<!DOCTYPE html> <html> <head> <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" /> <link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="/css/main2.css" /> <title>1623/204 -- Entrance and The Near End passages</title> </head> <body> <table id="cavepage"> <tr><th id="kat_no">204</th><th id="name">Steinbrückenhöhle</th><th id="status">5/S x</th></tr> </table> <h1>Entrance and The Near End passages</h1> <div> <b><a href="entrance-rigging.html">Rigging diagram</a></b> -- <b><a href="#survey">Survey</a></b> -- <b><a href="204.html">204 index</a></b></div> <hr /> <p><b>Summary</b>: The Near End series consists of those passages on the level of the bottom of the 204a/b entrance pitches. It communicates with the <a href="midlevel.html">mid-level series</a> via either Thread Pitch or Pendulum Pitch, while a side passage leads to a pitch dropping into <a href="nopain.html#kingcarbide">'King Carbide</a>, off No Pain No Gain. Alternatively, in 2006 a link (<a href="#deathglory">Death or Glory</a>) was discovered leading from the Near End to the <a href="treeumphant.html#thecolonnade">Colonnade</a>).</p> <h3>Entrance</h3> <p> <a href="l/enta.html"><img class="onleft" src="t/enta.jpg" alt="204a entrance" /></a> <a href="l/1en.html"><img class="onleft" src="t/1en.jpg" alt="204a entrance" /></a> <a href="l/13sle.html"><img class="onleft" src="t/13sle.jpg" alt="204b entrance" /></a> The 204a entrance is directly opposite a 10m x 5m <a href="bridge.html">stone bridge</a> from which it derives its name. The entrance itself is approximately 8m high and 5m wide, and leads down a boulder slope and round a right hand bend to the top of the first pitch. The 204b entrance is 15m away to the north; this was used in 1999, but involves a rather shoddy sloping descent down a gully, so in recent years the 204a entrance has been used.</p> <h3 style="clear: both"><a id="firstpitch">First Pitch</a></h3> <p> <a href="l/2p1.html"><img class="onright" src="t/2p1.jpg" alt="First Pitch" /></a> The 204a entrance leads, via a short climb down, to a ledge overlooking the first pitch, <b>Trick or Treat</b>. This is rigged with a traverse line and a Y-hang in the roof, giving a superb and very airy free-hang to the bottom. The landing is by a large snow plug with an ice corridor round the right-hand edge leading to the top of a boulder slope. A rift passage on the right becomes too tight.</p> <p>The snow level varies: in 2000 it was much higher than in 1999, rendering the original route onward impassable (see <a href="#route1999">here</a>). A revised route was explored, which was the main route in 2001. In 2002 and 2003 the snow was lower again, and the original route was back in use.</p> <h3><a id="jim">Second and Third Pitches</a></h3> <p>Descending the boulder slope (care required to avoid kicking rocks off) leads to the head of the second pitch, <b>Jim'll Fix It</b> (18m in 1999 but only about 10m in 2000/2001 due to increased snow levels). An unexplored passage is visible from the pitch head, which could be accessed by a bolt traverse round the right hand side of the pitch head [<a href="qm.html#C1999-204-01" id="qC1999-204-01">C1999-204-01 C</a>] (explored by Brian?). The pitch is rigged from a bolt in the left hand wall with a deviation from a spit immediately after the pitch head bolt. This protects a marginal rub point and also avoids a jet of water which spurts from a crack in the wall after heavy rain.</p> <p>If the snow level is high, one lands directly on the snow plug. Following the wall around to the right (facing the wall on which the pitch is rigged) leads to a 2m climb into a rift, which quickly descends to the head of the impressive third pitch, <a id="stitch"><b>Stitch This</b></a> (30m). A Y-hang rebelay on the left wall is shortly followed by a deviation from the opposite side of the shaft to obtain a free-hang into <a href="midlevel.html#wolp">Wolpertinger Way</a>. This pitch is in fact an (upwards) continuation of <b><a href="#thread">Thread Pitch</a></b>.</p> <h3><a id="route1999">Low snow route</a></h3> <p>In 1999, 2002 and 2003, the snow plug was much smaller and it was possible to complete the descent to the floor, landing in a sloping phreatic passage. There are two ways on: Right leads uphill as stooping/crawling height passage for 30m to emerge at the top of <a href="#umshit">Umshitshimbo</a>. Left leads downhill into <a href="#nearend">The Near End</a> and is the main way on. There is a further unexplored passage in the wall above the gap between the snow plug and the rock [<a href="qm.html#C1999-204-03" id="qC1999-204-03">C1999-204-03 C</a>].</p> <h3><a id="nearend">The Near End</a></h3> <p><a href="l/5p3.html"><img class="onright" src="t/5p3.jpg" alt="Third Pitch" /></a> <b>The Near End</b> is a collective name for a complex network of high level phreatic passages which slope approximately 20° following the dip of the beds. Heading downhill from the base of <a href="#jim">Jim'll Fix It</a> in a stooping height passage leads round a double bend to a 2m climb down to a junction. Right leads to more <a href="#nearside">side passages</a> whilst the main route is straight ahead to a crossroads. Right leads into the same <a href="#nearside">side passages</a> as the previous right turn. Left is <b><a id="needle">Needle Crawl</a></b> past an unexplored passage on the left [<a href="qm.html#C1999-204-04" id="qC1999-204-04">C1999-204-04 C</a>] and a crawl on the right (feels like straight ahead) which becomes too small after ~8m. Straight ahead (feels like a left) leads to the head of a fine 4m diameter circular shaft, <b><a id="thread">Thread Pitch</a></b>. This pitch of 17m corresponds to the lower half of <a href="#stitch">Stitch This</a>, and leads into <a href="midlevel.html#wolp">Wolpertinger Way</a>. A continuation of the crawl is visible at the opposite side of the pitch head; this is choked after 5m or so.</p> <p>From the crossroads, the main route in 1999 was straight ahead, downhill in mostly stooping height passage with a short section of sandy crawling. After 15m is a short climb down to the top of a 4m deep pit with a too-tight passage at the bottom, with the phreatic passage continuing to the right. After a further 10m the passage is intersected by a large rift with a big rock partially blocking the passage. Climbing up to the right leads back into a tall rift in the <a href="#nearside">side passages</a>. A climb up to the left leads to a passage containing attractive white mud which was not entered, however a visual connection to the <a href="midlevel.html#pendulum">Pendulum Pitch</a> was established.</p> <p>Straight ahead leads to a further junction after 15m. Left opens out to the head of <a href="midlevel.html#pendulum">Pendulum Pitch</a>, the main route to the bottom of <a href="midlevel.html#wolp">Wolpertinger Way</a> used in 1999. Right leads to a narrow stooping height passage which continues for 25m with several clear pools in the floor to a widening. Around the widening, most routes ahead and to the left are choked with boulders. There are two ways on. On the left-hand side is a small awkward chamber, from which a short pitch leads into <a href="nopain.html#kingcarbide">'King Carbide</a>. On the right, crawling up over unpleasant sharp mobile boulders leads to a body sized tube sloping slightly upwards. After around 15m it twists left to land in a muddy puddle at a slight widening in the passage, which continues for another 3m or so to a low chamber, <b><a id="kidneybean">Kidney Bean</a></b>, possibly an enlarged bedding plane. A hole in the floor in the chamber is blind. At the northern end of the chamber is a narrow crawl; this connects with a wider crawling passage leading off from a junction at the end of the body-sized tube. The combined passage enlarges to stooping size and continues past old gour pools to a low mud squeeze. This was passed in 2006 after some excavation to emerge in a low bedding chamber, <b><a id="deathglory">Death Or Glory</a></b>. Straight ahead is a horrendous boulder choke (Death), with a propensity to drop large rocks on people. Slightly to the right of this is a narrow crawl with a hole in the floor; this is a 3m chimney climb down (Glory), emerging in <a href="treeumphant.html#waterfall">Waterfall Chamber</a> at the end of the Colonnade. Back in the bedding chamber, one can crawl up to the right to a junction with several small tubes, all of which are too tight.</p> <h3><a id="nearside">The Near End: Side Passages</a></h3> <p>The first two right turns encountered when heading downhill from the foot of <a href="#jim">Jim'll Fix It</a> unite in a walking sized passage. After 10m the bottom of <a href="#umshit">Umshitshimbo</a> is passed on the right, whilst straight ahead leads to a junction with a large keyhole passage. Left leads after 15m to a climb up behind a precariously placed boulder, to an immediate climb down of 4m which emerges in the 1999 main route through the near end before <a href="midlevel.html#pendulum">Pendulum Pitch</a>. Right leads immediately to a 8m pitch. A difficult and exposed traverse round the left hand wall leads to a further 30m of passage with a steadily lowering roof culminating in a boulder choke.</p> <h3><a id="umshit">The Near End: Umshitshimbo and Updip Passages</a></h3> <p><b>Umshitshimbo</b> is a fine phreatic ramp, 2m wide and about 4m high, which heads uphill in a straight line for 40m. At the top a passage doubling back on the right leads back to the base of <a href="#jim">Jim'll Fix It</a> and there is a climb up into a rift passage heading south over the top of Umshitshimbo which becomes too narrow. Large passage continues uphill past a 2m deep blind pit on the right to a junction.</p> <p>Left leads uphill past a choked inlet on the left to a steep uphill section with a crawl on the right, which leads shortly to a 2m climb down and immediate choke. At the top of the steep section the passage to the right immediately chokes, whilst left is <b><a id="parton">Dolly Parton Climb</a></b>, a 2m climb up with huge jugs, to a further 15m of upward trending phreatic passage, terminating in a boulder choke with a slight draught (air coming into the cave). There are two small steep phreatic ramps on the left hand side of this passage, both very small and both choked.</p> <p>Straight ahead at the junction leads through a short section of rift to an enlargement with an alcove on the right and a keyhole passage ahead. The rift section at the bottom quickly becomes choked, with a slight draught coming in. A 3m climb gains access to the phreatic section which goes over the top of the choke, and about after a further 3m reaches a large boulder, which almost blocks the passage with a strong breeze blowing through the gap (into the cave.) Squeezing through yields a steeply ascending rocky crawl which chokes after about 5m.</p> <hr /> <div class="centre"> <h3><a id="survey">Survey</a></h3> <img style="padding: 2pt; border: 2px solid #000" src="smallsurveys/entrance.png" alt="Survey" /></div> <hr /> </body> </html>