mirror of
https://expo.survex.com/repositories/expoweb/.git/
synced 2024-11-22 23:31:56 +00:00
193 lines
9.1 KiB
HTML
193 lines
9.1 KiB
HTML
<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd">
|
|
<html>
|
|
<head>
|
|
<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1" />
|
|
<meta id="author" content="A.E.R.Waddington" />
|
|
<meta id="date" content="2000-09-07" />
|
|
<meta id="description" content="Cambridge University Caving Club's Advanced
|
|
expedition camps on the Loser Plateau" />
|
|
<title>CUCC's Austria Expeditions: High camps</title>
|
|
<link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="css/main2.css" />
|
|
</head>
|
|
<body>
|
|
<h1>CUCC's high camps on <span lang="de-at">Loser</span></h1>
|
|
|
|
<p>Over the almost four decades during which CUCC have been visiting the <span
|
|
lang="de-at">Loser-AugstEck</span> plateau, they have found it essential to
|
|
camp nearer the caves than the base camps in <span
|
|
lang="de-at">Altaussee</span> (1976-82) and <span lang="de-at">Grundlsee</span>
|
|
(1983 to present). The <a href="years/1978/log.htm#driveroty">1978 accident</a>
|
|
demonstrated the foolishness of trying to conduct long explorations without a
|
|
high camp. Several people have been benighted on the plateau over the years
|
|
and rescues in 1989, 2007 and 2016 as well as numerous other incidents show the value of rapid assistance from Top Camp in
|
|
the event of a mishap underground.</p>
|
|
<p>The current (2002-2017) top camp is in "204 Steinbrückenhöhle" (see below).</p>
|
|
|
|
<p>The terminology of these camps has become very confused over
|
|
time, as the campsites have changed. At some time, virtually every
|
|
early camp has been called "Camp 1" by someone or other, and several
|
|
sites have been called "Top Camp"! Note that it has been
|
|
<b>illegal</b> to camp within the Nature Reserve <span lang="de">(Naturschutzgebiet)</span>
|
|
area since 1993, and we obtain special permission every year for
|
|
exploratory purposes.</p>
|
|
|
|
<h3><a id="id1977camp">1977</a> Advance Camp</h3>
|
|
|
|
<p>CUCC's first high camp was set up in 1977, on a site identified on the first
|
|
visit in 1976. This was on an area of pasture above a small limestone scar from
|
|
<a href="br-alm.html"><span lang="de-at">Bräuning Alm</span></a>. At
|
|
the time, the springs in the valley here were the only reliable water supply we
|
|
had discovered. There were caves nearby, as well as ones on the plateau to
|
|
explore, so the site proved very pleasant, until washed out in one (of many)
|
|
mega-thunderstorm.</p>
|
|
|
|
<div class="centre">
|
|
<a href="1623/l/tc1977.htm"><img src="1623/t/tc1977.jpg"
|
|
width="158" height="108" alt="Camp 1977" /></a>
|
|
|
|
<a href="1623/l/tc77a.htm">
|
|
<img src="1623/t/tc77a.jpg" width="138" height="103"
|
|
alt="Camp 1977" /></a>
|
|
|
|
<a href="1623/l/tc77b.htm">
|
|
<img src="1623/t/tc77b.jpg" width="151" height="88"
|
|
alt="Camp 1977" /></a>
|
|
<p class="caption">
|
|
Views of 1977 Advance camp.
|
|
</p></div>
|
|
|
|
<h3><a id="id1979camp"><span lang="de-at">Schwarzmoossattel</span></a>
|
|
bivouac</h3>
|
|
|
|
<p>Once most exploration was centred on the plateau, the camp at
|
|
<span lang="de-at">Bräuning Alm</span> proved of little real value, and
|
|
all exploration was conducted by driving up from the valley. The difficulties
|
|
and dangers of returning across the plateau in the dark led to some cavers
|
|
doing "overnight" trips, in which the cave was descended in daylight, and
|
|
exitted in daylight the next day. The risk associated with this approach was
|
|
that of <a href="years/1978/log.htm#driveroty">falling asleep</a> on the
|
|
drive down, as Julian Griffiths demonstrated. Having stayed awake down all
|
|
the seriously fatal hairpin bends, the car drove itself through a fence and
|
|
down a 10m drop in the valley below. The mangled steering wheel, bent by a
|
|
tree-sized piece of fence coming through the windscreen, became CUCC's
|
|
"Driver of the Year" award at subsequent dinners.</p>
|
|
|
|
<p>It was realised that for overnight trips to work, there had to be at least
|
|
a bivouac of some sort near the plateau. A tiny trickle of water was found,
|
|
which could be used to fill a water container buried in the ground, and a
|
|
single tent established just to the south of <span
|
|
lang="de-at">Schwarzmoossattel</span> ("The Col") in 1979. This never really
|
|
deserved the title "camp". It was never used again, as exploration in 1980
|
|
switched to the <span lang="de-at">Stellerweghöhle</span> area, and
|
|
neither of the previous high camps were really of any use.</p>
|
|
|
|
<h3><a id="topcamp">Top Camp</a></h3>
|
|
|
|
<table class="imgtable">
|
|
<tr><td><a href="piclinks/tpcamp.htm">
|
|
<img src="tinypix/tpcamp.jpg" width="166" height="114"
|
|
alt="Top Camp" /></a></td>
|
|
<td><a href="piclinks/tc1996.htm"><img width="200" height="134"
|
|
src="tinypix/tc1996.jpg" alt="Top Camp" /></a></td>
|
|
<td><a href="piclinks/tc-161.htm">
|
|
<img src="tinypix/tc-161.jpg" width="181" height="123"
|
|
alt="Top Camp from 161" /></a></td>
|
|
</tr>
|
|
<tr class="caption">
|
|
<td>Top Camp on upper site, 1993
|
|
</td><td>Lower site, 1996</td>
|
|
<td>Seen from <span lang="de">Schwarzmooskogel</span> ridge
|
|
</td>
|
|
</tr></table>
|
|
|
|
<p>More recently, a really good permanent spring was found in a small
|
|
climbable shaft a short way beyond
|
|
<span lang="de-at">Schwarzmoossattel</span> ("The Col").
|
|
As this was adjacent to one of the very few flat areas of grass, and right
|
|
next to the path as well, this has made an ideal camp site, and was the normal
|
|
Top Camp from 1988 to 2001. Logbooks and Journal accounts at the time
|
|
referred to this as "Camp I", despite its not being the first high
|
|
camp. A few references are to "Camp 3", which tried to reflect the
|
|
chronology. More recently it has been known just as "Top Camp". In
|
|
fact, to minimise the impact on grassy areas, the camp has alternated between
|
|
the small site immediately adjacent to the spring and a larger (but boggier)
|
|
area a little lower (used in 1994, 1996, 1998 etc.).</p>
|
|
|
|
<h3><a id="vd1camp">VD1 Camp</a></h3>
|
|
|
|
<p>In 1988, and again in 1989, there was a small advance camp much nearer to
|
|
the <span lang="de">Kaninchenhöhle</span> entrance, again to overcome the
|
|
trials of crossing the very rough plateau in the dark. This was on a relatively
|
|
flat area of low bunde (dwarf pine) just on the east side of the flat area of
|
|
limestone on which the permanent survey station "VD1" is located, on the normal
|
|
walk up to the 161 entrances on the col between the <span
|
|
lang="de-at">Vorderer</span> and <span lang="de-at">Hinterer
|
|
Schwarzmooskogels.</span> This was variously known as 'far campsite' or 'Camp
|
|
2', in the logbooks. A lack of water, sanitation, space and comfort led to this
|
|
camp being abandoned.</p>
|
|
|
|
<h3>Scarface Camp</h3>
|
|
|
|
<p>It was hoped that in 1996, a new Top Camp would be established somewhere
|
|
where access to the 161d, 'Scarface' entrance to <span
|
|
lang="de">Kaninchenhöhle</span> would be easier, as all trips used this
|
|
new entrance, giving rapid access to the majority of current question marks in
|
|
the cave. Unfortunately, access via the <span lang="de-at">Stogerweg</span>
|
|
proved to be more strenuous than from the old plateau top camp, and no usable
|
|
water supply was found, so this campsite never came into existence.</p>
|
|
|
|
<h3>40 bivvy</h3>
|
|
|
|
<p>In 2001 people decided to bivvy nearer to the the cave entrances. This
|
|
involved putting up tarpaulins in natural shelters, and sleeping on inflatable
|
|
lilos. The 40 bivvy is in the main 40a <span lang="de-at">Eishöhle</span>
|
|
entrance. It is surprisingly comfortable as this entrance does not have a cold
|
|
gale coming out of it, and the floor is very flat. It is luxurious for 2, comfy
|
|
for 3 and can sleep 4. Water is collected by putting a tarp. in a steep gulley
|
|
opposite with a hose to a butt in the bivi - very effective.</p>
|
|
|
|
<div class="centre"><a href="images/40bivy.jpg"><img src="tinypix/40bivy.jpg"
|
|
width="200" height="128" alt="40 bivvy" /></a></div>
|
|
|
|
<h3>204 bivvy ("The Stone Bridge")</h3>
|
|
|
|
<p>Cavers working in 204 (<span
|
|
lang="de-at">Steinbrückenhöhle</span>) used the eponymous stone
|
|
bridge as a bivouac. The sloping floor was terraced and flat sleeping
|
|
and cooking areas were made. Tarpaulins were put up to reduce the
|
|
drips and wind. Water was obtained from snow at 231, collecting drips
|
|
in 231 and a funnel inserted in a grike on the roof of the stone
|
|
bridge. Initially two, and later 3 butts were used for
|
|
water storage.</p>
|
|
|
|
<p>This has been the main high camp since 2002; it has
|
|
been extensively reterraced to increase its capacity (as of 2003 it
|
|
could sleep 12 and by 2010 18 could be jammed in), the water
|
|
collection methods refined, and a cooking area created, to give an
|
|
exceedingly comfortable bivvy site. A much larger single tarp covering
|
|
the whole length, used since 2015, has made it much drier at the back,
|
|
and the place is now very civilised indeed.</p>
|
|
|
|
<div class="centre"><a href="1623/204/bivvy.html">
|
|
<img src="tinypix/204bivy.jpg" width="233" height="168"
|
|
alt="204 bivvy" /></a></div>
|
|
|
|
<h3>76 bivvy</h3>
|
|
|
|
<p>In 2004-2007, the 76 (<a href="1623/76/76.htm">Eislufthöhle</a>)
|
|
re-exploration project necessitated a camp close to the 76 entrance. A bivouac
|
|
was established in a convenient rock shelter nearby. This was also
|
|
used in 2012,13,15,16. Camping on the nearby grassy bit, which has
|
|
room for 2 small tents is a lot warmer than staying in the bivi cave.</p>
|
|
|
|
<div class="centre"><a href="1623/others/l/76bivvyvw.html">
|
|
<img src="tinypix/76bivvy.jpg" /></a></div>
|
|
|
|
<hr />
|
|
<ul id="links">
|
|
<li>Back to <a href="infodx.htm">Main Index</a></li>
|
|
<li>CUCC's <a href="bcamps.htm">Base Camps</a></li>
|
|
</ul>
|
|
</body>
|
|
</html>
|