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<font size="-1">Cambridge Underground 1999 pp 82-88</font>
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<h1>Expo '97</h1>
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<h3>Julian Haines</h3></center>
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<h4><span lang="de">Kaninchenhöhle</span> - 10 years on</h4>
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<h3>Introduction</h3>
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<p>In July 1997, Cambridge University Caving Club (CUCC) embarked upon its
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10th annual expedition to the <span lang="de">Kaninchenhöhle</span> cave
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system in the Totes Gebirge (<b>Dead Mountains</b>), Austria. The first CUCC
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expedition to the Totes Gebirge area of Austria took place in the summer of
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1976 and, with the exception of 1986, the club has returned every year since.
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Since it's discovery by CUCC in 1988, these expeditions have concentrated
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almost exclusively on the <span lang="de">Kaninchenhöhle</span> system.
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<p>By the end of the 1996 expedition, the explored and surveyed length of
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<span lang="de">Kaninchenhöhle</span> was 19.7km with a total depth of
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just under 500m from the highest entrance. There were many unexplored leads
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(almost 200) with the known southern extremity of the cave reasonably close
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to the very large <span
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lang="de-at">Schwarzmooskogel-Eishöhle-Stellerweghöhle</span>
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system. Many very promising leads had also been left at the northern end of
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the cave, due not only to the length of trip required in order to investigate
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them, but also the huge number of exciting finds much nearer to the new
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entrance, discovered at the end of the 1995 expedition.
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<p>Around 20 cavers took part in this year's trip, most with previous
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experience of caving abroad but, also a number for whom this was their first
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taste of expedition caving. As luck would have it, the beginning of the
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expedition coincided with serious flooding across Eastern Europe and although
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Bad Aussee was on the edge of the bad weather, there was enough rain to be a
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serious hindrance and for a bridge to be washed away.
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<h3>Steinschlagschacht and the quest for
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<span lang="de">Eishöhle</span></h3>
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<p>At the southernmost extremity of
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<span lang="de">Kaninchenhöhle</span> is a nasty, loose, sharp area of
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cave known as the Forbidden Land. This might not have been given a second
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look, but for the fact that it was the only known south-westerly going lead
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in the vicinity and a connection to the nearby 25km
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Schwarzmooskogel-Eishöhle system was tantalisingly close. Whilst some of
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the most interesting exploration was promised by the Forbidden Land, the
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extremely unpleasant boulder choke entrance to this area made the prospect of
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a significant number of trips here unappealing to the majority, if not all,
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of this year's expedition cavers. For this reason a great deal of interest
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was shown in <span lang="de">Steinschlagschacht</span> (<b>1623/136</b>),
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originally explored by CUCC in 1983/4, which we knew from the survey to be
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extremely close to connection with the Forbidden Land. The possibility of a
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new, safer route into this area was considered sufficiently likely to warrant
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a re-exploration of this cave. Old log book accounts talked of 'phreatic
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ramps' at around -150m, although the exact nature of these was unclear, as
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was the exact depth of them. The original exploration had not produced a
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drawn-up survey and it was by no means certain that such data as existed was
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connected correctly to the <span lang="de">Kaninchenhöhle</span> survey.
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<!-- photos/steinsurv.psSurvey of <span lang="de">Steinslagschacht.</span> -->
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<p>So with considerable anticipation tempered by a little wariness of the
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cave's name (<b>Stonefall Shaft</b>), a party of two began the
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re-exploration. The origin of the name quickly became apparent as the
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entrance consists of a steep (45$^o$), loose boulder slope opening directly
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onto the first pitch! Extensive use was made of the drill in re-rigging the
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pitch in a fashion that avoided the worst of the stonefall. The entrance
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pitch is a fine 35m shaft, at the foot of which was found a small connection
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to a large boulder strewn chamber. The original route was ignored at this
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point, despite being apparent from the presence of an old spit, since a more
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convincing shaft was also present. However, after a little more rigging
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further spits were found, indicating that we'd merely taken the direct
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descent whereas originally a more circuitous route was followed. Owing to the
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presence of the old spits, rigging was swift with only a small number of
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additional anchors being required, until a divergence was reached at around
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-150m.
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<p>Interest grew among others on the expedition, as it soon became apparent
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that there was plenty to explore in <span lang="de">Steinschlagschacht</span>
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and that it was actually much safer than the name suggested. Further trips
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followed. The original route had continued straight down from the divergence
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discovered earlier, however that looked a bit wet and uninviting so the
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tangential Eyehole Route was pushed instead. It is unclear as to why this was
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not explored previously; it is possible that the eyehole had not been noticed
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previously or simply that depth was the main goal. Either way, after another
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couple of trips and a lot more rigging with a further 200m of rope, an
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enormous chamber was discovered. This was later named The Theatre due to the
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spectacular views afforded from near the ceiling on later trips. The Theatre
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is roughly 10m by 20m at the floor, with near vertical walls rising up to the
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ceiling at an estimated height of around 60m!
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<p>Early delight at having discovered such a magnificent chamber was quickly
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followed by disappointment at the lack of ways on from the bottom. The floor
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was a huge pile of boulders with a low connection through to a much smaller
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chamber in one corner. Here there were a number of small wet avens (shafts
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entering from the ceiling), clear pools of water and some mud, much like
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elsewhere in <span lang="de">Kaninchenhöhle</span>. Back in the main
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chamber was a nasty and unrewarding climb down through the boulders in the
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floor and an obvious black space some distance up the walls at either end,
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but no obvious continuation. Much surveying was done and a retreat beaten to
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base camp to ponder on what to do next.
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<p> <a href="/1623/161/l/jh9719.htm"><img alt="" width=150
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height=200 align="left" hspace=10 vspace=10
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src="/1623/161/t/jh9719.jpg"></a><b>Andy Atkinson descending towards
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The Theatre, <span lang="de">Steinschlagschacht.</span></b> (Julian Haines)
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<br clear="all">
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<p>After entering the data into the computer, Survex showed that although
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we'd not connected we were within 25m horizontally and 30m or so below a
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potential connection with the Forbidden Land. The implication of this was
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that the connection, if there was one, lay about half-way up the The Theatre
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on the opposite wall to that where we'd entered the chamber -- not at all an
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easy place to reach! However, the temptation to attempt a connection was too
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great to resist, so a party of two left base camp early on the morning
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following the expedition dinner with the intention of doing just that. A
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considerable amount of effort was needed since a near horizontal traverse had
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to be rigged around the wall, a little below the ceiling of the Theatre, 40m
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above the nearest floor. The drill again proved invaluable and it is doubtful
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as to whether such a traverse would have been rigged without it. Eventually a
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suitable place was found to descend first to an eyehole and then to a ledge
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way above the floor of The Theatre. Here was the much hoped for connection to
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the Forbidden Land, although in a different place to that anticipated at the
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beginning of the expedition and certainly by different means!
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<p>The survey was examined once again and a plan concocted. It was apparent
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that <span lang="de">Elin Algor,</span> a long straight passage in the
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Forbidden Land, was roughly co-linear with the main wall of The Theatre and
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apparently all one development in the formation of the cave. Since there had
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been a horizontal connection at one end of The Theatre, it was surmised that
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there ought to be another at a similar height but at the opposite end of the
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chamber, continuing in the direction of <span lang="de">Eishöhle.</span>
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Some required more than a little persuasion that this was a realistic
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possibility, but eventually a number of trips were made with a view to
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finding said passage. More hair-raising rigging followed in order to traverse
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in the opposite direction around the wall of The Theatre and eventually a
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hole in the wall was found at about the expected elevation. Unfortunately
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this rapidly turned into a parallel shaft series, eventually connecting at
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the floor of The Theatre and with no further obvious leads!
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<p>So for the time being the connection to <span
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lang="de">Eishöhle</span> remains elusive, although prospects in this
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area for next year still look very good.
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<h3>Triassic Park -- the sequel</h3>
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<p>The massive trunk passage of Triassic Park was discovered towards the end
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of the 1995 expedition as a continuation of the <b>France</b> area of <span
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lang="de">Kaninchenhöhle</span>, and soon led to the discovery of the
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Scarface (<b>161d</b>) entrance. The new entrance provided much improved
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access to this important section of cave and in 1996 it received considerable
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attention. The main passage turns from trending north-east to north-west at
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one point and it was around this area that a lead in the floor was pushed a
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little last year.
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<!-- photos/lwsurv.ps Survey of Lost World, <span lang="de">Kaninchenhöhle</span>. -->
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<p>Named <b>Wheelchair Access</b> (in recognition of a steep ramp that
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has to be negotiated and the relative age of the explorers) this was
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an immediate target for the beginning of the expedition in 1997, due
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to the ease of access and limited need for resources to push the cave
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further. Initial exploration concentrated on two parallel rifts
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partially explored at the end of the 1996 expedition. Investigation of
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the series to the left was not promising, with difficult traversing
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leading to blind pits, and success in the other right hand rift series
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soon diverted attention. Initially an awkward, constricted, steeply
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descending rift passage with mud concealing sharp calcite formations,
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the passage quickly earned a bit of a reputation amongst the explorers,
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and continuing the Wheelchair theme was named <b><span lang="de">Kein
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Zimmer</span> rift</b> (<b>No Room Rift</b>)! Perseverance paid off however,
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as just past a tight vertical section, the ramp broke out into a larger free
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hanging drop, at the bottom of which, some small horizontal tubes led off.
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Excitement mounted as a last short drop of 5m landed the explorers in a large
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trunk passage, 4m in diameter, with a small stream in the floor heading
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roughly North / South. It was inevitable this would become known as the Lost
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World and was obviously a major and important piece of cave.
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<p><a href="/1623/161/l/dh1-29.htm"><img alt="" width=188 height=125
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align="right" hspace=10 vspace=10
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src="/1623/161/t/dh1-29.jpg"></a><b>Mike Richardson at Lake
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Bourneville, Upstream Lost World, <span
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lang="de">Kaninchenhöhle</span>.</b> (Dave Horsley)<br clear="all">
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<p>Upstream, a couple of big phreatic passages met in a large chamber in
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which were found several bat skeletons - this would suggest another route in
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from the surface, though whether this is accessible to cavers is another
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matter! Beyond the chamber several routes unite at a 3m climb up, then down,
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into a magnificent tall canyon passage over 7m wide. This had a dark pristine
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flat mud floor and led to a large, old sump pool, now devoid of water, again
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with a beautiful, cracked mud floor and the old water level clearly defined
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by the dark mud on the white limestone walls. With reluctance, we headed
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carefully (to minimise the damage to the delicate mud formations) over the
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mud lake, and a 2m drop down a mud bank led to a downstream continuation
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passage. This had obviously been completely under water at some stage in its
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history and probably lies just below the level of the current valley beneath
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the cliff in which the Scarface entrance is situated. The passage continues
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down, with the current small stream weaving its way through bizarre mud
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formations and ending at a small chamber with choked outlets and no easily
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accessible way on.
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<p>The downstream end was less complex with a single passage leading to a
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pitch opening out over a large chamber with a boulder-strewn floor. A route
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down through the boulders gained the true floor of the chamber where the
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water disappeared into an impenetrable passage and leading up from this, a
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larger passage ending at a mud and cobble choke. This may be associated with
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similar choked passages in the upstream end of the Lost World.
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<p>The passages were surveyed and photographed and all of the obvious leads
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pushed to a conclusion, so for the time being the Lost World may be left
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whilst more fruitful projects are pursued. However due to its location it is
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almost certain that other sections of cave will connect through and perhaps
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provide ways around the current limits of exploration at either end of what
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is obviously only a small part of the original passage.
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<h3>Siberia</h3>
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<p>Siberia is roughly the most northerly point of <span
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lang="de">Kaninchenhöhle</span>. It was discovered in 1994 and was known
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to have many potentially good leads. Unfortunately by the original route it
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was a somewhat long and arduous trip just to get to the pushing front. Since
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the discovery of the Scarface entrance (161d) in 1995 and due mostly to the
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large number of going leads near to the new entrance, Siberia has received
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little attention up to now.
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<p>However, this year new enthusiasm was found by a small group of expedition
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members, none of whom had ever been to this area of the cave before. This
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highlights the importance of painstakingly surveying and documenting the
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cave, as often an area may be left several years until a good reason is found
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to revisit it, more often than not, by a completely different group of
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people. Much effort could be wasted if previously visited cave has to be
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re-explored and re-surveyed.
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<p>The Scarface entrance and connection of Triassic Park with Knossos in 1996
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has reduced the journey time to Siberia by probably a couple of hours for
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moderately experienced cavers. However, owing to some reluctance to re-rig
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the tyrolean traverse (Strange Acrossfall), which would have been a long trip
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in it's own right, all of this years trips took the more awkward and slower
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route through the Burble Crawl instead. For a number of reasons it took three
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trips before the pushing front, the top of a very large shaft called Somebody
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Else's Problem, was reached. Since all members of the party were new to the
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area, route finding (still difficult despite the existing surveys) was
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certainly an issue and dragging tackle through the 100m Burble Crawl is hard
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work. En route, Vom Pitch had not been rigged for several years and
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complications due to the loose rock in this area caused a certain amount of
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re-rigging to be necessary (A flake previously used as a rebelay had fallen
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off in 1995). Unfortunately having eventually reached the shaft and placed a
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number of bolts, it quickly became apparent that the shaft was much deeper
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than had been anticipated and the rope was too short!
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<p>The fourth trip was more successful. Enough rope was carried that it was
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relatively straightforward, although slow, to rig the pitch. A 75m almost
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free-hanging pitch was found in a large shaft with a strong breeze blowing up
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it. At the foot of the pitch were a couple of climbs, one leading to a crawl
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and another to a ~15m pitch with strong upwards breeze. This 15m pitch was
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later descended and found to connect to a phreatic passage with an
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undescended climb at the end of it, accompanied by the now ever present gale.
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In the interests of maintaining reliable documentation, no further
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exploration was carried out in this area, since there was already plenty of
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surveying required! This was duly completed, including numerous side passages
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in Siberia, which had only received cursory attention previously.
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<p><a href="/1623/161/l/dh1-17.htm"><img alt="" width=150 height=150
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align="left" hspace=10 vspace=10
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src="/1623/161/t/dh1-17.jpg"></a><b>Mike Richardson in the tube of
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Downstream Lost World, <span lang="de">Kaninchenhöhle</span>.</b> (Dave
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Horsley)<br clear="all">
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<h3>Other Work</h3>
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<h4>Puerile Humour Series</h4>
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<p>By the end of the 1996 expedition it was clear that Where the Wind Blows,
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one of the Northward trending passages in the Puerile Humour series, could
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potentially provide a significantly easier route to The Far End due to it's
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close proximity at the 1996 exploration limit. This was an obvious question
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mark to return to at the beginning of this year's expedition. The end of the
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passage was drafting from three separate places, suggesting significant cave
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beyond, and the nature of the passage suggested that the end was merely a
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collapse area in an ongoing passage. A small hole in the mud floor was found
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to lead to a large aven above and an ongoing pitch series below, however
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progress down was stopped by a constriction. Continuing horizontally, the
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passage quickly chokes at a boulder collapse, probably associated with the
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aven / shaft series already mentioned. Some effort was made to dig through
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the choke but concerns over the stability of the excavated passage soon
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halted exploration. This remains an interesting area, but further progress
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may require somebody experienced in the digging and shoring techniques
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required to pass such a boulder choke safely.
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<h4>Moomintrol</h4>
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<p>In another series of passages leading off from Triassic Park, just beyond
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an impressive aven, known as Zebedee, is a climb named Moomintrol. It was
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discovered last year and noted because (a) it looked to be not too difficult
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and (b) a large black space was visible at the top.
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<p>The first party to attempt the climb this year considered, after putting
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in a few bolts by hand, that it would be a much easier prospect using the
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drill. As a justification to commandeer this important expedition resource,
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they claimed that the shaft on the hammer of the hand bolting kit had snapped
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(albeit by accident) and thus they were unable to do anything but return to
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the surface to collect the drill. The second party had more success, despite
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being unable to use the drill because the battery appeared flat, and after a
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bold attempt at climbing, the top was reached. Another 30' shaft was found
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and the sound of water ahead. Unfortunately it was by now time to derig, so
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further exploration must once again wait for next year.
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<h4>Alternative Universe</h4>
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<p>This passage is an offshoot from the large Triassic Park trunk route, and
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being only 10 minutes from the Scarface entrance was an obvious target for
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further exploration. Work concentrated on a descending shaft series, wet in
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places -- making this a potentially serious proposition since the average air
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temperature in the cave is only just above freezing. The series descended
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100m down, over several pitches, but ended in a tight, committing rift and a
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further very tight descent which was abandoned due to the lack of a
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sufficiently thin backup team member!
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<h3>Surface Activities</h3>
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<p>As a background activity we are always on the look out for other possible
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entrances to either <span lang="de">Kaninchenhöhle</span> or as yet
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undiscovered caves. The limestone plateau is riddled with holes, most of
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which go to an insignificant depth, but also some quite large holes which are
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still to be found and investigated. This surface prospecting work is
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essential not only to further understanding of the cave systems in the area
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but also in sustaining interest in the area for future generations of CUCC
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members. Over the past 20 years we have discovered a great many such
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entrances and shafts, however until recently documentation and labelling of
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such finds has been sporadic. Over the last few years and indeed on this
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year's expedition this problem has been addressed by the use of stamped
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aluminium tags that are fixed to the cave entrances, these bearing numbers
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assigned by the local caving group (VfHO) who maintain records of all known
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caves in the area. To complement this work all important entrances are
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located and mapped with the aid of GPS technology, backed up with more
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accurate surface surveys. This ensures that re-exploration of caves is
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minimised and has proved an essential tool in the investigation of possible
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connections between existing cave systems.
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<h3>Summary</h3>
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<p>Over one hundred underground photographs were taken, many of different
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subjects, some of which are shown here. Thanks are due to the expedition
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photographers and in particular to all those 'extras' who stood (or hung)
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shivering whilst the flashes failed and the lenses fogged! By the end of the
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expedition a further 2.4km of cave had been surveyed and the overall depth
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increased to just over 500m, owing to the slightly higher entrance of <span
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lang="de">Steinschlagschacht.</span> There are still many promising leads,
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with the exciting prospect of linking two, already very large, cave systems.
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There will no doubt be many more trips to <span
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lang="de">Kaninchenhöhle</span> in the future.
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<h3>Acknowledgements</h3>
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<p>Caving expeditions such as this are anything but cheap, especially when
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viewed through the eyes of the increasingly impoverished students who make up
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a significant proportion of the expedition. We owe a debt of gratitude to all
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those organisations who have provided us with sponsorship in various forms,
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for which we are very grateful and which has certainly contributed hugely to
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the success of the expedition. Particular thanks must go to both the
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Foundation for Sport and the Arts and also to the Sports Council for their
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generous financial assistance. Thanks are also due to the Ghar Parau
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Foundation for their assistance with grant application and recommendation.
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<p>Other companies provided sponsorship in terms of food and equipment. Barts
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spices, Campbells, Thomas Tunnock Ltd., Thorntons plc and Wander Ltd.
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provided spices, sauces, caramel wafers, fudge and Ovaltine all of which
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added dietary interest and improved morale of the expedition members. Aleph1
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Ltd loaned us a computer for survey analysis, Nikwax donated a tub of their
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famous boot waterproofing wax and Terra Nova provided discounts on tent
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purchase.
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<hr />
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</body>
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</html>
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