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<title>1985: Cambridge Underground report</title>
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<center><font size=-1>Cambridge Underground 1986-7 pp 4-6</font>
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<h2>CUCC Austria 1985</h2></center>
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<p align=right>by Mike Martin
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<p>Preparation started several weeks before. This was always destined to
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be a small scale expedition and despite the inexperience of those who
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participated, our goals were met.
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<p>In Cambridge, training started by stringing Tina up over the side of Fen
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Ditton Railway Bridge. Stef borrowed a rope and tried tying himself in knots
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in a tree. Vast quantities of food were bought (Mark had a strange idea as to
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what we needed), and scattered around 46 Catherine Street. Tacklebags were
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crammed full of gear and the Rover packed. A last minute shuffling of gear
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and people, and everyone was crammed in their respective vehicles and we
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departed - almost without incident.
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<p>The plan was to drive to Dover, meet up and ensure everyone knew where we
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were going. Thus team Rover and Blue Fiat caught a ferry three hours before
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Team Banana (after the colour of their car). Not to be outdone, the Banana
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zipped along the motorway, overtaking Rover before leaving Belgium, to arrive
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at the campsite approximately ten minutes after Stef and Chris. The only
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problem we experienced was the inability of the Alpine's cooling system to
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cool. In fact it ejaculated over the attendants every time we stopped for
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petrol!
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<p>Day one set the tone of the expedition. Everyone got up early-ish and went
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to explore the plateau. A new area was chosen, and a draughty hole located.
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On returning to the campsite, Mike R and Tina were greeted, tents erected and
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food cooked. It was decided, to pevent wasting valuable days, that Mike M
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would take Stef, Gavin, Tina and Mark down 142 so some of them could try
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their SRT rigs underground for the first time. The cave was found without too
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much difficulty (despite the total darkness) at about 11.15pm. We surfaced
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six and a half hours later to a glorious morning.
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<p>Thus the expedition started with an overnight trip, the first of many.
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It seems strange that the justification of this trait was to avoid the
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necessity of emerging after dark, and getting lost on the way back down
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(as had happened on previous expeditions). However no one questioned trying
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to find the entrances in the dark!
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<p>The next few days' activities were split between descending 144, gardening
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as they progressed, and looking for new cave. The aforementioned cave was dug
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into after two days' effort only to stop eight feet in at a two inch slot.
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However, a little lateral exploration revealed the entrance of 152 at the
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bottom of a little gully. On the first descent, the team was a wee bit under
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equipped comprising Gavin and Tina sharing a set of SRT gear and a little
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stinky. The entrance pitch landed on a snow plug and steps were kicked down
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past an ice column to a scree slope. Wriggling behind a boulder at the bottom
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led to the second pitch. Gavin then surfaced and I went down wearing shorts,
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tee shirt and oversuit (bit chilly) to join Tina. Progressing down a series
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of short pitches and precariously perched boulder bridges, the proportions
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increased and our confidence rose.
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<p>The third trip saw the descent of the finest and airiest pitch, "The
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Good Pitch Venus". This was so named as Chris's original descent
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(accompanied by Tina) was the result of a considerable piece of levitation
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on Chris's part and what some described as "Frigging in the Rigging".
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Unfortunately, not much seemed to follow, the cave becoming an awkward
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tight rift. The way on was missed and found by a subsequent trip.
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<p>On this later trip, a further tight pitch was found, and the placing of
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bolts could have benefitted from the attentions of a contortionist. The pitch
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was named "Suicide Pot" in view of my skill with the driver! I descended
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(minus lamps which had both packed up) and failed to reach the bottom of the
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short rope used. A hasty retreat was forced by Gavin and myself, sharing his
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back-up lamp, having had three light failures between us. The pitch was
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finally conquered at the beginning of week three, after my return to the UK,
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by Stef and Chris who discovered bolts at the head of the next pitch less
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than five feet from my point of furthest exploration.
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<p>Meanwhile, other early activities had included a search of the Big Pitch
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area and Chamber in 142, hoping to find a way on towards 144:
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<p>A climb up out of the big chamber led to a balcony overlooking the pitch
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and via a weathered ramp to the passage between 142 and
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<span lang=de>Stellerweg.</span> The onset of a thunderstorm alarmed Tina and
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Gavin whilst they had a break from surveying. The munching of Mars Bars was
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interrupted by the thuderous roar of water. This turned out to be a three
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inch diameter column of water falling some twenty feet from the roof of the
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passage and echoing through the cave!
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<p>However, the main objective was to locate the connection between 144 and
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<span lang=de>Stellerweg,</span> the existence of which was suggested by many
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previous trips. Progress was slow at first due to the unstable heap of rocks
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at the top of the second pitch and an inability to find (or trust) the bolts
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placed three years ago.
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<p>On reaching the "Yellow Brick Road", the party split up. Somehow Mark
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Roddick managed not only to find but fall down an obscure little hole and
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land on a pile of sand. Then he slid down a boulder and stopped
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providentially before the edge of the sixty metre pitch. Amazingly, others
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wanting to follow this route (as it proved to be the main way on) had great
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difficulty with this small hole, and it took one person in excess of thirty
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minutes to get back up the fifteen foot pitch.
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<p>Beyond "Roddick's Dive" as it is now called, a ramp was crossed (which
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became a shower when it rained on the surface) to reach a continuation of the
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Yellow Brick Road. Progress was made by following a steep narrow tube down a
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ramp to a larger canyon twenty feet wide by thirty feet high. The many ways
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on from here mostly closed down, but one led to the head of a pitch. A food
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dump was established here and a retreat made.
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<p>The next trip started with a walk to the entrance in a blizzard and a
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descent in the freezing draught to the food dump. The pitch which had limited
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previous exploration was bypassed via a low mud crawl to a wet and draughty
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chamber below. Following the stream, another pitch was reached, this too was
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bypassed by a wet tube on the right and a very wide, ten foot chimney down.
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This ensured that each of us was totally drenched and ensured our discomfort
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in the slow, laborious surveying back to the Yellow Brick Road. The bottom of
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the chimney was found to lie in the rift below the Big Pitch in
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<span lang=de>Stellerweg.</span> This was confirmed by the finding of a
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wrapper from a dried dates packet. These had been a particular favourite of
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Steve Perry who was the last person below the big pitch on the derigging trip
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of 1981. No one on our expedition this year indulged in these.
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<p>On returning to the surface, a quick plot of the new data confirmed our
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discovery thereby providing a new top entrance to the system, making an
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overall depth of 971m, and a length of over 6.5km.
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<p>At this point all that remained was to tie up loose ends in 152, and
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derigging. Team children played with some magnesium ribbon in 142 - I'm told
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it made the chamber much lighter!! Needless to say, my employers carefully
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arranged things on my behalf so that I missed the detackling!
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<p>Finally - what is left for 1986? (or 1987, since 1986 didn't get there!)
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<p>Several draughting holes were found between 152 and the
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<span lang=de>Vord. Schwarzmooskogel.</span> These will require exploration
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and may join 152/113 the <span lang=de>Sonnenstrahlhöhle</span> system.
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<p>On ploughing through previous reports it appears that the draught at
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approximately the 1600m contour level in
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<span lang=de>Sonnenstrahlhöhle</span> reverses direction. This height
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also corresponds to the extensive phreatic levels of
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<span lang=de>Stellerweg</span> and 142. If there is an extensive horizontal
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development around the Fox's Glacier level in 113 then perhaps the 1 km
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gap may be bridged making one gigantic system.
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<p>For those interested in statistics:
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<table border=0>
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<tr><th>Name</th><th>No. Trips</th><th>Time Underground in hours</th></tr>
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<tr><td>Brian Derby *</td><td>4</td><td>33</td></tr>
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<tr><td>Tina White</td><td>6</td><td>42</td></tr>
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<tr><td>Mike Martin *</td><td>5</td><td>45</td></tr>
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<tr><td>Gavin Andrews</td><td>7</td><td>53</td></tr>
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<tr><td>Stefan Kukula</td><td>7</td><td>54</td></tr>
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<tr><td>Mike Richardson</td><td>8</td><td>60</td></tr>
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<tr><td>Chris Sharman</td><td>8</td><td>67</td></tr>
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<tr><td>Mark Roddick</td><td>7</td><td>67</td></tr>
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</table>
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<p>* two weeks only
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<hr />
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<!-- LINKS -->
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<ul id="links">
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<li>Cambridge Underground 1986-7,
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<a href="http://cucc.survex.com/jnl/1986-7/index.htm">Table of Contents</a></li>
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<li>1985 Expedition info:
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<ul>
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<li><a href="log.htm">Logbook</a></li>
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<li>Cambridge Underground Expo Report:
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<ul>
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<li><a href="bdseye.htm">A Bird's Eye View</a>, Tina White</li>
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<li>Guidebook to the <a href="144-41.htm">144-Stellerweg connection</a></li>
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<li>Summary of caves <a href="loser.htm">explored 1976-85</a><br>
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<!-- </ul></li>
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<li><a href="bcracc.htm">BCRA Caves & Caving Report</a><br> -->
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</ul></li>
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<li><a href="../../pubs.htm#pubs1985">Index</a> to all publications</li>
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<li><a href="../../index.htm">Back to Expeditions intro page</a></li>
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<li><a href="../../../index.htm">CUCC Home Page</a></li>
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</ul>
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