods about an hour faster than the main water. The combined waters fall down a 6m drop and sink in a gravel-choked pool.
Climbing up opposite the inlet, a dry rift is a little tight but pops out into a series of dry passages, apparently quite unrelated to the rift pitches. This area, The Crematorium, is a good place to wait when the pitches flood. There is a large horizontal passage ending in a chamber with various bedding crawl extensions. Avens in the roof are hard to reach (one bolt used for aid) and don't seem to go anywhere. A narrow rift in the floor contains the stream, and a climb down can be made at one point where it is just wide enough. Thrutching forward in a traverse cum crawl a short way above the water, a couple more diminutive drops reach a place where to continue would be just plain stupid, since it is small and wet. The cave was rigged in 1982 just to go and push the end. It didn't go.
There is potential for further extension by traversing over down-ramps in the entrance area, and by gaining access to the source of the water (and route of the draught) at the top of Purple Pit. Apparently the Point Five Gully and Fox's Glacier Ramp was traversed over in 1987, and another ramp descended, but this seems to have rejoined the main route somewhere near Barnsley Methodist Chapel. This route was not surveyed.
This does not appear to be in the Austrians' Kataster
The entrance leads to a non-obvious way on to the head of the short Bell Pitch, from where very awkward going leads out to a bigger passage to reach The Ramp a series of off-vertical pitches. The damper but technically easier Inlet Pitches drop to a Big Chamber, from where Pete's Purgatory starts, and leads in 800m of tortuous going to The Confluence and the larger streamway leading to the deepest point.
Better is the Purgatory Bypass which starts as dry fossil tubes, with a choice of routes to reach Junction Chamber where the Big Rift of Stellerweghöhle enters. Opposite, the huge fossil tube of Dartford Tunnel makes for easy progress to the Confluence, about halfway down the system. The continuing main streamway is interrupted by a bypassable sump and numerous pitches before a low airspace duck at the end of an unpromising canal leads to the spectacular Orgasm Chasm. Careful rigging avoids the water in this 140m shaft, ending in muddy passage and another short drop to a deep and terminal sump.
Through a squeeze is a shaft 10m deep to floor with continuing hole and a further shaft to one side, neither of which were descended, despite a draught coming out through the squeeze.
The way followed is a 5m pitch from the big boulder, to a boulder false floor. At the end of this, the roof rises into a high aven and an 11m pitch drops to a flat boulder floor next to another huge block. A hole down gives a 7m drop next to stacked rocks and a way on across boulders leads to a final 8m pitch.
Forward over boulders passes under another high aven from which water falls. A short climb down leads to where this water disappears into a scrofulous slot, at a depth of 95m.
The cave is in a key position, almost directly above the Breeze Block area of Chile, in Kaninchenhöhle. However, these passages lie between 250 and 300m below the 140 entrance, so this is probably not a potential easy way in.
Note: With apparent perversity, the Austrians have numbered this as 115e in their Kataster. This is likely to give rise to immense confusion in the long term as more caves are connected, and numbers on entrances cannot readily be altered (owing to the obscurity of their location and inaccessibility from within the system).
After an initial small tube, the cave opens into passages very similar to those in Schwabenschacht and the upper levels of Stellerweghöhle. Descent of some of the steep ramps to the right of the main way on may provide further connections into the main cave (and one may have already done so). However, staying high leads through tubes to an inobvious junction. Left is the connection to 78, whilst right leads immediately to the head of a pitch into the Big Chamber - a popular name in the system. A route from this chamber leads to the foot of an 18m pitch in the entrance series of Stellerweghöhle, and a more obscure route through boulders from the head of the Big Chamber pitch leads to the same place.
A predominantly vertical entrance series leads to a level of extensive fossil phreatic development, not fully explored. The main passage, The Yellow Brick Road, leads to the lip of a 25m pitch into a large muddy chamber. From the bottom, a steeply dipping tube is followed down until a canyon is reached from a boulder chamber. Most ways close down quickly from here.
Across the pitch from Yellow Brick Road is a large continuing passage, gained by an obscure and somewhat exposed route in boulders. It soon leads to a bolted climb, but a ramp down below drops to another large passage. Right here, the draught is followed through winding passage until it emerges 20m up in a chamber. Backtracking leads to a squeeze and muddy crawls to the bottom, from where a canyon develops, finally dropping into Stellerweghöhle below the Big Pitch via a 10m chimney.
There are a significant number of unpushed leads in the cave, but all are expected to connect back to already known passage. One may provide a connection to the northernmost reaches of Schwabenschacht (1623/78).
The 83m Big Leap is rigged in three sections of 22, 25 and 36m via two freehanging rebelays and a deviation near the bottom, in a large rift with black peaty mud on the walls in the upper section. The rift narrows and bottoms out in a small streamway blocked here and there by jammed boulders which no longer (since 1984) constitute a squeeze. Short traverses and pitches of 15m and 6m are straightforward until a second large shaft is reached. The water cannot be avoided on the 59m Tiddley Pom pitch, which can become a serious proposition in wet weather. The first section is 11m, to the level where a heavy drip (rapidly becoming a torrent in thunderstorms) enters. The rebelay bolt is tucked away to the left, a long reach round the corner. Further sections of 17 and 24m in a circular shaft of about 6m diameter reach a big wet ledge. The final section of 7m reaches a big dry stance on jammed boulders, Cold Toes Ledge. This is far enough out of the water to be an acceptable place to sit and wait for 16 hours, or to brew soup.
The stream continues to drop in a rift, with pitches of 13 and 14m from jammed boulders. The water then sinks into a slit, Nobody Knows, which was descended for 15m before becoming too tight. To continue, traverse over this hole and continue a short way to a large black chasm, the 112m Fear and Loathing Pitch, involving some airy traversing near the top. Sections of 10, 29 and 16m reach Acrobat Flake, where careful rigging is required to avoid a particularly gymnastic changeover for the next section of 16m. The rift (never wider than 3-4m) continues with drops of 18 and 23m to land on an unpleasant bit of damp floor: Las Vegas.
A particularly unpleasant mud-walled rift, Beezley Street, ("where the rats have rickets") continues as a traverse if you can stay up, or a nasty thrutch otherwise. This ends abruptly where an aven brings clean washed limestone for the next 14m pitch. A clean, but sharp traverse continues to corkscrewing 18 and 5m pitches into The Drainage Ditch, a wading depth section of passage occasionally blocked by boulders, which hold back the static pools. Short pitches of 8, 9 and 7m twist down to another section of drainage ditch which continues for a few more metres to a static sump 399m below the main entrance.
A hole above the sump leads to a small, muddy, grovelly continuation to some small avens and a further sump, before closing down.
Geology : Tubes near the entrance are formed along the prominent NE-SW joint direction in the area, which so dominates the nearby Bräuninghöhle, and the cave trends generally SW as it drops. However, all the major vertical development is in deep shafts on joints at right-angles to this major trend, on a strike of about 120-300°. Fear and Loathing pitch in particular is in a strikingly narrow rift over 110m deep, suggesting an almost vertical joint. Below this shaft there is very little significant jointing, and the cave meanders considerably before the dismal end another 140m SW.
There is enough survey bumph to draw a respectable plan.
Down the main pitch, in a rift, is 10m to a boulder pile in a chamber where the shorter route reenters, and a passage continues back north towards the entrance. South is a rift ending too tight. The main way soon leads to a pitch of 10m with a large ledge halfway. A short passage intersects a cross-rift before becoming too small (with a draught), but down the rift drops c15m to a choke at about -45m.
Re-explored and surveyed in 1999 - see log-book write-up – but apparently never drawn up.
Back at the boulder slope (I think), the 20m pitch can again be attained and from here is 15m to the floor of a 20m high chamber with three ways on. Facing away from pitch, righthand rift leads to a flat-out crawl over ice. This passes remarkable ice formations to emerge at The Ice Castle, a chamber with a large ice-stalagmite formation. The route terminates in a steep ice slope at the far side of the chamber.
Way directly ahead from pitch is a 3m climb into a large phreatic tube round a 90° bend to a solid wall of boulders. Ways into the choke proved very loose and tight, but a continuing rift/chamber could be seen through a tiny but strongly draughting hole.
Third way on from pitch ascends steeply and becomes tight, with a jammed boulder now in the way. Route ends at a steep ice-climb for which no equipment was available.
Boulder Chamber appears to correspond with the bouldery Opera House in Sonnenstrahlhöhle, while the Good Pitch Venus and following 16m pitch correlate with the Purple Pit.
Grade 1 plan/elev of 156 and T.B.H. from 1987 Log Book
From the chamber, the passage curves to the left and opens onto the head of a 7m pitch, which drops onto a large ledge. A rebelay just over the lip of the ledge at the left hand side gives a further 18m free-hanging pitch to a landing on boulders several metres across, which appear to be jammed across the shaft.
A narrow rift around a corner stops at a drip and a small pool. The way on is through a gap to a hole with a jammed block. Climbing down to the block leads to the head of an 18m pitch which rapidly opens into a huge split-level chamber. The pitch lands on Big Bertha, a boulder some 4m in diameter.
To the north, a narrow rift has been followed for about 10m to a tight vertical drop of at least 5m down the rift, but this has not been pushed. East from Big Bertha leads to a 5m drop to the lower half of the chamber, which is floored with loose rock. An archway to the left leads to a 7m pitch to a small stream. This disappears down an impassable slot, but is met lower in the cave.
From the archway, a climb up behind a boulder propped against the side of the chamber leads to a col. One side rapidly curves up to the roof. The other ascends over very loose boulders for at least 25m (15m vertical) until the roof is met. This area has not been exhaustively pushed, but seems unlikely to lead anywhere.
Descending the other side of the col gives a series of ledges via 5m, 7m and 8m pitches, in a canyon some 5m wide and at least 15m high. The stream enters at the bottom of the 7m pitch. Below, the rift continues down a moderate slope and round a corner, with a final short 4m pitch to a soil and rock floored chamber.
A strong draught is felt around the edges of the chamber, rising from the choked floor. It is possible to descend in loose boulders in a number of places but all ways meet the roof and choke - pushing in this area is dangerous and unpromising.
Near the bottom of the previous pitch, a 5m deep circular pit in the floor can be descended. This takes a large drip from the stream above. At the bottom, a tight (22-26cm) rift leads on for 3m to a further 3m pitch to a small chamber. An impassable passage continues, while a small window gives a view of a widening beyond.
The cave could probably do with another descent to record some details of the interior or even a survey !
The clickable index has developed into a glossary, which it is hoped will make it easier to find bits of the cave by name - be warned, this became so big that it was decided to split it up and it is now a framed page.
There are also virtual tours, containing thumbnails of all the pictures of the caves. Although these pages are kept small, all the photos mean that they can require a lot of memory to load. The original comprehensive tour has been split into two, for the Right Hand Route, and for passages most conveniently reached from the Scarface entrance. Two new tours have been created for the Lost World and Wheelchair Access, and for the new way into the Forbidden Land via Steinschlagschacht. Each thumbnail on these tours links to a full-size version of the picture, and each full-size picture has links into the appropriate bit of the description.
Throughout the guide, the date of exploration is noted for each area. There is a history page which can be used as a clickable index into the logbook write ups of all the 161 trips, so it should be easy to follow the exploration of any part of the cave. Warning, this was also getting too big and is now framed.
The upper part of the system can be best thought of as a number of separate areas, each with its own vertical development. The more recently found extensive horizontal development, being easier to traverse, is generally better connected. Although there are various links between the vertical routes, a given destination will tend to have one 'obvious' approach. These areas are France, the Left Hand Routes, the Right Hand Routes, the southernmost part of the system reached via Steinschlagschacht, routes from Scarface entrance. So rapidly has exploration proceeded from Triassic Park that now more than half the total length is most conveniently reached via 161d.
The key to all the deepest and most remote parts of the system is the huge collapse chamber of Knossos. This was reached from the 161a entrance via the Right Hand Route, and now via the 161d "Scarface" entrance through Triassic Park. This provides a much easier route in, making trips to the further reaches less strenuous. From Knossos, horizontal trunk passage leads north, giving access first to a series of deep vertical systems, and further on to complex areas of rifts and old passages. A significant horizontal route leading northwest, Siberia, has only been pushed as a result of the new entrance, but has yielded a new deep point to the cave. There appear to be deep vertical leads in the far north, too, though they have mostly been avoided by a series of "mental" tyroleans and bolt traverses.
It is still probably some way off the time when one might choose a tourist trip on the basis of its "classic" quality. Mostly, choices available depend on what is rigged this year for exploratory purposes. This will usually only include one main route into an area, so trips like a Left Hand Route / Garden Party or Drunk & Stupid exchange will not be easy. Similarly, the original classic Right Hand Route / Dreamtime exchange was only really possible during the exploration of the latter, before the Squeeze was bypassed and this modified RHR became the trade route.
However, now that Knossos is accessible from the Scarface entrance, this has opened up the possibilities for a whole raft of pull-through trips with a minimum of pre-rigging. The one fly in the ointment is the relative difficulty of surface travel between the 161d and upper entrances. The route used in 1996 seems to be good enough to have become a trade route, and after one benightment through loss of the route in 1997, it has been very well marked with cairns.
Already possible is the 161c to 161d through trip via France. In the future, pull-throughs of LHR, Garden Party or Drunk and Stupid should all be possible via Ambidextrous. Right Hand Route or Dreamtime give access to Knossos. Care must be taken, however, not to try rapelling down any of the plethora of routes which don't connect into the Knossos area.
As in the more famous Dent du Crolles system, route-finding errors on bridge-burning trips could entail a long wait for someone to figure out where you went!
Line plots of the cave give some idea of it's shape, extent and structure.
The main entrance at 1787m drops to a major sub-horizontal level at 1720-1750m, containing the large passages of Big Sainsbury's and its continuation into the upper part of Dreamtime, and the smaller passages of the Rabbit Warren and the French entrances 161b and 161c. From this level a number of vertical routes drop to another significant sub-horizontal level dipping from around 1700m in the SW of the system (upper part of France) to around 1600m where this level is lost in the roof of Knossos. [This is probably debatable, as Boulder Alley from Poxy Pitch downwards is probably in a fault rift].
Multiple, predominantly vertical, routes drop to the cave's most important sub-horizontal passages around 1540m in the area below the entrance dipping to c1510m in Tower Blocks and the start of YAPATE. This is a major fossil passage rising up the dip to the NNE, and continuing as Chicken Flied Nice to c1540m where complexity increases. The major horizontal development in France is entered at c1550m, with the lowest passages down to 1480m. The major trunk route through Triassic Park is between 1560 and 1620m, and this level is also lost in what is presumed to be the roof of Knossos.
Whilst none of the routes below the entrance area get below about 1480m, there are a series of interconnecting shafts dropping below YAPATE and Chicken Flied Nice ending at or just above 1290m in sumps or tightness. The original deepest point, at the bottom of Flapjack, is at 1289m, 498m below the main entrance. Passages to the northwest led through a bitterly cold, draughty passage known as Siberia, which was left well alone until access via 161d made it easier. It was pushed in 1997 and 1998 down two very large pitches to a new deep point 534m below the 136 entrance at 1258m altitude.
There is just one section of horizontal level at c1400m, which is not very extensive to date, and similarly a tantalising glimpse of what appears to have been very large trunk passage below 1300m in Siberia, but this is comprehensively choked in both directions.
This overview is currently mostly updated to reflect exploration to 1995, though the line plots are up to 1996.
The entire floor of this cave consists of small rocks and boulders. There is no solid rock anywhere horizontal, except halfway down the pitch.
After climbing out of the hole there is another 5m deep choked hole beyond. Traverses round to both the left and right are possible, although a little care is required due to the low roof and loose floor.
To the right, rubble coming out of the bottom of a choked shaft almost blocks the passage but a crawl through to the left remains, with a strong wind blasting through the confined space. Beyond this constriction the draught is lost. The roof remains low on the other side, although it is possible to stand up off to the left where there is a 4m climb up to what looks like a way on but is actually blind. Moving around the boulder pile to the right leads to a big passage. There are a few large boulders 10m to the right with a 4m climb down between them leading to a tight choked rift. This was also dug into from the top passage by the extremely zealous original explorers! There is an alcove in front and a rubble slope up to the right. Round the corner to the right is another shaft-bottom rubble pile and a hole disappearing into the roof. At the top of the slope to the left is a 4m climb up through and around big wedged boulders to reach an impressive chamber 7m × 9m and 12m high. There is a possible climb up into an aven in the corner which probably doesn't go and has a couple of moves at the top which need protecting.
Back at the fork near the entrance, turning left and thrutching over a couple of rocks (another windy spot) leads to the head of a 17m pitch broken by a ledge 8m down. There is a bolt for a ladder hang on this ledge. Going off to the left allows a safe traverse past the pitch continuation to the bottom of a 6m high rift with some ice in it, slowly narrowing as it goes up.
At the foot of the pitch is what looks like an ancient phreatic remnant. It is about 40m long and 6m wide, and mostly full of rocks. To the left it is blocked at the end by the rubble coming out of the bottom of a big shaft. It is possible to work round the foot of this for about 3m to the left and 10m to the right.
Going the other way down the passage reveals a large snow column by the left hand wall. It is possible to climb up between the column and its containing shaft, presumably all the way to the surface, but no-one has managed it yet. Beyond this column the roof gets lower, apart from a couple of solutional avens and eventually a small shaft-bottom rock pile and a couple of small inlet tubes mark the end of the cave.
There is no extant description or survey of what Brian and Becka discovered in 1999 except that it was a shaft to around 50m of passage. This and the position of their entrance suggests that they had dropped into the lower part of 162, near the snow column from the original description.
The entrance is low and wide (3.5m) and descends down a rocky slope for 20m to some impressive ice stals. There is a small tube in the roof on the right through which daylight can be seen. The cave extends another 10m past the ice stals in fossil passage until it chokes. A 3m climb up on the left allows access to a tiny rift which can be climbed down for a few uninspiring metres.
5m back from the ice stals, towards the entrance, there is a stoop under a massive boulder forming the left wall. Here is a 3m climb down into the second part of the cave. Downslope from here is a chamber with a small frozen stream running through it and a choked alcove containing another ice stal beyond the stream. The chamber through which the stream 'flows' appears to have been formed by the entire roof falling about 1.5m in one piece and it is possible to climb beneath this huge rock near the way in. Over on the right is a climb through an eyehole to a 3m climb down into a stream rift. This has a howling draught coming out of it but it is too small to get down - although the heavy application of a hammer might do the trick.
A small stream enters and lands on boulders at the foot of the pitch in a passage leading south along a fault. A climb of 4m over precarious boulders reaches a bolt for the second pitch. The quality of rock in this area leaves a lot to be desired. The second pitch, 12m and third pitch, 15m are separated only by a small ledge. Water sinks in floor of small passage floored with what would appear to be the previous season's roof, now decayed into small jagged rocks. Continuing passage over boulders rises to 4-5m dropping steeply for 30m on the same south-trending fault. The water is rejoined at a freehanging 10m pitch from a rock bridge overlooking a sizeable chamber.
The stream sinks at the foot of the pitch in the centre of the 15m by 7m chamber floor. To the east, a scramble leads up to a shattered cross-rift from a large shelf about 15m long and 10m wide, but ends too tight. A similar feature to the west up a 4m climb becomes a low bedding with no way on. Due south are two passages, the one to the right leading 20m round a couple of bends to a sandy choke. The left passage quickly chokes. The draught seems to be lost into the continuation of the passage above the final pitch, on the far side of the chamber. This would be best reached by a traverse on steep loose rock from the 4m climb in the chamber. The pitches take large quantities of water very quickly in rain.
In same fault line, but further north, in an area of bare limestone is another shaft. This already had a bolt when encountered in 1989, despite being outside the area previously looked at by CUCC. It was in excess of 35m deep and was not marked by CUCC. Cross on Schönberg 322°, Bräuning Nase 222°
This latter cave may be 195 (marked in 1995) which is c 80m almost due north, although the faults in this area are mainly aligned on about 020°, so it may be an as-yet-unrelocated shaft.
Along the fault to the north are numerous choked shafts with a maximum depth of 5m.
Notes in 2000#34
From the bottom of the ladder, the passage soon drops down a climb of 2m. Then there is a winding, rifty passageway, named "Magic Mushroom Passage" due to the peculiar mushroom-like formations on the walls. These, together with the white dusty look of the walls in places, give the cave its name. After 100m the rift widens, and a traverse develops above a narrower rift below. The upper level may be followed to above the first rope pitch, but the more usual route is to climb down a rock pile into the lower rift (40cm wide), which is known as the Yorkshire Ripper, due to the effect of the sharp, narrow rift on oversuits, and the Yorkshire feel of the cave at this point. After 15m, relieved at one point by a small alcove with an irritating spray of water, the narrow rift widens, after a final flourish, to the head of the first rope pitch (6m).
Carrying on from the base of the pitch, the tiny rift in the floor deepens, and traversing along leads soon to the head of Shell pitch (19m). Descending gives a fine view of the chamber, the walls of which contain many large bivalve fossils (hence the pitch's name). From this chamber, a short traverse leads to a junction. Left is an unclimbable aven, whilst to the right is Piezo de Resistance, described below. The main route is currently down Q8 pitch which is broken by a ledge after 16m. After a further 9m and a rebelay, a pendulum through a window to one side leads on. Descending further, the shaft stops after 19m and a further rebelay. There are no passable ways on from the bottom (Strike One).
After the pendulum, a vast army of rebelays lies in wait (Dot to Dot), eventually ending in a larger pitch (25m) the bottom of which, again, has no ways on (Strike Two).
Yet again, a pendulum (at -14m) yields more cave (Bottom Bypass). A dubious 11m hang leads to a ledge. At one end of the ledge, ducking under an arch enters a chamber at the bottom of a high shaft (Lady's Loo), down which a vast torrent pours in wet weather. A further 9m down from the ledge is a floor. Progress can be made along the top of a slimy keyhole shaped rift (Tarzan's Folly) which is irritating to pass, especially with tackle. After 20m, a false floor appears and a few metres further on is The Dark Room, a high chamber with dark, textured walls. A waterfall cascades down from unfathomable heights, and pounds onto a ledge to the back right of the cavern.
Climbing down a slimy slope (which in an ideal world would be lined) the way on is along a rift which exits from the rear of the chamber on the left side. The rift has a couple of false floors in it. The middle level leads to the head of the next pitch: Natural Redundancy (11m) is reached after about 10m. The rope is belayed to a large chock stone at head level, then to a bolt about two inches from a beautifully rounded thread, hence the name. Cyclotron pitch follows immediately, then comes Quark, Strangeness and Charm, a rift passage with many possible traverse levels. In places there are flowstone bosses, and near the roof, some odd tippex stals can be seen. The formations are only notable due to their rarity in the caves of this region.
Cloud Chamber | Quark Strangeness & Charm |
At the end of QS&C, the passage sweeps round to the left as the floor drops away into Cloud Chamber. The pitch is broken by two rebelays. The grade 5 survey stops about 20m back from the pitch head. The details of the passage leading to the next pitch are uncertain, although the consensus is that it is around 20-30m long, and fairly straight. The lack of information led to the name Amnesia Alleyway. The next pitch is NDE, an acronym for "Near Death Experience" , since a party of cavers was flood-pulsed just below this pitch during the initial exploration. This incident also named The Delicate Sound of Thunder, another rift passage with a traverse along to a pitch (Traditional Style - laddered in 1991, marking the end of exploration that year).
After the first 5m slope to a rebelay, Traditional Style drops 12m (with one deviation) to a wide shelf. At the right hand edge is another 12m pitch. This lands in a muddy area which quickly becomes a very muddy steeply descending rift. An 8m pitch (2 bolts, Y-hang) a bit of clambering and a 5m pitch (one bolt) get you to a washing-up-bowl-sized sump at -292m.
5m up on the left hand wall (by the last bit of string) is a muddy crawl. This is below the 'tide-mark' of the sump so is somewhat oppressive. It leads, after 8m to a high parallel rift. A couple of 2m climbs ahead lead back down to another, slightly larger, sump. The rift rises at least 20m, apparently without connecting back to the main descent route.
From the head of "Q8" pitch, an alternative route may be followed along a rift on a fault at 20-200°, hading 80° to the west. Taking the passage to the right, a traverse develops after 10m. Water sinks into a hole in the floor after a further 10m, and beyond this, is a 9m pitch, followed after 10m or so by a longer pitch of 16mm.
Crow's Nest | The Chimney |
This lands on a ledge with an obvious continuation below, but the route, to keep away from potential water, takes a much more interesting route. It goes up a 6m pitch to the Crow's Nest, a narrow rock rib separating two parts of the shaft. This was originally reached by a bolt traverse round the right hand wall. From the Crow's Nest, The Chimney drops 30m in typical Puffball triangular pitch (elliptical joint-aligned phreas cut down on lower side by vadose action). The rope stays resolutely on the upper side with a series of epic hanging rebelays.
At the bottom a 34m freehang lands in the Darkroom, but the bottom of this is in the waterfall (noted in the Darkroom description), so the route goes through a window near the top of the hang which gives a nice dry 30m hang.
Highest is really tight flat out crawl leading to a tightish but passable rift, draughting. Abandoned in favour of a newly collapsed small hole 10m below, at the foot of a small (5m) cliff. This had a very big rock blocking the entrance and rewarded the huge effort required to move it with nearly 5m of passage to a choke and a choked shaft.
10m further down still is the third entrance. A 6m climb down to a large ramp and a rebelay is the start of a 30m pitch. One way at the bottom is an 8m boulder slope climb up to a choke and small aven. The other way is a 2m climb into moonmilk crawl and some tight thrutching and chokes. All thoroughly investigated and not going anywhere.
sketch survey by William Stead from 1990 logbook
In 1993 the cave was "extremely cold and some ice formations".
Elevation never drawn up; see notes in 2000#04
Steeply-descending canyon, aligned 115<->295°, 3m wide with boulder floor. The Tag is in the RH wall looking into the hole (south-eastwards), above a large pointy boulder. The GPS point is ~3m above out of the canyon.
+ + +A 30m handline is needed for descent as it is steep and (in 1996 and 2015) containing a snow-slope/ridge. Belay from the pointy boulder. A C3 drops onto the snow-ridge. Progress down the side is possible, descending about 10m from where you continue on top of the snow. There is a alcove on the R, and opposite an ice waterfall comes in from above. Descending another few metres the roof comes down and the snow peters out at a slot blocked with rocks. There is a draught here (inwards on a sunny day (2015-08-09)). 4m more narrow but passable passage can be seen through the slot. It would be a trivial dig to make it big enough to prgress, but some gear would be needed as it definitely stops being T-shirt caving at that point. This is a QM worth returning to one day.
+ ++
After a first descent placing a bolt again showed it unsuitable for exploration in shorts, a determined effort by Wookey in 1998 pushed the second pitch, between hanging death ice and snow to a definite choke. However, partway down this pitch was a window with a draught, leading to a third pitch (one bolt at takeoff, another just below). This was nn metres to a final choke.
The whole cave is formed on a fault which forms a SE-facing scarp on the surface. A short distance NE of the entrance, the fault line cuts a lower-lying area. The draught, which was mostly outward through the head of the third pitch during the final exploratory trip, periodically reverses for 10-15 seconds. It would appear to be powered by surface breezes via various other small windows to the surface, most probably including ones lower down in the depression to the NE.
(Drawn up by DL from Frank's notes in 2002#23)
Further round from this entrance and lower down, there is a large depression with a small snow-plug on the floor, with a crawl at the bottom (very small technical QM) - looks like lots of water comes down it - disappears into a choss bowl.
Further round are 2 holes together. Lower of the two is full of rocks. Nearer is steeply sloping hole (sounds dead).
+[2005 description: "Spacious entrance shaft lands on snow plug about 10m down. At one side (uphill, which is probably roughly east) is a short section of rift, and a slot down one side of the snow plug, but this proved too narrow (at least with 2005 snow levels)"]
+20m rope and slings were sufficient in 2005 when snow levels were much higher. + +
Notes in 2006#33
A vertical climb down opened into a hollow plate a few metres down. A boulder floor made the "C" QM in the floor dangerous. An edge exit was too tight.
WARNING In heavy weather the main pitch becomes very dangerous, with cobbles being washed down, as well as water coming from everywhere, especially the rift.
+ +Also known as Bullet Second Höhle
+ +A series of three short vertical entrances arranged along a north-south line.
+ +The southern most entrance contains a tight undescended hole in a boulder floor QM1C and a small passage though to the central entrance.
+ +The central entrance is a steep gully leading to head of approx. 5m pitch to the upper chamber, which takes some water when raining.
+ +The northern entrance leads to the top of a dry key hole passage, which initially has wedged boulders making a false floor. A short sloped phreatic passage leads back to the central entrance. A rope traverse can be rigged to a 5m pitch to the upper chamber.
+ +A classic keyhole passage continues downward out of the chamber, which has been rigged along the left hand wall to the head of the main pitch. The main pitch descends rejoining the rift of the above mentioned keyhole passage before reaching a ledge 25m down. The ledge leads to a bridge across the pitch. This ledge can be used to rig a wide deviation, to avoid water from the main rift.
+ +Shortly after the deviation the pitch is rebelayed to a free hanging rebelay before opening out into a large chamber, with the floor a further 35m below
+ +The chamber has a bolder floor and is 30m long, 15m wide and about 20m tall. A passage continues from the top of the chamber near where the rope drops in. This passage continues upwards, with a moderately unstable boulder floor. A further small passage heads of the bottom of the chamber which could be a digging project. There may be a passage going of the far end of the chamber near the ceiling.
Obvious hole of about 1.5m diameter in side of cliff opens up to a nice phreatic passage of considerable length. Another entrance to the left, to the right the cave becomes slightly smaller. Not explored any further, yet.
+ +This cave might be identical to BS17 but no tags or signs of previous exploration could be found. Also there was almost no noticeable draught.
+Entrance is strongly drafting horizontal walking / stooping rift with some snow. From entrance, travel along passage for <5 min to reach first pitch. +
+ ++Below first pitch, cross chamber and head right into tube to reach second pitch. Left leads to Windy Tube and 12 Monkeys. +
+ ++Below second pitch, cross ice plug and small climb to traverse leading to third pitch (Pendulum Pitch). Pendule to rock halfway down into rift passage. +
+ ++Passage starts as a meandering rift, drops fourth pitch (33m) into a canyon with a stream at the bottom (Blitzen Boulevard). +
+ ++After traversing Blitzen boulevard for roughly 20m down stream, you come to a phreatic passage on the left had side above a slightly tricky climb. Following this passage onwards foe roughly 20m you reach a small chamber know as Benign Bubble Baby Bypass. So called due to the odd look formation suck in the corner. To the left of the formation you reach fifth pitch (7m) that drops into Piss Pot (so called due to how it was used during the exploration of the meander). +
+ ++Piss Pot is roughly 15m in depth but ends in a bouldery choke, not worth any more exploration unless you fancy starting a dig. left of the pitch at station 7 is another meandering passage. Following this for roughly 15m you reach sixth pitch (Liquid Luck). +
+ ++Liquid Luck is a roughly 25m pitch head that drops onto a ledge, surrounded by canyon. The chamber is large and fairly drippy. +
+ ++Opposite this ledge is a phreatic passage that can be accessed by a traverse. The passage leads to a pitch head and a large chamber called the Urinal (also named due to its usage during exploration. The traverse above must be rigged and the descent is roughly 19m to the bottom, however the ceiling extends by roughly 20m above the pitch head and is suspected to connect into happy butterfly. +
+ ++Back at Liquid Luck, phreatic development also continues South East. Traverse along the phreatic passage, into another chamber, stay high and traverse along until you are across to into the continuation of of the phreatic passage. This is the beginning of Freeattic Flys, so called because Lydia Leather is dyslexic and didn't realise it wasn't spelt that way. +
+ ++This passage continues along for 30m, passing intricate coral looking formation and it a continues rifting meandering passage. There are several awkward free climbs down. Eventually you get to seventh pitch (5m) that drops into a ledge halfway down, with the continuation called Odious Odium going South East on a traverse line, instead of continuing down to the bottom. +
+ ++If you do drop to the bottom of seventh pitch, it puts you into Toto chamber, So called because of the boulder in the shape of Africa. This leads to crystal crumble where stalactites lie. +
+ ++Odious Odium continues the phreatic passage with eighth pitch (6m) and ninth pitch (5m). Ninth pitch is a one-bolt-wonder which puts you into a junction which continues both left and right. +
+ ++Turning right will lead you toward Ulysses. Ulysses is a very large chamber, roughly 20 metres in diameter, and a currently unknown depth but expected to be greater than 50 metres. The walls around the this chamber however pretty crap. A traverse has been rigged along the right side wall, with the intension of either A) traversing half way round the chamber and dropping it to find the expected depth, or B) continuing to traverse the chamber, in order to reach the strong lead on the opposite wall, which is a massive rail way sized, continuing phreatic tunnel which requires a 20m bolt climb. This is still to be explored, however has strong draft facing SE. The chamber itself is excessively crumbly, and likely no amount of gardening will make the chamber "safe", so if the pitch is dropped, descents should be very carefully made, one by one, with awareness on very possible falling rock. +
+ ++Turning left after ninth pitch will lead to tenth pitch (15m) which drops into the Shit Show. The chamber is made up of of false floor and massive boulder chokes, and is not an area to tread heavily. The way on is through a rift out of the chamber and leads to eleventh pitch (6m). +
+ ++Shortly after eleventh pitch you arrive at twelfth pitch (Rubble Rumble), a significant 70m pitch into a large chamber. Crossing over a large boulder and then climbing down underneath the chamber has the final 3m hang which can be rigged from the end of the same rope in a steeply sloping passage with a lot of loose choss, which leads to a low crawl crossroads. +
+ ++Left at the crossroads leads to Big Bastard, an as-yet undropped pitch expected to be 80+m in depth. Straight at the crossroads is a small crawl passage, unexplored. +
+ ++Right at the crossroads leads to Miracle Maze, an assortment of sandy phreatic tubes. The first left in Miracle Maze takes you eventually to a large junction chamber. In this chamber, the right turn is a small climb up to a large phreatic development that loops back to the rest of Miracle Maze. The left turn is the downstream continuation of the phreatic tube, called Kubla Khan. +
+ ++Kubla Khan continues downstream, with a floor rift joining in from the right in Avian Appendix, named after a prominent wall marking that looks like a bird. Following Avian Appendix is a horribly precarious rift which also leads back to Miracle Maze. +
+ ++Kubla Khan itself continues downstream with the walking surface descending to the water level to reach a small pool (Caverns measureless to man, down to a sunless sea) which is good for having a piss in. After the pool the walking surface rises again, past a precarious mudstone arch. Eventually the water and the floor rift leaves the passage again on the right. +
+ ++At the end of Kubla Khan the passage splits, a high level phreatic tube requires a handline bolting over a nasty traverse, whereas the low level goes under a crawl into a small sandy tube. +
+ ++Back in Miracle Maze, the passage continues with a sandy floor, with passages coming in on the left from Kubla Khan and Avian Appendix. Eventually it reaches Eldritch Eyeholes, a chamber with two prominent round solution pockets in the ceiling which look like eyes. There are three routes here which all join back together after 5-10m. +
+ ++The passage climbs out of Eldritch Eyeholes until a rift re-enters from the right at a 2m climb. Above the climb, the rift may be followed or a tube on the left taken, however the tube turns right back to re-join the rift after only a few meters. In the rift is a right turn which goes up to Coconut Chamber, or the continuation of the rift also eventually reaches the same chamber. +
+ ++ In Coconut Chamber, a series of narrow tubes to the left of the large rift continue, and eventually loop back to the same rift that can be seen from the chamber itself. The final lead is a small climb in the tubes which leads to an undropped pitch of approximately 10m. +
+The way on is a flat-out crawl under the right wall, immediately before the snow plug. The crawl was dug because it was draughting out quite strongly. Once under the wall, the roof immediately rises to comfortable crawling height and the passage widens. After 5m, roomy phreatic passage is reached, around 5m wide and 3m high. A roof tube leads off to the right. It can also be reached by a roof crawl from further down the passage on the left. The tube leads to two small chambers and ends in a too-tight rift.
The floor of the main passage starts to drop away as the passage turns to the right, leaving a ledge along the left wall. A trickle of water enters at floor level. A pitch is rigged off the ledge using spits in the left wall. This pitch drops 10m and ends in a choked chamber. An exposed traverse on the left, beyond the pitch head, leads to a choked tube. Directly across from the pitch head, a further roof tube also chokes.
The third horizontal entrance begins with a flat out crawl in sticky mud, and reaches a small, low chamber. The low passage continues as hands and knees crawling. This passes a window on the left which looks into the snow-filled shaft (the second entrance). Straight ahead and a little further, an eyehole looks into the chamber which the first entrance pitch lands in. Continuing on, straddling over a rock ridge leads to two further eyeholes which look into the sloping rift passage where the rope ends from the first entrance pitch.
Survey drawn up in loose leaves in front of 1996-9 NotKH book
Grade 2 (at a guess), drawn up in loose leaves in front of 1996-9 NotKH book
Notes in 2000#23
Survey of 231
(2004 version archived here, or in colour here; 2005 version here; 2006 version here; 2008 tunnel file here)
A second small entrance leads via an awkward crawl to a sloping ledge on the right hand wall of the shaft a couple of metres down.
Survey of 238 from 2001. The cave was further explored in 2002 (notes in 2002#06) but not drawn up.
(There were at least three trips to this cave judging by the survey file, but only this one was written up.)
(Notes in 2003#29)
(Notes in 2003#23)
Notes in 2003#22
Here three ways lead off. Following the slope down leads to a short climb down to another smaller chamber and on to the head of a pitch; a safety line is useful here, if only to prevent disturbing the loose rocks. The pitch was rigged with one rebelay to land in a puddle at the bottom of a tall chamber, where ducking under a wall leads to a body sized passage with a slight draught. This continues via an acute bend, and tightens to a cobble blockage. A fossil inlet opposite the pool leads to a sandy climb [but not to anything else apparently].
Back in the main chamber, at the bottom of the slope on the left are two phreatic windows, offset by 45°. The upper hole is too small, while the lower hole gives access to a phreatic passage with windows into the parallel upper passage. After around 25m the lower passage ends in chossy infill; an easy 2m climb leads back into the upper phreas, which is somewhat larger at this point. This level soon closes down but continues far enough to bypass the blockage in the lower passage via an easy climb down. Around 7m further on a wall of uniform 20mm gravel blocks the passage; the draught disappears, possibly through this choke.
The third route from the main chamber is a bolt route up one wall toa passage heading off northwards 4m above the floor. There are 2 spits placed to assist the climb and 2 more at the top to rig off. The northwards passage, Zero Gravity Anomaly, is now easy rift to an easy 5m climb down; the way on is a short dug crawl to a tight hammered open pitch head. This is short (7m), with a single spit pitch head backed up by spits in the crawl, and a deviation off a natural. The landing is on a mud and gravel floor; the chamber closes down almost immediately to a 10cm wide rift, no echo, rattle or draft.
Notes in 2003#33 (does not include extensions from 2004, which are in 2004#56 and have not yet been scanned)
Notes in 2003#31
Notes in 2003 #11
(drawn up partly from sketch in 2003 logbook and partly from memory)
(Image assembled from two separate drawn up surveys in wallets 2003#10 and 2004#08.)
A noticable draught outwards is present throughout the cave.
Notes in 2000#34
To the left, are what appear to be blocked entrance shafts with flows of debris that spill into the chamber. Right leads to a spacious passage that rapidly becomes a flat out crawl over loose rocks, and chokes soon after. Higher up on the right, and looking back in the direction of the entrance, is a small phreatic tube that slopes upward. This can be followed around two right-angled turns before it chokes.
The way on from the chamber is straight on. Ducking under a low protrusion from the ceiling leads into another, slightly larger, chamber.
A passage leads off to the left from the far side of the chamber. This can be followed for a short distance before it reaches a blank wall with a small amount of water emerging from a hole near the top. A climb through a window in the right of the chamber leads to the bottom of an aven.
On the right hand wall of the chamber, to the left of the window, a short free climb provides the main way on. Below the climb an awkward crawling passage slopes downwards and emerges part way down the pitch. From the top of the climb, a high passage slopes steeply downwards for about five meters to emerge at the top of the ten meter pitch.
The pitch descends at a less than vertical angle to an icy boulder choke at the bottom with no way on. Above the pitch and to the left, a walking sized phreatic tube can be reached by way of a bolted climb. This leads to a muddy boulder choke.
Notes in 2004#13; Tunnelized version of plan here.
Elevation:
Notes in 2004#41
Elevation:
Notes in 2004#46
Elevation:
Notes in 2004#51
Notes in 2003#10
Notes in 2005#28
WARNING: Entrance pitch floods dangerously in wet weather
+ +Bivy Bag and Brew Kit should be left at the bottom of the entrance pitch!
+ +Entrance Description + +Low drafty entrance at base of small cliff quickly becomes walking/stooping passage. On the right is a 1m climb down to an undescended pitch (07-01B), next to this is another way on which leads to another undescended pitch (07-02C) with a passage appearing to continue beyond. A few metres further along the main passage is 271b, a skylight entrance (free-climbable). Continuing on leads to a small chamber and four way junction. The passage on the right soon chokes. The passage on the left quickly becomes very small and can be followed to pop out on a ledge part way down a shakehole (271c), there is a sound connection between a rift in the SE corner of this shakehole and 97. The main pitch in the shakehole is unexplored (15-03C). The passage continuing straight on from the chamber is bigger and soon reaches a drop which can be traversed over (crawling sized passage continues beyond, 15-01B), the drop is initially free-climbable, but then bells out (15-02B).
Crawling passage for 11m
(Piglet Cave in English)
This description by Karl Gaisberger is from the 1977 Exploration:
After climbing down 8m to where the shaft appeared blocked by snow, progress did not seem likely. I [translator] think "there was a spiralling way in the snow to a wall of ice columns". A very steep descent led into a passage with a snow cone. (This was still in the previous year's snow-free climb !). Pushing through a thin snow-wall through which the light glimmered, a direct way was established. Through a hole in the snow in a rubble-filled passage, the way soon branched. Both branches ended blind.
The lower level of the cave, described by O Schauberger, must be found on the opposite side of the snow-cone from the [Schluf?]. One now comes to a chamber complex where a sloping 10m shaft climbs down into the Kristallhalle. The walls here are covered with admittedly large, but superficially weathered calcite somethings (Kalzitdrusen).
From the Kristallhalle, through a narrow bit to a side-something with a pile of rubble, the Tropfsteinhalle. There is a single 60cm high stalagmite here. It shows a corroded appearance, indicating aggressive ground water. Tropfsteinhalle contains, so far, the most beautiful flowstone decorations in the Loser area. These include [plenty dictionary failure here] Sinterfahnen, Boden- und Deckenzapfen, sogar Excentriques.
In the area of the stalagmites, several dead pseudoscorpions (Neobisium aueri) were found. There is some more description of the floor of the chamber (I think), but I can't make head nor tail of it.
Until recently, it has been difficult to come close to a comprehensive survey or even a good estimate of the length of the system because of a lack of contact and some misunderstanding between the groups involved. However, in 1997 a chance encounter (at the International Congress) by Wookey with Denis Motte, of the G.S.Clerval, led to renewed contacts with one group who explored this area, and Thilo Müller of ARGE has contacted the leaders of other groups and obtained all the rest of the 1980s information that survives. This is being merged into a coherent set of information which will guide necessary resurvey work to complete the picture.
Stellerweghöhle in turn is connected to Schwabenschacht which was over 7km at the time and exploration continues. This must make the combined system at least 19 km long. We have seen figures quoted as high as 25km, but this may involve some double-counting, given the uncertainties involved. Arge's estimate (entirely from extant survey data) was 22.7 km after summer 1999.
From 'Längsten und Tiefsten Hohlen in Österreich', translated by Wookey and Thilo:
The cave is on the southeastern slopes of the Vorderen Schwarzmooskogel (1843) developed in Dachsteinkalk. From seven partly shaft-like entrance points, a huge, flat-floored level with impressive ice formations can be approached. The Schneevulkanhalle at the northern end is the biggest ice-bearing chamber in middle Europe.
Four entrances lead into the central area. A 40m shaft from the Top Entrance 'Oberen Eingang' breaks into the ice-decorated 'Altausseer Halle'. To the west from here via a 25m ramp accessing 'Schneehalle' leads both to entrance 2 and the connecting gallery from the ice-bearing 'Thalhammerhalle', that can be entered from entrances 3 and 4 too. South of the Schnee and Altausseer Halles, the 'Teufelberger Halle' connects, the bottom of which contains an ice lake. A wide passage with side shafts goes southsouthwest to 'Hans-Pfandl-Halle'. The east connected room, also reached by a 23m high chimney (entrance 7), is divided into two by a high block barrier. The 'Flusstunnel' south from here ends blocked.
From the Altausseer Halle, a lofty passage with ice figures heads off NNE. The continuation is the 'Halle des Schiefen Turms', where the 'Wahnsinnschächte' branches off on the west. It was thought that this was blocked by ice. However, over a wall of ice one reaches the 130 by 75 by 50 m Schneevulkanhalle, on the eastern wall of which rises a steep snowslope flowing from the 'Königsschachts' (entrance 6). The chamber with its very impressive ice formations can also be reached via the 'Brennerbeselschluf' (entrance 5). At its northern end a climb reveals the easterly-running 'Kalten Gang' and the parallel 'Spinnenfriedhof'.
The principal objective of both pushing and tourist trips is the huge ice chamber of Schneevulkanhalle, which requires some serious ice work to reach from the older entrances in the middle of the system. Instead, follow the description to the "new" entrance (Brennerbeselschluf, 40e), with a somewhat limited area to get changed, perched between the icy blast from the cave and whatever the Austrian weather is offering.
The entrance is not walk-in, and low crawling in the face of the icy draught starts at once. A small descending tube (somewhat muddy - irritating in crampons!) leads in about 20m to a short climb down into larger (walking/stooping) passage 'Geröllgang. This goes downhill to a scramble up. This was totally ice-covered in 1997 and 1998, but not 1999 or 2000 and has a fixed rope (VfHO-installed), which may be buried in ice at somewhat critical points - a certain amount of care is needed if chipping it out with an ice-axe and gloves really are needed!
Partway up this slope is a space on the left [C0000-40-05 A], including a pitch in the floor. At the far end of this space, a short crawl and a grovel down through boulders where a stream comes in from above both choke. The pitch is a c3, p20, p30 - the last part being very wet in early summer. Leading to Schotterland.
Survey data also suggests a passage off to the right of the iceslope for 20m or so.
Above the scramble up is a short traverse, also rather interesting when covered in hard ice (and also protected by a fixed rope which had to be dug out in 1998). A steeply ascending passage to the L holds a quantity of particularly scrofulous rope (presumably a previous fixed rope). This can be climbed ~10m until it gets too vertical. It draughts. Beyond the ice is a steep snow/ice slope down into the huge Schneevulkanhalle. It is strongly recommended to equip this with a properly rigged SRT rope rather than anything less - the cave has seen a number of accidents, some fatal. Although the slope looks like soft snow, it is a layer of coarsely crystalline hard névé over solid ice. In parts it is almost impossible to kick steps into, whilst in others it offers only minimal purchase for crampon points. Conditions no doubt vary with the season as well as with position on the slope and the year. Tackle required: 50m rope, crampons. There is one bolt at the top, for a traverse line to two bolts off to the R in the roof where the snow-slope proper starts. Sometimes the traverse area is full of snow and an ice-screw or ice-axe rebelay/deviation (club first ? in 1989) may be needed. A deviation (from rock) at the head of the steep section was found adequate in 1998.
The 50m Königschacht (40f) entrance is the source of the snow slope and comes in here. It is often full of snow but was open in 1999 and so was surveyed (by ARGE).
At the bottom is the main chamber from which the pitch does indeed look like a snow-covered volcanic cone. Most of the floor area is ice-covered and only a slight slope is necessary to make crampons vital here. Most of the chamber is filled with ice formations up to 15m high (end of season). Those with two ice-tools can climb almost anything in the chamber, though the formations are no doubt rather more spectacular and fragile in spring or early summer. Formation-ice can also shatter very easily as melting occurs between component crystals later in the season, so it is probably safer for climbers to stick to hard névé. Ways on are mostly reached by steeper slopes that definitely require ice-gear and can be quite unnerving approached from above. Note that the slopes are usually hard ice, ice-axe-braking after a slip is not an option - lifeline or don't fall !
Starting from the pitch (facing outwards from the slope), heading round the chamber to the left leads over a large flat area of ice to where a gap between ice and rock [C0000-40-01 A] drops 10m (2 bolts, one added 1999) into large passage Elefantengang.
Right next to it is an icefall coming in from above [C0000-40-02 C] (Apparently explored by GSCB in early 80s for ~40m). 40m round the wall of the chamber is a rubble run-in, iced on the top half. This was climbed by Haines (1998) and Atkinson (1999), as well as the GSCB. At the top is a wet boulder choke that definately doesn't go, but the GSCB plan shows a narrow rift on the right marked 'tight'.
Halfway up this slope on the left is the narrow entrance to Persistence of Vision.
20m further round another couple of icefalls come in. Both are about 8-10m and vertical [C0000-40-03 A]. GSCB plan shows they have climbed up here to find a 20m pitch beyond into narrow rift. Their survey doesn't make it clear how it ends. CUCC bolted up the left side of the left icefall in 2000 to find an ice water duck leading to a pitch series (Mission Impossible). The duck was dry in 2001, but back again in 2002.
50m further round (downslope) the ice drops away steeply under the wall. A line is advisable for the descent. 20m down, the ice slope peters out giving way to sand and rocks. At the end here is a very strongly draughting hole [C0000-40-04 B]. This appears too tight, but survey data shows this is where Kalten Gang and Spinnefriedhof are (VfHM, 1984). To the right at the foot of the slope closes down with rocks and ice - it would probably connect with Plastic Hell. A few metres up from the bottom of the slope on the left hand (N) wall is a gap between the ice and rock leading into a large chamber [A1998-40-05 B] (reported by Robert Winkler).
Back in Schneevulkanhalle, another 10m clockwise round the chamber is another, steeper iceslope. A rope is definitely needed for this. This is the way to Plastic Hell.
Beyond and above are more thin icefalls coming from high in the ceiling - trying to climb these would be bonkers - the debris from the collapse of some of them is all around.
The foot of the piss-wet pitch opens out into very large triangular passage. You can go NE about 35m until it chokes (a good draught comes out of one hoplessly choked corner) or SW 20 to a T-junction. Right (W) is Kleiner keller. Left, ducking under the low wall, is Schotterland.
Kleiner keller is about 50m on huge passage to where the end is choked with glacial fill and a waterspout comes in the from the roof 3m up. A sling ladder makes it possible to ascend the waterspout - you can even doing it without getting very wet, as the spout is unusually well-concentrated, and thus avoidable. This comes into an E-W rift, with the water coming from the E end. It can be ascended in both directions at various traverse levels for about 30m, but the top appears choked at all points. The top is probably very close to the floor of Elephantengang.
The old Munich cavers' data suggests that there is a passage off kleiner keller that we missed - which seems hard to believe, but maybe it is worth another visit?
Schotterland is more enormous passage (10m wide) going SSE, presumably schotterland, due to the flooring of small rocks. A ramp goes up steeply on the L after 30m. It closes down after 40m. Ahead the passage slowly narrows until it chokes at the end - probably very close to the surface.
Sub-horizontal passages lead through steeply-hading rifts from this entrance. A lower route was originally explored by a German group before CUCC's first visit, and remains poorly documented and not fully explored. The higher route, explored by CUCC, leads past connections to 142, another CUCC find. Passages trend downhill to reach the Big Pitch of 100m vertical.
Lärchenhöhle connects at the bottom of the Big Pitch, and a streamway leads down. A roof passage connects to CUCC's 144, and another leads on to smaller pitches to the Big Rift, dropping steeply down several pitches to reach Junction Chamber with connections to Schnellzughöhle (115).
The route to 115 also leads to Pete's Purgatory, 800m of awful streamway to the Confluence, much more easily reached by large fossil passages starting with Dartford Tunnel from Junction Chamber. The Confluence is around half the depth of the system, and marks a transition to a single linear streamway leading to great depth, a feature currently unique in the known caves of the area.
The streamway is interrupted by a bypassable sump and several, mainly short, pitches, before a low-airspace canal appears to mark the end. However, a low duck can be passed to reach a deep and very wet shaft Orgasm Chasm which drops to the final muddy passage and short pitch to a dismal and deep rift sump.
The sump is 898m below the 41a entrance, and is at just about the same level as Altausseer See, in whose underwater risings the Stellerweg water is presumed to emerge. The scope for greater depth here seems minimal, but connections to various higher entrances have increased this to c971m, with perhaps a little more potential still to realise (optimistically up to 1058m).
Easy going continues past a right turn to a complex junction at several levels. The water can be followed down a rift to a drop into an impenetrable fissure. Back at the junction, a traverse and thrutch through lead to a small tube, which crosses a cross-rift and ends at a filthy sump. Left at the cross rift, however, a low crawl gives onto a greasy chimney climb of 4m with very little in the way of holds. At the foot of this, the water reenters, and soon develops acute verticality. The first 5m are technical and best rigged, but below that, the descent becomes more spiralling in mainly solid rock. After 30m, things become more shattered and muddy and the climb drops into water leading very quickly to a sump at -90m.
Shortly before the second pitch, a right turn leads into an inlet passage, over a slot to the main passage below, over a traverse and a false floor, to reach, eventually, an aven ascended for about 25m and continuing, but with no great prospects.
From the Chamber, a traverse can be entered from the top of the rock-slope. The level closes off after about 15m, but below a climb down, a pitch was excavated dropping into a larger passage which soon choked comprehensively.
(The original notes have been lost; the length cited was calculated by inventing stations and survey legs based on the drawn-up survey.)
This last item, the only complete write up of 1977-79, appeared in Polish translation, and is published in the English original for the first time here.
The lower parts of the 1970s surveys are based on measurement of rope lengths and thus probably best categorised as Grade 2. The 2004 resurveyed depth for the taproom agrees closely with the 1970s surveys:
Ongoing exploration by Arbeitsgemeinschaft Höhle und Karst Grabenstetten e.V.
This description is now quite out of date as it does not include the its connection, nor entrances c,d and e.
Keeping to the right (SW) wall entering Teilungshalle, a rift leads SW. A passage left after 5m quickly ends too tight. A traverse to the left hand side bypasses a 5m shaft in the floor. 15m beyond, another lead on the left leads up into a small chamber, Kapelle. The continuing rift, Südwest-Kluft, gets narrower for c 25m until deemed impassable.
Back in Regenhalle, a narrow section along the joint between the two ways to Teilungshalle, gives access to a lower series via a sharp turn to the right, due south. This wide passage, Südwest-gang, passes under Teilungshalle, and turns SW directly under Südwest-Kluft. A narrow rift on the left parallels the main passage for some way. The main way develops into Gr. Dom, 12m wide, with a boulder slope up until the passage chokes comprehensively on a broad front, almost exactly below the cliff outside.
At the far (NE) end of Regenhalle, stright on enters a draughting boulder choke, but two ways up to the right lead into Stufengang, with a complex of little rifts and an extension NE to a low choked area.
Ahead is a phreatic tunnel which chokes, and a large black emptiness. This is descended for 25m in four 6m steps, Viermalbierschacht, to a ledge big enough for one and a bit people. The stream goes over this ledge into a large black void. This pitch, Besoffene, is 50m and hangs free for all but the last 8m in a very impressive shaft. From the foot, traverse above a steeply dropping stream canyon to a sloping platform from which a 17m pitch reaches the stream floor. This cascades over a further 6m pitch, below which a climb out of the stream reaches a rig point for a 30m pitch ending on a slope down to a sump at -216m.
There is also an area plan showing 82 in context with 145 and 148.
A further 15m pitch follows, hanging clear of a wall made up mainly of boulders. A way on across the head of the final pitch appears too tight. Hole in floor is last pitch, of 33m, which has a boulder 10m high in it, and you can descend either side. Draught is lost into a small passage which you could reach by bolting, but it seems a little pointless.
There is a 1987 extension, but I can't make much sense of the logbook description.
Open shaft descends 5m to first rigging bolt, then short pitch to snow plug. The way out is to the NE, where the survey shows a couple of (inaccessible ?) question marks and a traverse over a pit. Narrow rift continues past another unexplored small passage to the right, and in 20m opens out into a sizeable chamber. The boulder floor drops away to the north (left) and ahead. Up right is a bouldery antechamber with the base of a ramp up SE. A short passage here chokes.
20m across the boulder slope, it is possible to descend the slope left into the main part of Oberpfälzer Halle, 15m wide and 30m long, now heading west, still descending over boulders. To the right is a 15m rift passage with an inlet. Ahead, the chamber narrows, but large bouldery passage continues with two or three big boulders (over 5m). To SW is a junction marking the start of Jsartal. Up a steep ramp to the right (NW) is unexplored, whilst left, south, goes directly below the entrance in a passage with a slot in the floor. After 25m is a widening and junction. Right curves round to end below an aven. Left goes quickly to another junction. Right soon chokes in boulders, whilst left ends quickly in an undescended rift pitch.
Back at the junction at the start of Jsartal, the main way SW soon traverses a large hole in the floor, then continues as a small canyon until 50m from the start is a junction in small passage. Right pops out immediately into the side of a ramp rising right (north) to a choke. Down ends in a pitch, which is best reached by the small passage left at the junction. This quickly doglegs and comes out over the pitch on the opposite side from the ramp. The pitch (undescended) is seen to be a widening in a deep floor canyon, which continues as Jsartal develops into an 8m wide rocky chamber through which the floor trench meanders.
After a short way, the trench abruptly ends, and a ramp up above it leads to a junction. Left continues up ramp, but not very far. Right traverses the ramp (another down-section soon ends), then heads west past another blind passage on the right, to break out into a larger passage ahead. Left (south) is the way to Geburtstagsgang, whilst right (north) eventually leads to the SchwarzmooskogelEishöhle connection.
Ascending a low ramp leads past various short side-extensions to Schafott - apparently a breakthrough point in 1986 ? Beyond this, small passage continues SW, with a mudbank on the left, for almost 50m until it widens out and descends a steep slope towards a floor trench. Left here a further ramp ascends east to a choke. The floor trench continues W, then NW, but would seem to be too narrow. Staying on the north side of the trench and heading NW (right from the point of entry) leads through mud and/or shingle deposits in a small zig-zag passage which meets first a small canyon which doesn't go, and then a T-junction over another canyon.
Right ends after ten metres or so, whilst left (west) meets another junction where a further trench comes in from the left (south). This also appears to be too small to follow, but would seem likely to connect with one or both of the trenches seen earlier. Ahead reaches a chamber, with a steep slope down left to yet another trench, but staying high gains the continuation of Geburtstagsgang continuing small with a narrow floor canyon. This now goes NW for 50m, to a T-junction. Right ends almost immediately, whilst left shortly pops out in bigger passage on a ledge overlooking a small stream.
Right in the canyon, 12m away, is bigger passage (Großer Cañon), and the original way to Stellerweghöhle, whilst ahead/left goes west, quickly picking up an inlet from the left and dropping 30m in Ungarn Cañon, a narrow way for 50m, to where exploration ceased. It is not clear, but this may well be a pitch, quite possibly into part of the Stellerweg system.
By going right at the start of Ungarn Cañon, large, bouldery passage is soon met at a T-junction. To the right is an alternative route from the entrance via Frankenschnellweg and Großer Cañon. This route was found first, but the survey numbering suggests it was surveyed later and I might deduce that this is not the normal way.
Left in the bigger passage is over boulders, passing a short passage on the left. A hole in the floor of this appears to connect to Ungarn Cañon. Ahead, a slit in the floor is traversed (on the right ?) to reach a pair of large boulders. Up right here ends quickly in an unclimbable sediment wall. Continuing west, the trench reappears (now traversed on left) and soon expands to be a large hole in the floor. It is unclear from the survey how this is crossed, but on the far side, it would appear that a pitch of c 35m is descended, over jammed blocks. Rising steeply to the right (north) from (the foot ?) here is an unascended ramp, which seems likely to connect to unsurveyed passages below Roddick's Dive in 1623/144.
A continuation WNW from this point would appear to be part of the streamway below the Big Pitch in Stellerweghöhle. This in turn suggests that the 35m or so descent must be in the lower part of this shaft, and the ramp seen to the right starts some way above the foot of the pitch.
From the junction at the west of Jsartal, large passage heads north for a short way to a T-junction. Right encounters two floor trenches, the right hand of which soon widens to a 3m deep blind pit. Across this is 25m of rising passage to a choke. Left soon swings round and heads north again, passong another short, blind ascending way on the left. A short section of floor trench is traversed and a short way beyond is Brotzeitplatz, where a large cross-rift goes a short distance left and right.
Ahead is Frankenschnellweg, a rifty passage with rounded roof, heading north with an initial floor trench. Thirty metres or so from Brotzeitplatz another cross-rift is met, this time at an angle. This is the start of a slightly mazey area. To the right is narrow for 30m to the edge of a wide shaft, Regenschacht, 4m deep. By traversing right on the near edge, a small passage is gained which circles all the way round to the far side, then ends in a small aven.
Ahead in Frankenschnellweg, another cross-rift is encountered less than 20m ahead. Right turns sharply back and connects to the Regenschacht passage about halfway along. Left is too narrow to follow, but lines up with another section of rift in the mazey area. Continuing north in Frankenschnellweg, the boulder floor changes and a steep slope down leads to the lip of a canyon at Puits du Sable. Directly opposite is a short blind ramp up. Right is the way to Grand Galerie, described below, whilst left is the start of Großer Cañon.
This is the deep rift reached at the end of Frankenschnellweg, but it is not clear that this is the best way to get to it. Back at the start of the mazey area, the way left (SW) is boulder-floored rift which continues for twenty metres or so until a junction. Ahead chokes, but two ways right soon unite. The left way looks harder - a traverse over a trench, whilst the right way is boulder floored. Beyond the reunion is narrower, with a slot in the floor, and zig-zagging roughly NW, though clearly interrupted by a number of SW-NE joints. One of these can be followed for ten or fifteen metres, where it becomes too narrow, but lined up with a cross-rift in Frankenschnellweg.
After this joint, the next junction is effectively an oxbow on the left, where a bat was found during exploration. Ahead soon reaches the top of the Großer Cañon, some 40m downstream from the point reached in Frankenschnellweg. A descent to the bottom at this point is a 30m pitch. Directly across from the point of entry is a ramp up, with various sediment banks, leading to Sophienhalle. To the right goes back towards the Puits du Sable and Grand Galerie - see below.
To the left, Großer Cañon heads SW in a classic meander, or traversing rift. Give or take a couple of zags, this is straight for almost 100m, at which point it is interrupted by a bouldery chamber of about 10m diameter. Beyond, Großer Cañon continues S then SW again, getting wider. Boulders hide the trench, and the passage curves west. To the left is the way in via Geburtstagsgang and on to Ungarn Cañon. Ahead is the main way into Stellerweg, described above. It is not clear whether the stream below Großer Cañon goes on this way, or joins Ungarn Cañon.
Upstream in Großer Cañon, most easily reached by the Puits du Sable, ascending passage heads east, and soon develops into a very wide passage with a deep canyon floor. It looks as if this passage is done at the level of the bottom of the canyon, which leads up, passing an inlet on the right, to a large pool at the foot of Puits Madonna. This is ascended to reach a similar level to the point of entry above Puits du Sable. The continuation enlarges into Grande Galerie, soon attaining impressive dimensions of 15m wide by 20m high. Question marks mark apparently inaccessible passages, two on the right and one on the left.
Beyond a couple of impressive boulders, a climb up leads to a smaller continuation. To the right is a hole in the floor with passage beyond, but left is a ramp up which soon rejoins the passage beyond the hole. The way gets bigger again, in passage first explored from Schwarzmooskogeleishöhle, until after 50m, it ends at the foot of a thirty metre pitch from the other cave.
On the NW side of Großer Cañon, directly opposite the entry via the mazey area, or 40m downstream from the entry via Puits du Sable, is a ramp up NNW. Right and left are walls of sediment, but the main way suddenly turns right, though still ascending steeply. The ramp eases and becomes more bouldery, now heading NE, suddenly to end at a widening above a deep undescended pit. A climb up on the right of this reaches the top of the far wall, in a large N-S collapse chamber, Sophienhalle. This shows clear bedding in the walls, and appears to have formed by spalling. Over the boulder floor, another steep wall precedes a ramp down to a choke. Dotted lines suggest a northward continuation, though whether this is above or below the ramp is unclear.
Grade 2 (at a guess), drawn up in loose leaves in front of 1996-9 NotKH book
Grade 2 (at a guess), drawn up in loose leaves in front of 1996-9 NotKH book
The Bottomless Abbess continues with pitches of 15m, 30m, 15m and 15m to a short horizontal section. This breaks out into the side of another shaft where 15m and 10m pitches lead to a more complex area. A short pitch of 6m leads to the Priest's Hole and a gently slanting ramp into a dry, dusty, abandoned phreatic passage. This is interrupted by a large hole in the floor, which would require bolts to cross.
Down the hole, the 25m pitch starts unpromisingly, but soon bells out into a magnificent trench passage. Traversing over a gully leads to a series of short climbs and a fine last pitch The Dissolution. Here the water sinks into an impenetrable crack.
The entrance draughts strongly, but there is no air movement at the end, the most likely way on being the traverse to reach the continuation of the phreatic level at -190m. Unfortunately, the trip to this point is quite severe, since the crawl would render rescue impractical and the Bottomless Abbess rapidly becomes very wet after rain.
CUCC sketch 1996
+Surveyed 2005, Olly Betts, Jenny Black
+Photoed 2015, Wookey
The 1m diameter entrance is followed by a walking sized phreatic passage with further entrances in the roof. This continues to a four-way junction. Straight on soon chokes at a boulder slope. Up to the left, the passage winds back to a further entrance. The way on is down to the right. The 5m high passage continues, passing low crawls on the left and right to a point where the roof lowers and the passage is split horizontally. The lower passage leads to an extensive series of low crawls whilst the upper passage continues to a squeeze past a debris cone with a distinct draught. Past the debris cone the passage splits again. The right hand passage chokes soon after a 12m pitch but the left hand passage carries on as a hands and knees crawl, crosses a blind 4m pit and soon reaches the first pitch.
A fine descent of 66m in a large shaft lands on a boulder ledge with the second pitch following on immediately. This descends 50m to a 15cm wide rift. Although there is a possible continuation beyond, this would require considerable effort to enter and was not pushed. A climb up to a window above the second pitch (krab and sling left rigged) gains a climb down to the boulder-strewn foot of an aven and a horizontal tube going off (not explored). 13m down the second pitch, Fledermaus ledge can be gained, with a passage leading off to Fledermaus pitch, named for the quantities of bat skeletons at its head. This 27m descent reaches about the same level as the base of the second pitch, and is blind except for a small slot in one wall. Traversing over Fledermaus leads to a small chamber with two tubes leading off, both draughting. The left tube becomes too tight, but a pitch can be seen beyond the constriction. The right tube is the Organ Grinder.
The Organ Grinder is 46m of exceedingly tortuous passage - nowhere extremely tight but twisting and turning, rising and falling, requiring a unique combination of contortions. It is best tackled feet first on the way in (head first on the way out) until a flat out crawl near the end which leads to the crux: a U-bend, best approached head first on the descent. This is even more difficult on the return, when it is best tackled feet first. UBSS's times to pass this passage varied from 10 minutes to 3½ hours, with an average of 20 minutes. There is just room to replace SRT gear before the following pitch. The return of an injured person through this tube would be almost impossible without extensive modification of the cave.
The third pitch descends 42m, passing two windows, to a floor with no way on. From the foot of the pitch, a 3m climb up to a ledge reveals two climbs down. One of thse is blind, but the other leads to an undescended pitch of c20m.
Both of the windows in the third pitch connect with Topher's pitch, and the lower one was rigged. From here the pitch is 86m with a large ledge near the bottom. At the foot, a window leads to an aven, whilst in the opposite wall, another window looks onto the fifth pitch, Toccata and Feuge (sic).
Toccata and Feuge is best descended from a ledge above the large ledge in Topher's pitch. Rigged mainly from flakes and threads, it drops in a series of steps, 39m in total. A small hole in the floor drops into a chamber with no passable way on - just two exits, both too tight. 10m back up the pitch, a ledge can be gained and is the start of the Rift Climb. This is a 40m descent, and is best rigged as a self-lined climb. The rift continues for some distance horizontally, but has not been followed. Below the Rift climb, the head of another pitch can be gained, but great care should be exercised in the Rift Climb and this following pitch (The Pitch of the Flying Boulders) as there are many loose rocks, which, when dislodged, fall the full depth of both pitches. From the bottom of Topher's Pitch to the head of PotFB, many fossils of "large bivalves and snails on sticks" protrude up to 25mm from the rock.
The PotFB was rigged from a thread and is somewhat awkward for 6m to a rebelay, after which it hangs free. The 32m descent lands in The Hall of the Flying Boulders, which again contains much loose rock, choking the floor level. However, a 2m climb up a mudbank leads to an impressive phreatic passage. A pit in the floor of this passage drops to a chamber with a deep well. Passing this, and a smaller side passage on he left, one soon reaches Another Bloody Pitch with a strong draught at the head. The side passage also joins this pitch. Another Bloody Pitch is 31m, but ends blind. A window part way down reaches a further shaft of 36m, also blind, but this is the deepest explored point, at -295m.
From the head of Another Bloody Pitch, a continuation of the phreatic passage can be seen, but will not be reached without a serious bolted traverse. It is thought that this is the main way on, at c260m depth.
A 6m drop reaches a point overlooking a 5m wide circular shaft. Bolts for a Y-hang lead onto the 56m free-hanging Heart of Gold pitch, named for its cross section. Another 10m drop on the other side of a boulder lands on a large ledge covered in loose boulders, The Italian Bistro. Awkward rigging on the right wall and two lower bolts allow Deep Thought to be rigged just clear of the tottering boulders that give the 18m pitch its name.
At the base is The Restaurant at the End of the Cave, a large chamber sporting five waterfalls. From the foot of the pitch, the floor is steeply inclined up to an arch, beyond which the chamber continues to rise to a total length of about 50m. A debris slope up to a tube at the highest points leads only to a choke. There is no other way on from the Restaurant since the floor is choke by major collapse at a depth of 117m.
The original entrance is a "walk-in" open shaft which leads on to a twisted vertical pitch of 17m, Parthos, into a sizeable chamber at the top of a rubble slope. The obvious small wriggle at the bottom of the slope leads to the Musketeers' Series, while a bolted climb leads to the main way on.
The Musketeers' Series consists of stooping phreatic passages, with a 5m pitch, then a couple of climbs to the head of an 11m pitch, Aramis, into a chamber. At the far end, a further pitch, Athos, is 8m. The way on is up a short climb to the head of a 5m+10m ramp, Porthos, down to a phreatic tube with a silted up floor. Digging in the silt revealed a tight rift rising up, but as this was too tight, the dig was abandoned. The water from Aramis descends a tight rift in the base of the phreatic tube, but after 3m, this too became too tight.
The climb up before the Musketeers' Series leads quickly to a T-junction. To the right, a winding ramp passage of decreasing size leads on and up with several fallen blocks making progress awkward. This route ends at a small chamber with an inlet dropping from the roof. Left from the T-junction leads on down a gently sloping boulder ramp in stooping, then walking passage. This increases in size and becomes steeper before emerging into the side of an enormous boulder ramp, Hillsborough Revisited. The inlet passage enters three quarters of the way up Hillsborough, which is 10m wide by 5m high and drops a total of 40m at 40°. At the base of Hillsborough, an aven rises to the surface and daylight can be seen reflecting off the sides of this second entrance. A third entrance was discovered on the surface which leads down a deep grike through a tight arch and into a small chamber. Digging boulders revealed a steeply inclined squeeze leading onto a pitch at the top of the Hillsborough ramp. The base of this pitch leads onto an inclined overhanging terrace with a hole at the back which drops 2m onto another inclined overhanging terrace. A 4m climb down from this ledge ends at the top of the boulder ramp of Hillsborough.
The base of Hillsborough was blind until a dig in unstable boulders on the left hand side revealed a tight drop between two wedged boulders into another very sizeable ramp, Penistone Road. This ramp is convoluted and twists around open shafts and roof collapse to end in a huge chamber with a small muddy hole in the floor, The Hole in the Road. This way on is blind.
An alternative route from the main ramp of Penistone Road leads down an old phreatic tube decorated with calcite frost and numerous small helictites to a flat-out crawl to a 25m blind pitch.
Near the bottom of the Hole in the Road, a 6m rope climb up the eastern wall, The Escalator, leads to a series of solution tubes. A 1m diameter tube drops NE into The Broadwalk, a sizeable mud-floored phreatic passage. Here, following a strong draught, the passage opens up, becoming very high with a number of avens cutting down into the passage. A 4m rope climb drops down to the head of a pitch, Reason to Believe?. This dry shaft is disjointed and 144m deep, broken at approximately half depth by a 'saddle'. A further short pitch lands on a slope before the final drop into a sizeable chamber. The only exit from this chamber is to the east and is a muddy rift passage traversed at various levels. This leads to the head of a further series of disjointed shafts and the wet 77m pitch More than a Feeling. Here a 57m drop lands on a spray-lashed ledge and a further 20m drop gives way to a large boulder slope. Two wet 2m climbs lead up to the head of a 7m pitch which leads to the base of the shaft.
Through the small passage across the base of the shaft, a climb down through boulders leads to a rift streamway. Only a short way down is an 11m pitch followed immediately by a 17m pitch, Leonie's Birthday Leap. The stream leads on once more until it cuts away and a traverse along a muddy rift passage leads to the head of a fault collapse chamber running away at an angle of 70°. Over 20m above the stream a distinctly dodgy rope climb/abseil leads to a point where a climb back around rejoins the stream. A further 8m rope climb leads to the last 19m pitch which drops into a sump at a depth of 425m.
In the chamber at -308m, a reascent of about 15m gave access to a fairly wide fossil canyon which blew a detectable draught. After 30m, this passage opened onto the enormous Puits de Naufragés (The Castaway's pitch), with a cross section of 15 by 25 metres and 242m deep. Near the bottom of this pitch, several inlets appeared to come from the first branch explored. The bottom of the pitch contracted to a joint-guided rift, exploration in 1976 ending at the head of a pitch estimated at 40m. (Depth 587m).
The cave continued predominantly vertical in 1977, with pitches of 54, 88, 53 and 25m to two siphons at -854m. The altitude of these sumps is 756m - the valley level.
The description is translated mainly from reference 78.2003 by Andy Waddington and Jill Gates.
The lower entrances lead by large phreatic passages to pitches which drop into a further large horizontal level which undulates between -410m and -500m. At -497m, this links to the main vertical system from Quelli. Using these lower ways in, exploration reached a sump at -913m in 1977. Following the large phreatic level away from Quelli goes for about a kilometre before breaking into the side of a colossal shaft at -414m. This is a 211m pitch to a choke at -625m. There is a possible way on across this shaft, which is, however, 20m in diameter.
The description is translated mainly from these references by Andy Waddington and Jill Gates.
The explorers in 1977 started on the descent of a fine 60m pitch of constant shape, slightly sloping, Puits Zorglub. At the bottom of this is the only chamber of the cave : the Salle Galactique. Here the cave splits into two routes, the active and the fossil.
Downstream from the chamber a drop leads to a small chamber among boulders, the Love Nest. (No idea who ventured to call it this). Between the boulders a 20m pitch opens, immediately followed by a 25m pitch. In fact, the last 25m of descent drops between the walls of an immense aven to land on a flat gravel floor. A diagonal chimney leads to a trickle of water.
A fissure marks the start of the Méandre Anti-Matière, where one immediately rejoins the underground stream. This has an average flow of two litres per second but quite rapidly increases to 10-15 litres per second in flood. The first part of the meander is straight and interrupted by 3 small pitches and two drops. At the top of the first, in the roof, is the connection with the fossil system. Quickly, the meander becomes less amenable: high and narrow, it is plastered with mud (the anti-matter) which makes progress quite arduous. Three pitches of 5, 14 and 10m punctuate progress. This last, followed by a drop of 3m, gives access to a section of passage blocked by clay. At the end of this, the stream disappears into a fissure with tight impenetrable bends.
The main passage continues ahead as a quite large fossil branch. After some 50m, the draught goes into an earthy hole, the start of a big pitch of 70m in several stages, the Puits du Centaure.
Halfway down, the pitch is rejoined by the stream which is avoided by a parallel fossil shaft. There immediately follows another pitch of 55m, the Puits du Fond des Ages, totally wet and characterised by an elliptical cross-section and constant slope. At the bottom, the water is engulfed by a fissure about three metres long, followed by a tight meander which has not been pushed. This is the deepest point : -565m.
Upstream from the Salle Galactique, a window some metres high gives access to a good-sized passage (3x3m on average), the Méandre des Petits Hommes Verts (the Little Green Men's passage). One comes up against a climb of 3m at the base of which the trickle of water is lost into a meander cut below the fossil passage (see below). After a narrowing and a climb, the passage ends in boulders between which it is still possible to penetrate for a dozen metres.
Back in the meander below the fossil passage: this ends at the Puit de la Comète (discovered by the Gaumais), a 60m pitch, spray-lashed in its lower part by Le Pipi (the wee-wee). At the base of this pitch is the beginning of the Méandre des Mutants. This is a passage for masochists par excellence: low and tight, gear gets caught everywhere. It ends in a series of climbs and a 30m pitch joining the active system.
See reference 78-2008 for Geology and Meteorology.
The mud eventually runs out to be replaced by more and more inclined slabs, which were very easy on the way up. The gradient steadily increases until the floor merges into the end wall, and the trickle of water enters from high up. At this point, a couple of holes in the roof have already been passed, but investigation revealed these to be beyond reasonable reach without some fairly serious bolting.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the range, Upper Austrian cavers have undertaken some homework that others left behind a quarter of a century ago. Ahnenschacht (Ancestors' Shaft) was discovered in the 1950s and pushed to -395m. In the 1970s, Belgian cavers found vast horizontal passages amounting to about 5km in total – and a continuation to -602m. Their pushes came to an abrupt halt, however, when in 1975 a caver fractured his pelvis and had to be transported out of the cave. It was Austria's biggest cave rescue operation in the 20th century.
Since documentation of the Belgian finds was fragmentary and of very poor quality, some members of the Verein für Höhlenkunde in Oberösterreich decided to fill in the gaps in the maps and resume surveying activities. So far, 1.7km have been accurately surveyed.
Correspondent: Theo Pfarr
(I fear attempting to reconcile the chronology of the above snippet with theinformation above is a hopeless task.)
The entrance is in a small shakehole situated on the ridge separating Feuertal and Hintergras. The cave starts with four pitches (p14, p11, p5 and p11) which drop onto a slope formed of big boulders (rope desirable). After this, another series of small pitches (p9, p7, p6, p4, p10, p18, p11) from which is reached the Sinterterrasse at -141m.
From this point, one has left the zone of small pitches and started a series of pitches which in reality are part of a single shaft down to -400m.
Indeed, if you had an unfortunate accident on the Sinterterrasse, you would fall all the way to -400m. These pitches are usually wet, especially after rain... Here is the list of pitches: p25, Schuppenstufe 30, p10, Sicherungsstufe 32, Schachtgabel 48, a 10m ramp, Josef Schacht 100m. On the Josef Schacht, a pendulum 6m from the top enables one to reach the entry to the Horizontal network. Descending the Josef Schacht a little further, after a 6.5m and a 10m pitch, access can be gained to a wide canyon, active in the bottom, and which ends in a fissure. This canyon is fossil in the upper level and certainly presents possibilities for continuation.
After one has crossed the "doorway" and a short squeeze, one enters the network proper. At this point is a passage covered in rather special formations. The first junction gives access to a network ... [unfortunately there are lines missing in my photocopy of Spéalp 1]
This fossil system, which has not been fully travelled through, contains numerous possibilities. It is reached by three principal access routes: the pitch already mentioned; a descending fissure a little before the Belgica; and a sloping passage with formations in the Mammoth pitch chamber. The system is composed of a big chamber with numerous passages and junctions; it is very poorly known and no doubt houses many surprises. Continuing along the passage, one passes a step of 4m to find a junction, to the left at which lies the bivouac.
Directly after the bivouac, there is a 10m pitch, and at the bottom, a new junction: downhill the Belgica passage, of fairly small dimensions, which leads, after traversing past three holes, to a descent of an 8m and a 17m pitch and to the squeezes passed by our French colleagues.
Uphill, discovered by D.Motte and PIE, in the course of the expedition in 1974, is the Galerie de Francs Comtois. This is a large ascending fossil passage interspersed with traverses, dips and pitches. It reascends to -90m. At -150m, a 20m pitch reaches the Résomega.
A little before the 20m pitch, a short descending canyon passage avoids the 20m pitch and the series of squeezes following it. The Résomega is an alternately ascending and descending passage, very chaotic, interspersed with several junctions and pitches which leads to the Balcon du Visionnaire, offering several possibilities. A 60m pitch gives onto another 60m pitch which is undescended. There is another big pitch in excess of 100m and an unfinished ascending passage. A little before, a 10m pitch allows one to reach a passage interspersed with 3 junctions and 7 exits ! This shows the level of complexity which we ran into.
It was also at the Balcon du Visionnaire that an accident occurred in 1975, which terminated exploration in that year.
Back in the Horizontal network, and after passing a little bouldery climb an inlet is encountered, named The Bath. The passage continues a little longer, to end in a pitch. [ exploration incomplete ]
The following junction has been named Mammoth Junction because the passage to the right leads onto the pitch of the same name. It is necessary to exercise great care and attention not to slip hereabouts, because a fall would drop you into same.
The Mammoth Pitch, Para-pitch and probably the Negus pitch, form part of the same system (see survey) which is composed of a 146m pitch, a 10m pitch and a narrow canyon interspersed with several cascades leading finally to a 35m pitch giving onto the sump at -612m. The Para-pitch, p106, is followed by pitches of 5, 10 and 50m and drops via the latter into the Mammoth Canyon.
The Negus pitch, which is undescended, should also drop into the same canyon. Several other small pitches and active streamways should also rejoin this system.
The depth of 612m should be treated cautiously because the method of survey used (based on the height of a man) is fairly imprecise. The bottom could be anywhere between -580m and -630m. The shortage of time prevented us from redoing our survey. [The depth quoted in Atlas des Grandes Gouffres is -607m, which is shown as the bottom of this system. However, a Belgian survey shows the Yodl system (which is supposed to end at -607m) to be somewhere else entirely, so it is rather unclear which survey is wrong.]
Turning left, the Zipfer passage is followed for 150m before reaching an important junction: to the left Chimneys passage, to the right Draughting passage.
This is very large with a constant slope, interrupted in the middle by a squeeze and a couple of drops. The Schnaps pitch (40m with an unexplored, narrow canyon) is avoided by traversing to reach a 25m pitch in which you must pendulum 5m from the bottom in order to reach a chamber in which is met a small stream. Climbing up a little opposite, a short upper passage rejoins the stream by a 20m pitch. In the chamber, the descent of a 10m pitch allows the stream to be followed to a squeeze beyond which one can hear the grumble of a large river ? A place to go back to.
This is fossil, and tight in places, and allows exploration of a very complex network which intersects itself in various places and which could hold very great surprises, since its exploration has only been sketchily outlined. The exit from this passage is in an area of boulders where two possibilities exist:
To the left: a tight passage has been forced on a slope to Kitschacht (Tackle Bag Shaft) a magnificent 50m drop, very wide and completely free hanging. At its base, several possibilities. A tight active canyon which can be bypassed by a fossil passage, broken by an earthy drop of 3m to a huge 15m pitch leading to a sump at -360m.
A drop of a few metres gives access to a huge fossil passage (10 × 5m). The floor of this is cut by a deep canyon which has not been explored. After a hundred metres or so the passage ends at a vast wet pitch. Climbing over a big boulder on the right gives access to another pitch upwards.
Just after the base of Kitschacht, a passage of 80m makes a connection with the system of the Décollement pitch at the bottom of the 40m shaft. A canyon leaving the junction passage can be followed for more than 300m, and exits, in several places, into the side of the big fossil passage, just before the pitch upwards.
To the right: The Décollement pitch, with, at its base, a sloping chamber full of boulders. To the left a very deep ascending canyon is unexplored. In the bottom is the Méandre Emeri, so called because the formations are orientated in the direction of progress and of the draught. This rejoins a wide pitch with an inlet. After this 15m pitch is a short canyon and a damp 40m pitch. At the bottom, a huge descending passage suddenly turns almost vertical. This is the Toboggan, needing 20m of rope (a very spectacular passage). At this level one again cuts a new streamway. The passage continues, then contracts, and chokes at -385m.
After the Bivouac: a 10m pitch, then turn left into a small passage, ignore three pitches to the side, then descend pitches of 8 and 13m to arrive at some easy squeezes on the left. After this, a climb of 5m and a 42m pitch. Stops in a sand blockage at -410m.
Over the 13m pitch a small passage goes to several climbs in a fossil series. There is a 25m pitch and two 10m pitches ending in several very tight chimneys.
From the entrance, after 70m down Josef schacht, climb down 7m over a large block and descend about 12m in the bottom of a meander. Progress is then in the meander, with a short climb in a fault on the left and a 120m pitch, in sections of 22m and 100m. Beyond is a tight canyon with a 20m pitch to a sump at -607m (the last part of the 100m pitch is wet).
Atlas des Grands Gouffres du Monde 1979 says that the original -395m route goes on to c-470m (unsurveyed) and there are also routes ending at -385m and -386m.
The description was translated from the references by Andy Waddington and Jill Gates.
The description is translated mainly from reference 78.2012 by Andy Waddington and Jill Gates, with additional info on dates/lengths as cited.
More information on this cave, by those exploring it, can be found on the Landesverein für Höhlenkunde in Oberosterreich site, with text available in both English and German and with a number of excellent photos.
The pitch lands in a small chamber with a short walking rift exit. Pitches of 14m, 8m and 10m follow in rapid succession. At the foot of the 10m pitch, a smooth, oval squeeze, The Cnut (spelling mistake), opens onto The Womb. This is a fine pitch of 41m in a spacious shaft, landing in a chamber 12m x 10m with a floor of large boulders of dubious stability.
A rift to one side is a loose and narrow pitch of 17m to a ledge and much nicer drop of 10m. A large rift, The Large Intestine, follows. Initially traversed on wide ledges, this soon narrows to a crawl along the rift at roof level. A 14m pitch descends to the foot of the rift and a short section of sharp, suit-ripping rift leads to a chamber with an inlet up to one side. The suit ripping rift can be bypassed by a pendulum, but the rope left for this is now hanging inaccessible, so the original manoevre would need to be repeated.
The exit from the chamber is too tight, but a 12m pitch up reaches a muddy solution tube at roof level, originally reached by an exposed traverse from a point halfway down the previous pitch. A slippery climb up and a short flat-out crawl, The Small Intestine, leads to the head of a constricted pitch of 10m to a wider section of the rift. After a few metres, a pit in the floor necessitates a climb down, then back up of 5m. At this point, a traverse follows the roof of the rift while the floor cuts down sharply. A pair of 13m deep holes are crossed by fairly exposed traverses, and further traversing reaches the next pitch Fantasy, in a shaft which is initially about 15m in diameter.
A drop of 46m, broken by ledges covered in loose boulders, lands on a large sloping ledge at a junction with a much larger shaft. The rubble needs caution, as much of the rest of the pitch is in the firing line.
The next section is 58m with two deviations, close to a wall down which some water falls. The opposite wall is some 20-30m away, and to either side, no walls are visible. Below this section, a narrow saddle of rock splits the shaft, the left hand route (facing the water) being taken. A further 27m lands on an enormous (20m x 30m) flat ledge right across the shaft, with pitches continuing both sides.
The right hand (facing the water) shaft is the continuation of the route voided at the rock saddle. A steep, muddy slope leads onto a 41m pitch and, below this, a climb over a muddy boulder pile leads onto a steep ramp (rope required) descending 15m into The Dream Machine. This is a massive passage 30m wide leading through boulders the size of houses. After about 100m, a boulder pile with a large central boulder is reached. Beyond, the passage can be seen to continue, but scaling equipment will be required to reach it.
From the 30m x 20m ledge, the left hand shaft is undescended, but rock tests indicate a similar depth to the right hand shaft, ie. about 50m.
At the end of 1988, the depth is 354m with excellent potential.
Stopped at -375m, no further details at present.
From the base of Aquarius, traversing forwards gains a drier hang for the next pitch of 16m. A pendulum 10m down avoids the worst of the water, which continues down a clean circular shaft (see below).
The pendulum reaches W.C.S. series where two short drops in a rift lead to a bolt rebelay in a massive jammed boulder. Just below this, a window opens into a narrow shaft which is undescended. At the foot of the rift, a short section of hading rift gets wetter at the head of the next pitch, whose 11m are always lashed by spray from somewhere above.
A short traverse into a large alcove escapes the spray and facilitates a dry hang for FUDE, a 14m pitch with natural belays set well back and soft squidgy choss at the pitch head. Two climbs lead to a rift/ramp area where the way on is tight and thrutchy. Nil Desperandum soon drops to the head of a short pitch and more climbs down into a chamber.
The rift outlet is too tight, but a 5m climb up gains a bypass where a short traverse leads to Ardua, a pitch of 11m. Down the slope, the water sinks in boulders, but the way on is a slot in the wall behind a large boulder. This immediately bells out onto Astra, a 38m pitch where a pendulum onto and over a huge chocked boulder reaches bolts for the second part of the pitch, a superb 25m drop down one end of a large rift.
Climbing down at the far end of the rift, an area of breakdown is reached. Up the boulders, a rift enters from the right (presumed to be an inlet, but not explored), while water can be heard away to the left. However, the loose nature of this area, combined with the pitch below, precluded anything more than a cursory examination.
Under the boulders, a short pitch lands in a chamber where the water is rejoined shortly before it cascades over the lip of another large shaft, the limit of exploration in 1987.
The pitch is 57m and quite wet, dropping into a sizeable chamber (50m x 10m and 40m high), The Planetarium. This chamber is formed along a fault, with breakdown littering the floor. At one end, under a large waterfall, is a pitch between the wall and the boulders. This drops 15m into an extremely loose boulder choke Religious Places, with no way on. No other route out could be found from the Planetarium, giving an overall depth of 331m.
The wet way on from the bottom of Aquarius descends pitches of 7m and 27m. The latter is arguably the best pitch of the cave, hanging free for 23m beside a column of water. Unfortunately, the way on is a tiny impassable rift.
This cave was originally only numbered in carbide, so was unmarked for years. It was relocated in 1989, but was not numbered until 1993 since AERW didn't think to carry paint while trying to find old holes. The orange number was fading and chipped in 1995, so was refreshed in red. The surface survey was to the centre of the middle digit of the number.
Entrance view, looking roughly east towards the Hinter | Entrance closeup |
(Photos © Olly Betts 2005)
Entrance view, looking roughly NW towards the Rauher (I think) | View down shaft | Tag | Remains of second painted number |
(Photos © Olly Betts 2006)
Photo © Olly Betts, 2004
View of location (entrance in centre of picture) | Entrance (1999) | Entrance (2005) — note tag and number on right-hand wall | View down entrance shaft |
Photos © Olly Betts
Entrance | Closeup of marking |
Photos © Olly Betts 2004
This involves at least one freeclimb which is awkward with lots of kit. Make lots of noise if you are first, especially on the first trip, since snakes seem to like it here. Eventually a large horizontal railway-tunnel-like entrance appears. If you fall off a cliff, you've gone a little too far downhill.
Photo © Dave Loeffler 2005
GPS fix GK 5411207 to 5282893, Alt. 1877 ± 91m
From VD1 to 136 route: As you come over crest out of grassy gully there is a choss bowl/snow ahead (you cross this to get to the 136 shelf. Instead turn right uphill, up small steps on open limestone. 139 is a large square cleft in a limestone scarp after about 60m.
47° 40' 41" N 13° 48' 58" E
"3m entry pitch in rift going into bluff wall on camp 2 side of Vord. Schwarzmooskogel on cairned path." (Camp 2 refers to the 1988/89 camp up near the col between Vord. and Hint. Schwarzmooskogel.)
Entrance shakehole | Entrance passage | Tag and paint marker |
Views from entrance |
Photos © Olly Betts 2006
Entrance area | Main shaft | Looking down shaft |
View north towards the Schönberg | Tag | Old paint marker |
Photos © Dave Loeffler 2005 (1) and © Olly Betts 2006 (2-6)
View towards col | View down shaft (note tag on shaft wall just below number board) |
Photos © Andy Waddington 1998 and David Loeffler 2005
1996: HSK 059°, VSK nipple 111°, Bräuning Nase 152°, Kleine Wild Kogel 009°(left) and 010°(right), Bräuning Wall pt. 1828 209°, Bräuning Wall pt. 1835 221°, Bräuning Zinken 232°
161h entrance
Photo © Wookey 2002
Robert Seebacher at the entrance in 1995 | Tag and painted number | View back towards Brauning Wall, showing possible fault | Weathered rock on wall behind entrance shaft |
Photos © Andy Waddington 1995 (1) and © Olly Betts 2005 (2,3,4).
If you are coming from 174, 175 is a couple of scars down from where you arrive by simply following the cliff.
Entrance area with snow plug | Entrance area (clear of snow) | Entrance rift |
Photos © Olly Betts 199? (1 + 2) & © Andy Atkinson 1992 (3)
Top Camp below the Bräuning wall is on 144° and +01.5° but can't actually be seen from entrance.
Entrance area | Closeup of entrance |
Photos © Olly Betts 2000. Model: Mark Shinwell.
1994 log shows location (note that the arrow labelled "approx north" is very approx, as it is actually roughly east):
Following the route depicted, if you reach a sandy depression, you have gone too far.
Lower entrance | Upper entrance |
Approach route | View of lower Kratzer valley and Bräuning Alm area |
Photos © Olly Betts 2006
Photos © Andy Waddington 1995 (left) & © Olly Betts 1996 (right).
Two other bearings are given, one to "Kleine Wehr Kogel" 354°, but, in fact, to "Kleine Wild Kogel". The other is 295° to a small peak left of the Schönberg which I can't identify from the map.
Retagged 1997.
In fact it is impossible to see any landmarks from the actual entrance.
1976 - ladder descent | 1994 - Julian Haines making an SRT descent | Andy Waddington placing tag, 1996 |
Photos © Victoria Brown 1978, Andy Atkinson 1994, Olly Be tts 1996
Retagged 1999
A picture of the Bräuning wall and Loser from the vicinity of the entrance is here.
Photos © Olly Betts 2004 + 1996
Photo © Dave Loeffler 2005
Photo © David Loeffler 2005. Model: Wookey. There is also an earlier photo which was believed to be this cave, but turns out not to be (they clearly aren't the same hole); I haven't moved it anywhere else on the website since it shouldn't be thrown away and it's not clear to me where else to file it.
Photo © Olly Betts 1999
Location | Entrance closeup showing tag (original here) |
(Photo © Olly Betts 1999)
Although the Altitude given is 812m, it doesn't seem that high, and 812m is exactly 100m above lake level, which is a little suspicious. If you accept instead the phrase "climb 70m higher" in the original kataster description, the altitude comes out about 780 to 785m, which puts the final sump at almost exactly the level of the lake.
Entrance | View from entrance towards Altaussee | Entrance in 2006 after 9 days' straight rain |
Photos © Mark Shinwell 2005 (1,2) + Dave Loeffler 2006 (3).
2001-02 tag position
2001-03 tag position
Photo © Wookey 2002
Photos © Wookey 2002
Entrance shakehole | Phil at the terminal choke |
Photos © Matt Bent 2006
Matt at the entrance | Matt on the entrance climb | Phil in the terminal chamber |
Photos © Matt Bent 2006
A entrance | Sandeep descending A entrance shaft |
Photos © Dave Loeffler 2006-08-11
Photo © Dave Loeffler 2006-08-11
Approach | Close-up |
Photos © Wookey 2002
Olly Betts at the upper entrance | Lower entrance | Lower entrance again |
Photos © Wookey 2002
Photo © Dave Loeffler 2006-08-11
A search of the location described by these GPS coordinates by Anthony + Julia in 2005 revealed a single candidate shaft, which Julia thought she had seen someone climbing out of, possibly Brian.
Entrance | Looking down shaft |
Photos © Dave Loeffler 2006-07-25
Entrance | Inside (note flat sleeping spot on right; comfortable, but cold!) |
Photos © Olly Betts 2005
Photos © Olly Betts 2005
Jenny at entrance | Entrance close-up | View from entrance | Tag |
Phil at the entrance | Entrance | Looking down shaft |
Photos © Peter Clifton 2005
Phil at the entrance | Tag closeup | Shaft | Shaft from the other side | Continuing rift |
Photos © Peter Clifton 2005
Photos © Olly Betts 2005
Photos © Olly Betts 2005
Photos © Olly Betts 2005
Photos © Olly Betts (left) and David Loeffler (right), 2005
Photo © Olly Betts 2005
Photos © Olly Betts 2006
Photos © Olly Betts 2005
Photos © Olly Betts 2005
Photo © Mark Shinwell 2006. Model: Aaron Curtis
Photo © Mark Shinwell 2006.
Entrance | Closeup of marking |
Photos © Mark Shinwell 2006
Photo © Mark Shinwell 2006
Entrance and tag | Closeup of entrance |
Photos © Chantalle Mouwer 2006-08-06
Photo © Olly Betts 2006
Photo © Olly Betts 2006
Jenny at the entrance | Entrance passage | Paint mark |
View from Schwarzmoossattel path | Approach route | View from entrance towards Bräuning Wall |
Photos © Olly Betts 2006
Photos © Jenny Black 2007
Photo © Olly Betts 2015
204f tag position
A third, horizontal entrance is found by heading down to the snow filled shaft (the second entrance) and traversing left beneath a small cliff for around 20m. This leads to a low, unobvious hole at foot height, noticed because it was draughting out quite strongly. There is a surface survey to this third entrance from the first entrance.
Photos © Olly Betts 2000. Model: Martin Green.
Surface survey location sketch in not KH 1996 p 3, area map: NotKH book pp68-69
Photo © Dave Loeffler 2005
Surface survey location sketch in not KH 1996 p 3, area map: NotKH book pp68-69
Upper (A) entrance | Lower (B) entrance |
Photos © Dave Loeffler 2005
Photos © David Loeffler 2005 and Paul Hammond 1999.
Photos © Dave Loeffler 2006-07-25. Model: Sandeep Mavadia.
Photo © Wookey 2002
Photo © Dave Loeffler 2005
View from entrance area (© Olly Betts 1990) | Wookey at the entrance (© Dave Loeffler 2005) | Entrance shaft (© Dave Loeffler 2005) |
Photo © Olly Betts 1999.
Entrance | Entrance from below |
Photos © Wookey 2002
231b tag position
231b view of entrance looking south
231c tag position
231g tag position
231i tag position
Facing south | Facing south (closeup) | Tag placement | Facing east |
244 tag position
244 looking down entrance shaft, tag top right-hand corner
Photo © David Loeffler 08/08/04 11:35:46
Phil at the entrance | Entrance | The choke inside |
Photos © Peter Clifton 2005
Entrance | Phil at the entrance | Junction inside |
Photos © Peter Clifton 2005 + + +
Looking up valley towards entrance (halfway up on right). | Jenny pointing at tag bolt. |
Photo © Olly Betts 2007 | Photo © Olly Betts 2015 |
Photo © Olly Betts 2007
Photo © Olly Betts 2015
Photo © Olly Betts 2015
The cave was located on the ground by CUCC in 1990 and it is, in fact, just south of Schwarzmoossattel, which is almost due east of Bräuning Nase. From the path leaving the col going south, hack off following the little stream down into the valley. This sinks into the northernmost of a group of three shafts below a small headwall facing east.
Number is in red on the headwall just south of the three entrances.
A group of five (presumably small) shafts. One of these was thought, by the Austrians, to be CUCC's 'B1' of 1976. This, however, is patently not the case, since the sequence B1-B4 goes up the valley, and B4 is about level, perhaps slightly lower than 36.
Photos © Olly Betts 2006
Wookey on the entrance shaft in 2002 (photo Olly Betts, using Wookey's camera) |
40s entrance area | Closeup of entrance |
Photos © Wookey 2002
In a hollow is a 4m wide and 40m long rift containing a row of shafts (II-IV). The rift reaches -30m, where there is a melt-water pool. A little higher up the slope is a triangular opening 1.5m wide and 2.2m long. At -15m, this connects with the others.
Close to the path to the 204 bivi (2007-2016 varient at least). Entrance is to the left of the path on the walk up, at end of the first section of limestone pavement (after the climb down the gully).
Entrance shaft | View down shaft | Cairn and very faded paint mark | Long shot of entrance from gully above Schwarzmoossattel |
Photos © Olly Betts 2005,2006
Entrance | Dave pointing out the tag bolt |
Photos © Olly Betts 2005
Skirt this on the left to a small ridge running left-right. There is a cairn to the right across the chaotic bit. From the ridge, 82 is the obvious entrance directly ahead. Across the ridge to the right, more cairns lead initially towards 82, but then become misleading as they head up the hill to Wolfhöhle (145).
Photo © Olly Betts 2007
Entrance area with Dave placing tag bolt | Number just visible down the side of the snowplug |
Photos © Olly Betts 2005
Numbered '88' in a fit of optimism while the explorer was getting changed to investigate this impressively draughting hole, it proved in fact to be only 1.2 metres deep and too tight. It appears to be above the inlet below pitch 1 in cave 87, and has been renumbered 87b, since the Austrians have allocated number 88 to Lärchenhöhle.
Entrance area | Closeup of entrance (red circle marks tag - original here) |
100m from the right turn is a snow field on the right, with the sound of falling water at its lower edge. This is the entrance to 91. The bolt is at the NE end of the rift.
Entrance 91 looking north towards 93 and Schönberg | Closeup showing location of tag and paint markings (original here) |
(Photos © Andy Waddington 1990 and Olly Betts 1999)
100m from the right turn is a snow field on the right, with the sound of falling water at its lower edge. This is the entrance to 91 and from here, 93 is 20m further away from the Bräuning Wall.
Entrance 91 on left, looking towards 93 and Schönberg | 93 entrance area, with location of tag highlighted | Closeup of entrance |
Photos © Andy Waddington 1990 (1) and © Olly Betts 1999 (2,3).
View of 94 from 93 | Entrance area (tag highlighted) in 1999 | Entrance closeup |
Photos © Andy Waddington 1990 (1) & © Olly Betts 1999 (2, 3)
View from entrance towards Egglgrube | Entrance shaft | Tag and original paint marking |
Photos © Olly Betts 2005
1976 descent | 2005 photos (© Olly Betts) |
E 35876.6 N (52)82903.5 H 1638.9
Entrance area in 1999, with tag highlighted (original here) | Jenny Black on the entrance slope, 2004 |
(Photos © Olly Betts)
Relocated in searches in 1990 and 1996 - best (and pretty easily) found from Schwarzmoossattel or Top Camp by following the path south until a small spring (at the site of the 1979 bivouac) feeds a tiny stream descending into the valley. This sinks in the northernmost shaft of Schachtgruppe 36. In the centre of the valley across from this point is an obvious shakehole, usually with a small snowchoke, in a shaft.
Approach | Closeup of entrance | Paint markings |
Photos © Wookey 2002
A large depression on the Hohes Augst-Eck ridge about 1km SSW of Roß Kogel, is reached from the crest of the ridge above the obvious rock arch, by following a large snow field to the head of the depression. Contouring around to the south of the depression, following the bedding, LA25 to 27 are close together.
A large depression on the Hohes Augst-Eck ridge about 1km SSW of Roß Kogel, is reached from the crest of the ridge above the obvious rock arch, by following a large snow field to the head of the depression. Contouring around to the south of the depression, following the bedding, LA25 to 27 are close together. LA26 is approximately 200m SE of LA25
A large depression on the Hohes Augst-Eck ridge about 1km SSW of Roß Kogel, is reached from the crest of the ridge above the obvious rock arch, by following a large snow field to the head of the depression. Contouring around to the south of the depression, following the bedding, LA25 to 27 are close together. LA27 is approximately 100m E of LA26, down the snow slope and around to the foot of a small cliff.
Slightly to the right of a hillock visible from Sternloch (LA12) approx. 200m SE of LA11. (This is borderline 1626 or 1623).
150m due south of Roß Kogel summit - to north of a snowfield. In a depression 90m due East of Sternloch and the Rock Shelter.
On flat col to the south of Roß Kogel, slightly above +and to the west of a small but prominent rock shelter (used as bivi +site).
LUSS 1987 bivi site. Standing caver (Mike) is at Sternloch entrance. Col in +background is between Rauchfang and Hohes Augst-Eck