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<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0//EN">
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<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf8" />
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<title>1623/161 Kaninchenhöhle - far northern mainline</title>
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<link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="/css/main2.css" />
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</head>
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<body>
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<p><center><a href="161.html"><img alt="Overview "
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src="ovview.png" width=40 height=40></a>
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<a href="pixrh.htm"><img alt=" Photos "
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src="vtour.png" width=40 height=40></a>
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<img alt="Rigging" src="rigbut.png" width=40 height=40>
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<a href="names.htm"><img alt=" Glossary "
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src="idx161.png" width=40 height=40></a>
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<a href="../index.html#id161"><img alt=" Desc "
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src="desc.png" width=40 height=40></a>
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<a href="../../index.htm"><img alt=" Expo "
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src="ausbut.png" width=40 height=40></a>
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<a href="../../infodx.htm"><img alt=" Topics "
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src="index.png" width=40 height=40></a>
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<a href="../../indxal.htm"><img alt=" Index "
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src="indxal.png" width=40 height=40></a>
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<a href="../../../index.htm"><img alt=" CUCC"
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src="cucc.png" width=40 height=40></a>
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<h2>161 Kaninchenhöhle: Mainline to far north</h2></center>
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<h3>Overview</h3>
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<p>Although it can be bypassed via Burble Crawl, the logical approach to the
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Far North is across the tyrolean of Strange Acrossfall to reach the large
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chamber of Repton I, and this is where the <a href="#viasa">main
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description</a> here starts. It is likely that the bypass will need to be
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used at some stage to rerig the main route, so the route from the bottom of
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Vom Pitch is also described in this page.
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<p>Whichever way is taken to Repton I, the passages beyond are incompletely
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explored, and the big trunk passages seem to have disappeared. It is
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difficult to single out a "main way on". The routes are described in terms of
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the "normal" or shortest currently known ways to the remotest points of the
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cave, with the proviso that further exploration may reveal more direct or
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more logical ways.
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<hr />
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<h3>Repton I reached via Burble/Leadmine</h3>
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<p>In the event that no-one is foolish enough to trust the ageing fixed ropes
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at Strange Upfall or Strange Acrossfall (this latter may have been removed
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anyway), the only way to avoid repeating the climb is via Burble Crawl and
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the Leadmine.
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<p>This route starts from the same 90° right hand bend in
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<a href="sibria.htm#cfn">Chicken Flied Nice</a> mentioned above.
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Follow that link and the description up to the entry to Leadmine,
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at which point you will find a link back here.
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<h4><a name="leadminese">Leadmine</a> - Maze to Repton (1991)</h4>
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<p>From the T-junction in the passage east below Vom Pitch, right (south)
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is the way into Leadmine.
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<p>This is a complex of joint-controlled passages, generally 0.8m wide by
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2-3m high with sandy floors, very civilised. Turning right at the T-junction
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gives 25m of passage to a short drop and kink to the left, with a sand-filled
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chamber down to the left. 5m beyond this is a passage off sharply back to the
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left, leading to <a href="#repton1">Repton I</a>.
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<p><a name="soilp">Carrying</a> on forwards another 20m of passage leads
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round to the right past a 1m climb up on the left to a sand-filled chamber
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with a hole down through the sand in the far corner. The apparent dodginess
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of this <b>Soil Pitch</b> means that it has not been investigated
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[<a name="qC1991-161-22" href="qmtodo.htm#C1991-161-22">C1991-161-22</a> C]). The climb just before
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this chamber reveals 30-40m of unsurveyed high passage with a couple of 4m
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climbs up at the end to boulder chokes.
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<p><a href="300dpi/repton.png"><img alt="survey - 16k gif" width=560
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height=350 src="inline/repton.png"></a>
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<p>Back on the route to Repton, 15m of passage (going north) leads to another
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passage parallel to the one just left. You can go left for about 5m to a dead
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end or right for 10m to a 2m climb down into three connected sand-floored
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chambers. The only way out is the 4m climb up the sloping right hand wall of
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these chambers.
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<p>At the top of this climb, the obvious route to the left (SE) goes dead
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straight for 25m to the foot of a wide inclined bedding full of boulders
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which leads up for 10m to <a href="#repton1">Repton I</a>. To the right a
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traverse around the top of the pitch leads to a small chamber with a hole
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connecting back to the chambers below and a crawl up in the roof going
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nowhere.
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<h3><a name="viasa">Strange Acrossfall</a></h3>
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<p>Beyond the 90° right hand bend in <a href="sibria.htm#cfn">Chicken
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Flied Nice</a> (where the Burble route departs), the passage changes: the
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floor trench cuts down and widens to a high stream rift which opens onto a
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big space, <a href="deepwy.htm#hgs">Hyper Gamma Spaces</a>.
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<p><a name="stranged">The 30m</a> <b>Strange Downfall</b> pitch into
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this very large aven/collapse chamber lands on boulders. This is believed to
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have a <a href="../../fixaid.htm#strange">fixed rope</a> at present. Climbing down
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to the lowest point of the chamber (West side) reaches a small rift which is
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fairly full of stones at this point. To the right is more of Hyper Gamma
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Spaces - <a href="deepwy.htm#HGSrift">the rift bit</a>, while to the left is
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<a href="deepwy.htm#endless">Endless</a>.
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<p><center><a name="strangea" href="l/sacros.htm"><img src="t/sacros.jpg"
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width=120 height=177></a></center>
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<br><center><a href="l/sacros.htm">The tyrolean of Strange
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Acrossfall</a></center>
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<p><a name="strangeu">The pitch up</a> the far side of Hyper Gamma
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Spaces is the 18m <b>Strange Upfall</b> (1991), and the Tyrolean
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straight across avoiding most of both of these pitches is, of course,
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<b>Strange Acrossfall</b>.
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<p>Strange Upfall can be reached via burble and vom but is normally left
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rigged as the easiest access to the far north areas (see the
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<a href="../../fixaid.htm#strangea">fixed ropes</a> page).
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<h3><a name="repton">Repton I</a> (1991)</h3>
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<p><a name="repton1">At the top</a> of <a href="#strangeu">Strange
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Upfall</a> is a big chamber - <b>Repton</b> (named after the computer game
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involving huge piles of boulders). It has two distinct halves, both sloping
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down from a central rockpile col. The smaller half, entered first, is
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<b>Repton I</b>, 40m long, and 12m wide. About 25m upslope, a huge block
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forms a 2m high step across the chamber. This can be passed by a hard climb
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on the right hand wall, or an easier climb through boulders at the left hand
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end.
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<p>Just beyond this a wide bedding in the left hand wall descends into the
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<a href="sibria.htm#leadmine">Leadmine</a>, and ramifications to the
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Northwest. Then there is a steep rock pile leading up into Repton II, and the
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most remote parts of the system to the Northeast.
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<h3><a name="repton2">Repton II</a>, <a name="beehiver">Beehive</a> (1991) -
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to the far Northeast</h3>
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<p>Climbing over the rockpile from Repton I, beside a 10m cubed block, leads
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into the huge 20m high and wide space of <b>Repton II</b>, sloping down to an
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obvious large passage going out of the left hand side of the end wall.
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Part-way down this slope a rope hangs out of the ceiling which is the p18 upinto
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<a href="oldmen.htm#irony">Irony of Time</a> and <a href="oldmen.htm#oldmen">Country for Old Men</a></p>
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<p>At the foot of the slope a climb/slide down a sandbank leads to a short crawl into a 10m
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diameter chamber, <b>Beehive</b> (not to be confused with the
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<a href="deepwy.htm#beehivef">Beehive</a> in Flapjack :-). The sandy passage
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can also be followed round to the left to overlook this chamber.
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<p><center>
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<a href="l/bhclmb.htm"><img src="t/bhclmb.jpg" width=134 height=200>
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<br><br>The Beehive climb</a></center>
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<p>There are three other ways out of the chamber.
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A <a href="offnth.htm#bhcrawl">small crawl</a> to the right, the obvious
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passage ahead, <a href="offnth.htm#wetwe">Wet Weekend</a>, and the way on
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into <b>Pipeless</b>. This is reached by climbing up the boulder pile on the
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east side of the chamber. From here a very difficult move into the passage is
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greatly eased by a long sling hung from a bolt on the right of the climb.
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<h4><a name="pipeless">Pipeless</a> (1992)</h4>
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<p>Pipeless (after its explorers' severe carbide difficulties) is a 4-5m
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diameter phreatic tube going gently downhill for 120m. First there is a 2m
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sandbank climb, most easily passed by chimneying against the left wall. The
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passage continues past an area of large breakdown with left and right bends
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to a long section containing impressive formations in the roof, and a small
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stream in the floor. A small infill-choked passage goes off low on the left
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at the breakdown area.
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<p><center>
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<a href="l/pipefm.htm"><img src="t/pipefm.jpg" width=115 height=173></a>
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<img alt=" " src="lists/tab64.png">
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<a href="l/pipebr.htm"><img src="t/pipebr.jpg" width=114 height=158></a>
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</center>
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<p><center><a href="l/pipefm.htm">Pipeless formations</a>
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<img alt=" " src="lists/tab64.png">
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<a href="l/pipebr.htm">The Bridge</a></center>
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<p><a name="bridge">Next is</a> a 3m pitch/handline climb down and a 2m climb
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down to <b>The Bridge</b>, some precariously balanced rocks over a big,
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undescended pit.
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<p><a href="300dpi/mmud.png"><img alt="survey - 15k gif" width=450
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height=600 src="inline/mmud.png"></a>
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<h4><a name="ssr">Satan's Sitting Room</a> (1992)</h4>
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<p>Beyond the Bridge in Pipeless, taking the lower, smaller passage for the
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last 6m leads to a view into the impressive space of <b>Satan's Sitting
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Room</b>. This can also be viewed but not reached from the bigger, higher
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passage which can be gained by a 4m climb just beyond The Bridge.
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<p>There is a choice of a tyrolean (<a href="../../fixaid.htm#ssr">fixed
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rope</a>) across from the entry point, or a 20m pitch (rebelay at -6m, beware
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of choss) down towards <a href="offnth.htm#silentf">Silent Fellow</a>.
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<p><a id="id3wisemen">The shelf</a> reached by the tyrolean goes around the
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right hand wall of Satan's Sitting Room to an 8m climb up then a traverse
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between two pitches. This is all roped. A tensioned traverse (also with
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a <a href="../../fixaid.htm#id3wm">permanently rigged</a> rope), <b>Three Wise
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Men</b>, is rigged on the wall ahead, up around to the right, to a window,
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ignoring the massive undescended pitch
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[<a href="qmtodo.htm#C1992-161-12" name="qC1992-161-12">C1992-161-12</a>].
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<p><center><a href="l/3wisea.htm">
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<img alt="Photo - 38k" src="t/3wisea.jpg" width=134 height=200></a>
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<img alt=" " src="lists/tab64.png">
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<a href="l/3wiseb.htm">
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<img alt="Photo - 29k" src="t/3wiseb.jpg" width=134 height=200></a>
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<br>
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<b>Three Wise Men - Aggy Finn bolting and Andy Atkinson following</b>.
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</center>
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<p>From the first window, there is a tyrolean to another window, followed by
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a 2m climb/ab down. All the drops here curve round to the big undescended one
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in Satan's Sitting Room - a descent of 15m is sufficient to see that these
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connect. Across this last chamber (which is very high, with passages coming
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in high up) is a 3m climb up which is the way on to Tinkle Rift. There is
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some scrotty stuff off to the right, and a 3m climb forward on the left leads
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back into the last chamber. Ahead is a big pitch (undescended [<a
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href="qmtodo.htm#C1992-161-13" name="qC1992-161-13">C1992-161-13</a>]).
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<h4><a name="tinkler">Tinkle Rift</a> (1992)</h4>
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<p>Beyond Satan's Sitting Room at the end of the 3 Wise Men traverse a 3m climb up to the right leads into a stooping and very draughty passage. Straight
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on dead-ends immediately, but an immediate left enters <b>Tinkle Rift</b>.
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<p>This can be traversed at upper or lower levels. The higher level is more
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difficult, starting with a rather Welsh traverse (trying not to break off too
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many speleothems - the eponymous Tinkle) over holes ([<a
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href="qmdone.htm#C1992-161-15" name="qC1992-161-15">C1992-161-15</a>] - blind), then an awkward
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(<a href="../../fixaid.htm#trift">permanent rope</a>) 2m climb up a boulder
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blockage. (Climbing up a further 3m here gets you to
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<a href="offnth.htm#welliesp">Wellie Scraper</a>). Beyond this, a couple more
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down climbs reach the big boulder pile.
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<p>The lower route is reached by a 5m pitch (instead of the traverse) at the
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start. There are a couple of crawls before the upper level is rejoined after
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35m. There are numerous connecting climbs between the two levels. A hole in
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the floor just before the two levels join is an 8m awkward blind pitch.
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<h4><a name="bvelvet">Black Velvet</a> / Far Too Far (1992)</h4>
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<p>On along the rift it gets very high (15m) with various narrow passages at
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floor level. Another big boulder blockage can be passed most easily on the
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right. Beyond this is a short (12m) blind pitch [<a href="qmdone.htm#C1992-161-16"
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name="qC1992-161-16">C1992-161-16</a>]. Across the pitch head a continuation can be seen
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(10m away) which can be reached from <a href="#furtcha">Further</a>.
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<p><a href="300dpi/far.png"><img alt="survey - 14k gif" width=600
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height=400 src="inline/far.png"></a>
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<p><a name="far2far">Climbing</a> up 6m through the boulders leads into a
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rising 4m diameter phreas heading northeast, <b>Black Velvet</b> (named after
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the very dark (oxidised ?) sand - take care to follow the route). A big hole
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in the floor [<a href="qmdone.htm#C1992-161-17" name="qC1992-161-17">C1992-161-17</a>] drops about
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12m back into the passage below leading to Further. At the end of Black
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Velvet, a ramp pitch continuation, <a href="#axlest">Axle Stand</a> [<a
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href="qmdone.htm#C1992-161-18" name="qC1992-161-18">C1992-161-18</a>] drops down, and there is a
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sharp corner right into the smaller, southeast trending, <b>Far Too Far</b>
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passage.
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<p>A tiny hole in the floor here just connects back further along. This area
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is muddy and care should be taken not to put mud into the pool at the end.
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Here the passage is blocked with glacial fill. There is a crawl on the right,
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which quickly enlarges and reaches another big, wet-sounding undescended
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pitch [<a href="qmtodo.htm#C1992-161-19" name="qC1992-161-19">C1992-161-19</a>], and a rift off to
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the left, giving pitch and traverse [<a href="qmtodo.htm#C1992-161-21"
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name="qC1992-161-21">C1992-161-21</a>] routes. This rift lines up exactly with the
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desperate-looking crack at the end of <a href="#scrofy">Scrofulosity</a>. On
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the right here is an obscure climb which leads into a stooping passage - the
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1992 limit of exploration [<a href="qmdone.htm#C1992-161-20" name="qC1992-161-20">C1992-161-20</a>]
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which leads to <b>East Anglia</b>.
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<h4><a name="eanglia">East Anglia</a> (1993)</h4>
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<p>This low sandy passage (named because it is flat and horrible) is 120m
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long, rising 16m to the far end at a final depth of -229m from 161a (Alt.
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1557m). It starts off wide to the SW, but quickly becomes stooping and
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crawling, and generally remains that way. After 20m it turns NE for 25m
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before opening out into a 6m wide aven. The drip follows the extremely tight
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floor rift out of here.
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<p>Voices were heard at this point from <a href="#scrofy">Scrofulosity</a>,
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so a connection with either the final pitch or the Aven/rift at the climb
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seems likely.
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<p>Crossing over the canyon the passage continues for another 45m, first
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walking, then crawling before an aparent dead end. An easy c4 up here gains
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another 20m of passage, now in a hading rift, going up and down, mostly up,
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to emerge at the head of a big undescended pitch [<a href="qmtodo.htm#C1993-161-03"
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name="qC1993-161-03">C1993-161-03</a>], perhaps 8m diameter, with a huge wedged boulder a
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few metres down it.
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<h4><a name="furtcha">Further</a> / Even Further (1993)</h4>
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<p>The sketch in the 1993 logbook gives a good idea of this area, though
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one or two names have changed:
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<p><a href="/years/1993/scrof0.png">
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<img src="../../years/1993/scrof2.png" width=492 height=484
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alt="Scrofulosity area sketch"></a>
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<p><a name="axlest">The ramp pitch</a> at the end of Black Velvet - <b>Axle
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Stand</b> drops 18m to reach <b>Further</b> chamber, about 25m long
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developed along the big NE/SW rift that defines this area of the cave. The
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pitch ends is a narrow canyon at the SW end. This can be followed a few m
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further SW to walking 2-3m wide passage. This continues via a c2 up and a
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couple of curves to look out over the blind pitch at the NE end of Tinkle
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Rift. 3m back from the lip on the RH side is the bottom of the sizeable hole
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in the floor of Black Velvet.
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<p>Back in Further there is an old stream route which disappears into an
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immature rift that can be followed for about 5m before it gets too tight.
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The most obvious exit is a stoop/crawl in the SE corner. This leads to
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Scrofulosity.
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<p><a name="needlep">At the Northern end</a>, the highest point of Further,
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is <b>The Needle</b>, a 7m up pitch, <a href="../../fixaid.htm#needle">left
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rigged</a>. This was named after the numerous threads which made it climbable
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with only a couple of slings for protection.
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<p><a name="efurther">10m of passage</a> from the top of Needle Pitch gains a
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view into the large space of <b>Even Further</b>.
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<p><a name="weaselp">This 15m</a> diameter chamber is dominated by a huge
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boulder which makes the 6m pitch down here, <b>Weasel Pit</b>, bloody
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awkward as you must progress down between the wall and boulder at a steep
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angle, and the cheesy rock makes foot purchase almost impossible. Ten metres
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across the chamber at the far side on the right is another pitch, which has
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been descended about 20m on dodgy naturals to no conclusion
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[<a href="qmtodo.htm#C1993-161-01" name="qC1993-161-01">C1993-161-01</a>].
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<p>From the foot of Weasel Pit you can descend underneath the huge boulder to
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get to the lower level of Even Further (the NW side). A passage descends from
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here to the WNW for about 15m to a crossrift, choked on the left and too
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tight a few metres to the right. This point is -271m. The final feature of
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Even Further is a <a href="qmaven.htm#C1993-161-ef" name="qC1993-161-ef">big
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drippy aven</a> coming in in the north corner.
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<h3><a name="scrofy">Scrofulosity</a></h3>
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<p>To the right in Further is <b>Scrofulosity</b>, 140m of mostly sandy crawl
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passing underneath <a href="#eanglia">East Anglia</a>. After 45m heading SW,
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a 4m sandy downclimb is reached. This looked enough like a pitch to the
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explorers that a completely superfluous bolt was put in, although a handline
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is useful for the return. The foot is in a rift. It is 15-20m high on the
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left hand side with a drip, and very narrow to the right where a strong
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draught disappears into a desperate-looking crack. This is clearly (from the
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survey) the same rift as that seen at the end of Far Too Far on the left
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hand side [<a href="#qC1992-161-21">C1992-161-21</a>].
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<p>From here there are two ways on leading to the same spot. A low, wide,
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cobbly passage straight on, or a very narrow crabwalk to the right. The
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former is far easier, and after 15m rejoins the crabwalk at a 2m down climb
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where the passage becomes a walking rift. 12m along here there is a deep,
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but extremely narrow hole in the floor at a diaclase. Mud (there are no
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stones) sounds like it falls a long way, but a hammer would be required for
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any chance of gaining access [<a href="qmtodo.htm#C1993-161-05"
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name="qC1993-161-05">C1993-161-05</a>]. Climbing 2m up to the right here on a pile of
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mud gains more sandy crawl. After 5m is a T-junction. Right goes about 8m
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via a very tight spot to a tiny chamber. Left goes 20m, with a U-bend
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squeeze to the top of a 15m rift pitch [<a href="qmtodo.htm#C1993-161-02"
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name="qC1993-161-02">C1993-161-02</a>], at a depth of -269m from 161a (Alt. 1517m).
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