<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" />
<title>CUCC 2000 Expedition Goals</title>
<link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="../../css/main2.css" />
</head>
<body>
<h2 id="tophead"><center>CUCC Austria 2000 - Mission statement</center></h2>

<h1>2000 Mission statement</h1>

<p>2000 sees the twenty fourth annual summer expedition to Austria by the
Cambridge University Caving Club and the last one of the current Millennium.
A number of major goals are set out for this year's expedition, along with a
great deal of other work both on new projects and continuing documentation of
previous exploration.

<hr width=50%>

<h3>Recent History</h3>

<p>For twelve successive summer expeditions, C.U.C.C., and its post-graduate
sister club ex-Cambridge Speleologists, have been exploring the
<a href="../../1623/161/top.htm">Kaninchenh&ouml;hle</a> cave system in
the Totes Gebirge of Austria (about 80 km east of Salzburg).

<p>To the south of Kaninchenh&ouml;hle lies another major cave, the southern
Schwarzmooskogel system including the stunningly beautiful ice-cave
<a href="../../noinfo/1623/40.htm">Schwarzmooskogeleish&ouml;hle.</a>
Parts of this were explored as long ago as 1938, but the major central part
of the cave, <a href="../../1623/41/41.htm">Stellerwegh&ouml;hle</a>, was
explored by CUCC in 1980-85, to a depth of 973m and a length of some 7km.
Other parts of the cave have been explored by both French and German groups,
and the total length of this cave was over 22km in 1999.

<p>In 1997 Kaninchenh&ouml;hle was linked with a deep shaft system,
<a href="../../1623/161/136.htm">Steinschlagschacht</a>, first explored
by the club in 1983, giving an increased depth of 507m for the combined
system. Steinschlagschacht was not rigged in 1998, as the expedition was a
small one, and work concentrated on a reconnaissance of the nearest points of
Schwarzmooskogeleish&ouml;hle to the passages in Steinschlagschacht. This
revealed a few leads, but no connection. Other members of the 1998 trip
pushed Kaninchenh&ouml;hle itself, achieving a new deep point at -534m.

<p>After 1997, the gap between Steinschlagschacht and the Eish&ouml;hle was
about 130m, in passages at much the same level. The 1999 trip returned to
Steinschlagschacht, finding a major way on with surprising ease via a lead
overlooked when derigging the
<a href="../../1623/161/136.htm#footlight">Footlights Traverse</a> in
1997.

<p>This area of the cave, <a href="../../1623/161/chile.htm">Chile,</a>
totalled 2&frac12; kilometres with a deep point 440m below
Steinschlagschacht, but, amazingly, ran parallel to the known trend of the
southern Schwarzmooskogel system, and only narrowed the gap to some 80m, with
no immediately obvious likely connection point.

<p>Linking the two systems would involve us not only in further exciting new
exploration, but also in a great deal of tie-up surveying to establish
definitive figures for the length and depth of the combined system. Current
survey information suggests that the linked cave would be well over 47 km
long and 1056m deep, making it the third or fourth longest cave in Austria.
This would also put it among both the fifty or so deepest caves in the world
<b>and</b> the fifty or so longest. Few caves make it so far up both the long
<u>and</u> deep lists - truly a cave of world significance.

<p>Elsewhere in 1999, a new cave,
<a href="../../1623/204/204.html">Steinbr&uuml;ckenh&ouml;hle,</a> was found
beyond the known extent of Kaninchenh&ouml;hle to the north. This shows many
similarities to the caves further south, and reached a depth of 226m at the
head of a big black pitch of 40m or so. There is great hope that this cave
will drop into the same major horizontal development seen in
Kaninchenh&ouml;hle, and eventually produce an easier route into the remotest
parts of the cave, as well as adding its own length and 28m of depth to the
main system.

<hr />

<h3 align=center>2000 CUCC Expedition Goals</h3>

<ul>
<li>Continue exploration of Steinbr&uuml;ckenh&ouml;hle from -226m. This is
CUCC's highest significant entrance, and a connection with
Kaninchenh&ouml;hle would add 28m to the latter's depth.</li>
<li>Much old documentation has come to light on passages off Schneevulkanhalle
in the Eish&ouml;hle - some quite promising areas have been revealed, and
there is a significant amount of survey to be done, as well as continuing
to push the Persistence of Vision leads found in 1999. Any stone left
unturned here has potential for someone else to walk in easily and link
the systems !<br />
<ul>
<li>Schotterland 50m pitch to big passage - right by the entrance<br />
<li>Push POV<br />
<li>Good leads in Plastic<br />
<li>Leads at Kalter Gang end<br />
<li>Wahnsinnssch&auml;chte resurvey<br />
<li>Connect survey to old cave<br />
<li>Find other entrances</li>
</ul>
<li>Further pushing of numerous leads in Chile with a view to connecting
to the nearby southern Schwarzmooskogel system, with a
potential length/depth in excess of 47km/1056m.</li>
<li>Push a number of other areas of Kaninchenh&ouml;hle:
<ul>
<li>over 250 documented ways on</li>
<li>revisit Far North, now that it is less remote</li>
<li>Regurgitation area needs 1999 finds surveying and pushing</li>
</ul></li>
<li>Photography and other documentation work. Many caves need a rudimentary
survey or sketch, and description and a photo.<br />

<li>Survey to B4 (on col by top camp - only 1 or 2 legs) - already documented<br />
<li>Survey-to and draw 172,174,175,176. Tagged - in a row out from top camp.<br />
<li>Survey-to 96-02,03,04 group close to hinter (already documented and tagged).<br />
<li>Find and identify non-CUCC 1980s caves (Eish&ouml;hle area) from survey data: Grunstein Eish&ouml;hle, Schwarzblatth&ouml;le, Kuppelh&ouml;hle, Lamperlh&ouml;hle<br />
<li>Connect up East and West surface surveys near 163<br />
<li>Try to work out where Seniorenschacht and Braunsteinh&ouml;le are (near one of the Eish&ouml;hle entrances)<br />
<li>Draw pictures for the 147 survey!<br />
<li>A few caves are still missing and need searching out....177, 178, 181, 187, 192, 193<br />
<li></li>
<li>There are loose ends in some older CUCC discoveries which may be useful
to pursue to tie surveys in:
<ul>
<li>New work in 1623/144 (this may be taken over by Arge ?)</li>
<li>Cave <a href="../../1623/140.htm">140</a> was noted on a surface walk in
1998, and the description is suggestive that ends were inconclusive. The
finding of Chile places this in an even more key position between the two
major systems, and a reexploration (and a good survey) is in order.</li>
<li>In the same area, but lower down, <a href="../../1623/158.htm">158</a>
(also seen during surface work recently) is also intriguing and inconclusive.
</li>
</ul></li>
<li>Liaison with other groups working in the area now and in the past
<ul>
<li>Cooperation with Arge to fix a number of key points on the surface by
accurate theodolite survey. This is being arranged for 2000.</li>
</ul></li>
<li>High quality publication via the World Wide Web, CD-ROM and on paper<br />

<hr />

<h3>Dates:</h3>

<p><b>The main Expo 2000 dates are July 15th to August 19th inclusive.</b>
However, Wookey joined Arge's initial 2000 trip at the end of May (the Spring
bank-holiday week), on which a kilometre of passage, mainly in the old part
Eish&ouml;hle, was surveyed. A few leads were pushed, and
<a href="prexpo.htm">a report</a> is on the site. This work wasn't expected
to push closer to making a link, and no work in Kaninchenh&ouml;hle or
Steinschlagschacht took place on this trip.

<p>For the main expo, it would be useful to have people who are interested in
Eish&ouml;hle (but didn't go in May) out during the first week, as it looks
like that will be our only overlap with Arge's main summer trip. However, as
always, dates are flexible according to when people want to go/leave.
Typically there are people arriving/leaving on every weekend so it is
entirely possible to go for as long or as little time as you like.

<p>Transport is pooled to minimise cost, but overall costs are variable and
difficult to be precise about since it depends on factors such as how long
you go for and how much beer you drink. As a guide - over the last 3 years it average out at &pound;200 + &pound;40/week.<br />
1 week = &pound;240<br />
2 weeks = &pound;280<br />
3 weeks = &pound;320<br />
4 weeks = &pound;360<br />
5 weeks = &pound;400

<p>The &pound;200 gets you there and back and use of the gear, the
&pound;40/week covers food, camping, insurance and typical bier
consumption... 


<h3>Expo Committee:</h3>

<p>The Expo 2000 committee are:

<p>
<li>Leader: Mark Shinwell</li>
<li>Treasurer: Mark Byers</li>
<li>Sponsorship: Earl Merson</li>
<li>Transport: Martin Green<br />

<p>Most up to date information is available on the student website at
<em>http://mrs30.quns.cam.ac.uk/expo/</em> (that website now totally defunct and no copy found, Dec.2019)

<p>The southern Schwarzmooskogel system link is an ambitious project - 2.5 km
to a depth of 440m in 1999 was a good result, even if a link wasn't achieved.
This is probably more passage than we expected to find making the link, all
from one easy lead among the first to be looked at. There is no reason to
believe that 2000 won't be at least as successful - Chile just emphasises how
much passage can easily be found in a part of the mountain that we thought
was pretty much explored. A 50km/1000m+ system could still be ours before the
millennium ends ! Steinbr&uuml;ckenh&ouml;hle also has the potential to go
deep and long, so there will be plenty of scope for hard caving and new
exploration. But those 250-plus other leads include easy ones near entrances,
and much of the other work will not need mega-hard caving talent, so there
should be plenty of enjoyable caving and walking for everyone, regardless of
fitness or experience.

<hr />

<!-- LINKS -->
<li>1999 Expedition info:
<ul>
<li><a href="../1999/index.htm">Index</a> (more complete than this list)</li>
<li><a href="../1999/log.htm">Logbook</a></li>
<li>Expedition <a href="../1999/report.htm">Report</a> 1999</li>
</ul></li>
<li><a href="index.htm">Index</a> to 2000 expedition info</li>
<li>2000 <a href="prexpo.htm">Pre-expo report</a></li>
<li><a href="../../pubs.htm">Index</a> to all publications</li>
<li><a href="../../sponsr.htm">Current year's</a> sponsors</li>
<li><a href="../../index.htm">Back to Expeditions intro page</a></li>
<li><a href="../../../index.htm">CUCC Home Page</a></li>
</ul>
</body>
</html>