Stellerweghöhlen system (1623/41) Glossary

This list will start to get unwieldy - so here are a bunch of links to take you to roughly the right place alphabetically:
| A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z
A-Z | Links

Alice im Wunderland

(1998, Arge)

And Another Pitch

The wet, 9m, second pitch in the streamway downstream from The Confluence (1981, CUCC)

Another Pitch

The 5m first pitch in the streamway downstream from The Confluence, also known as The Twelve Foot Climb, but not really climbable except in the dryest conditions (1981, CUCC)

Babylon

Major Passage series upstream from 115 Big Chamber which CUCC managed to miss almost entirely.

Baker's Bungle

First hole down at the end of the phreatic passage below Bell Pitch in 115. This turned out not to be a viable way on (1980, CUCC)

Bell Pitch

20m first pitch in 155 entrance (1980, CUCC)

The Big Chamber in 115

A large chamber where the 115 entrance pitch series meets other streams which combine into Pete's Purgatory. This is the first significant sub-horizontal phreatic level, still incompletely explored (1981, CUCC)

The Big Chamber in 142

A Large chamber reached by a 40m pitch from the point where Schwabenschacht later joined 142. An alternative route to the chamber can be gained from the foot of the 18m pitch in 142 (1982, 1985, CUCC)

Big Enough Chamber

A 4m high (ie. easily big enough to stand up) chamber in Futility Series (1982, CUCC)

The Big Pitch

a 100m pitch in a huge elliptical shaft, mostly free hanging by the preferred (1981) route. At the end of the sub-horizontal entrance series of Stellerweghöhle. (1980, 1981, CUCC). This is also the point at which the way in from Larchenschacht, 1623/88 joins, and just downstream lies the connection from 1623/144

The Big Rift

a 100m broken shaft leading from below the short pitches following the Big Pitch in Stellerweghöhle down to Junction Chamber. With 1980's rigging, this section of the cave is extremely flood-prone (1980, 1981, CUCC)

Camp Chamber

a sandy-floored side passage on the left (south) near the end of Dartford Tunnel, continuing unexplored as a traverse over what is assumed to be Pete's Purgatory. This was the underground camp when the system was bottomed (1982, CUCC)

The Col

a mud-floored saddle at the foot of the Ramp pitches, enabling access at one side to the Rift, and at the other, a view over unexplored black space threatened by hanging death (1981, CUCC)

Cologne Cathedral

An impressively large chamber, 15m diameter and at least 20m high, reached via Rampant Passage above The Confluence (1982, CUCC)

Coming Soon

The 7m ninth pitch in the streamway below the Confluence (1982, CUCC)

Commando Climb

A 4m handline climb in spray at the bottom of Letch Pitch in the streamway below the Confluence (1981, CUCC)

The Confluence

The point in Pete's Purgatory where a second stream joins from the right, resulting in an increase in passage size to something reasonable. This tributary stream is assumed to be fed mainly from Stellerweghöhle. Directly above is the remoter end of the Purgatory Bypass.

The Connection

Passages beyond the 115 Big Chamber leading towards 41 at Junction Chamber (1981, CUCC/UBSS)

Connection Cairn

A marked junction in low passage no longer on the main route from 115 to 41, where the connection was first confirmed (1981, CUCC/UBSS)

Dartford Tunnel

A major fossil phreatic tube followed from Junction Chamber to the Confluence. Originally explored most of the way by CUCC/UBSS in 1981, whose cairn was found in 1982 by CUCC exploration back from the Confluence.

Dazu

Side passage left from Windloch beyondf Babylon (1999, Arge)

The Duck

A swimming-depth canal with 10 cm airspace at -800m in the streamway below the Confluence (1982, CUCC)

Echo Aven

an aven estimated 30m high, reached by dangerous climbs of 10 and 5m from Köln Dom (1982, CUCC)

Euphrates

Right (west) at T-junction at end of Babylon (Arge)

Fritz's Freeway

Futility Series

a series of generally uninspiring passages reached by a left turn in the traverse above the start of Pete's Purgatory. Mainly explored because of its tantalising draught which led to a choke c 100m fr om the surface

German Route

The original route of exploration in Stellerweghöhle, never well-documented. Not believed to be a useful way to depth, though it was supposed to go to -276m by a way on now apparently lost (1954, SA; 1972, unknown ?)

Grope Pitch

The 17m sixth pitch in the streamway below the Confluence (1981, CUCC)

The Hedgehog

an awkward catchy rift passage, negotiated mainly by crawling at one level or another, leading from Bell Pitch to the big phreatic passage leading on in 115 (1980, CUCC)

Inlet Pitches

Below the Ramp and the Rift in 115, originally 18, 19 and 6m pitches in rift exposed to spray from an inlet high above. Rebolted by power drill in 2000 by Arge to give an all-weather route (1981, CUCC)

Jade

Passage of Warme Dusche Rampe (2000, Arge)

Junction Chamber

The chamber where Stellerweg's Big Rift drops into the horizontal passages of Schnellzughöhle, and the key to the onward route to great depth (1981, CUCC)

Köln Dom

An impressively large chamber, 15m diameter and at least 20m high, reached via Rampant Passage above The Confluence (1982, CUCC)

Lake Pitch

The 9m fourth pitch in the streamway downstream from The Confluence, landing in a large pool (1981, CUCC)

Lampentot

Side passage from Warm Duscher Rampen (1998, Arge)

Letch Pitch

The 22m fifth pitch in the streamway downstream from The Confluence, with a rebelay ledge halfway down (1981, CUCC)

Marlow Climb

The 7m third pitch in the streamway downstream from The Confluence, also known as Yet Another Pitch (1981, CUCC)

Megalo-Schlinger

Nebukadnezar

climbing passage off SE from Tigris. Ascends to 155m above 115 Big Chamber leading (at 1450m altitude) to within 15m of surface with a massive draught. Likely to lead to a new entrance lower down east of 115, thus bypassing the Ramp, the Rift and the Inlet pitches (2000, Arge)

Nutzlosigkeit

German translation for what CUCC explored as Futility Series

Orgasm Chasm

The 90m shaft beyond the duck in the main streamway below -800m.

Pebble Beach Chamber

A 12m high chamber in Futility Series with interesting red flowstone (1982, CUCC)

Pete's Purgatory

The unrelenting narrow streamway taking the combined waters over 800m from the 115 Big Chamber to The Confluence (1981, CUCC)

Purgatory Bypass

Collective name for passages which bypass Pete's Purgatory to reach the Confluence. On the usual route from 115, this includes all the passage from Big Chamber, as well as Dartford Tunnel (1981/2, CUCC)

There are no places beginning with a "Q" !

A-Z | Links

The Ramp

this proved to be the correct way on just beyond Baker's Bungle in 115. Spotted at the end of 1980 expo, but not explored until 1981 (1981, CUCC)

Rampant Passage

Large rising passage, 7m high and 2m wide, heading north from above the Confluence to Cologne Cathedral (1982, CUCC)

The Rift

Below the Ramp and across the col, the main 115 pitch series eventually hits a more vertical fault, forming this split pitch (1981, CUCC)

Rodent Runway

The original connection route from 142 to Stellerweghöhle hidden in boulders off the sloping chamber leading up to the Big Chamber in 142 (1983, CUCC)

Roddick's Dive

A drop through an awkward and slippery restriction below the Yellow Brick Road in 144. Best with some sort of protection, as the continuing descent of a rock slab has an exposed and muddy landing (1985, CUCC)

Roof Pendant ChamberA phreatic passage along the strike of the hading joints in 142, leading from Rodent Runway towards the 21m pitch in Stellerweghöhle (1983, CUCC)

Schabernackschacht

The Slit

The 22m eighth pitch in the streamway below the Confluence (1982, CUCC)

Stalaglufthöhle

The name used by CUCC in conversation and the log books for the German route in Stellerweghöhle during its fruitless re-exploration in 1980.

Subtle Approach

The 13m seventh pitch, with an awkward takeoff, in the streamway below the Confluence (1981, CUCC)

Tigris

Left (east) at T-junction at end of Babylon (1999, Arge)

Treppengang

Side passage from Vereinigungshalle by MP 21 (Arge)

Twelve Foot

The 5m first pitch in the streamway downstream from The Confluence, also known as Another Pitch, and not really climbable except in the dryest conditions (1981, CUCC)

Warm Duscher Rampen

(Arge)

Wet'n'Wild

(Arge)

Wiggy's Way to 60' pitch

A route leading from very near the 1623/142 entrance and ending unexplored at a pitch estimated at 20m (1983, CUCC)

Windloch

NE-trending passage with strong gale, left near end of Babylon (1999, Arge)

A Windy Day in Manhattan

(1999, Arge)

There are no places beginning with an "X"!

A-Z | Links

Yellow Brick Road

The first level of phreatic development in 144, about 180m below the entrance, a dusty-floored passage sporting various ways off not pushed to a conclusion (1983, CUCC)

Yet Another Pitch

The 7m third pitch in the streamway downstream from The Confluence, also known as Marlow Climb (1981, CUCC)

Zweistromland

Main passage in Babylon, reached via a canyon from 115 Big Chamber. Splits at end into Euphrates and Tigris (latter to Nebukkadnezar-Rampe).