Cave : GB Cavern
Date : 1 February 2001
Speleologists : Martin Beale (HPCC), Dave Grosvenor (HPCC), Jim
Style : in and out
Grade : 3
Equipment : 10m ladder, 20m lifeline (could be done with 20m rope and slings / etriers)
Cave time : 3 hours
Approach time : 10m + 15m
Quality : **

We met Jim at Priddy Green after a very trying and foggy drive from Bristol. The three of us then drove in Dave's car to GB Cavern. The fog almost provided some privacy for us as we got changed for the cave. There was a real nip to the air as we waited for Dave to sort his cave lighting situation out. I just seemed to follow the other two to the cave; they seemed to have some inbuilt attraction to the swallet. The field is quite interesting. You can see why the pioneers thought there would be a cave around here - there seem to be several streams that just sink into the ground.

Getting into the cave was much easier than Slaughter Stream Cave : the Mendip cavers seem to have honed locking caves up to a fine art (sad, but true). The gate is in a substantial blockhouse. Just inside the blockhouse, there is an unnecessary ladder that leads to a passage passing through a small hole in the floor. You soon arrive at a chamber with two ways on. Through some broken stalactites, a ladder can be seen to the right in a pot or chamber. We went left through an easy squeeze into a higher rift-like passage. The walls were a little broken, but not dangerous. One or two easily free-climbable drops found us in the Gorge.

The Gorge is an impressive passage due to it's sheer size. We followed the stream down the centre of the gorge to the bridge. The bridge spans the gorge about 6 feet above floor level. It isn't really clear why it is still there - it doesn't seem to be obviously made of stronger rock than it's surroundings. The main benefit of crossing the bridge is to behold the amazing formations up on the right wall of the gorge. I had never seen anything like this before. The whole wall seemed to be covered in convoluted bits of calcite - helictites, stalactites, mushrooms, USOs etc. It was like looking at the internal organs of some great beast. We continued carefully across a calcite slope with calcite bosses into White Passage. White Passage seemed to be made almost solely of calcite. You climb up a calcite staircase hereabouts to make upwards progress. This whole section of the cave is the most beautifully decorated that I have yet seen.

We followed the Loop and Oxbow out of White Passage. As we approached the Oxbow, we climbed up to a large window where you are able to look out over the vastness of the main chamber. There are some really long slender stalactites hanging from the roof of the main chamber, though the whole roof is hanging with curtains and stalactites. We sat on the calcite floor surrounded by calcite bosses taking in the enormity of the chamber. We seemed neither near the floor nor the roof.

An interesting little gully climb leads down from the Oxbow into the Main Chamber. A little way along the end of Main Chamber is reached. Jim had a look at the Bottom Dig which was surprisingly dry (maybe due to upstream stream damming!). Dave was readying the lifeline and ladder for the Ladder Dig Extensions. The way up into these Ladder Dig Extensions is quite cunning. After Dave had had a go at rigging the ladders, he decided that it would be better to have a climber on the sharp end. He gave me the beta and pointed me at the problem.

I clipped one end of the ladder into the first P-bolt. Standing in the ladder, I then clipped the other end of the ladder into the other P-bolt. It seemed to me to be quite sly to use both end of the same ladder for upward progress. With my feet in the higher end of the ladder and my fingers curled around the higher bolt, I could then reach left and clip the lifeline and original end of the ladder into a chain dangling from the wall. The chain was really well attached to another couple of P-bolts in the wall. A couple more steps in the ladders and a few pulls saw me up onto the ledge. I pulled the ladder up to the ledge and belayed Dave and Jim up. It seems like this section is easier with a ladder, but it would go with rope and slings. I guess the ladders just act as etriers.

I was pleased with the Ladder Dig Extensions. They provide a sporting section of cave after the beauties that have gone before. There was a wet little puddle to squeeze through at the start of the extensions. I thought this was all the festivity we were going to get, but there was some further good crawling and squeezing after the puddle. Dave whizzed along here. The next I saw of Dave, he was lying on his back in a muddy wallow throwing rocks towards me. I didn't take offence, he was trying to lower the level of the floor to get through. The gap looked pretty small, the roof looked low and the puddle looked cold and muddy. Dave dug away for a few minutes, then took his helmet off and pushed through. Dave going through would have moved more rocks out of the bottom of the wallow as Jim and I found it easier. I went through on my back with my helmet sideways. It was wet and sporting rather than overly unpleasant.

A small passage twisted up into a boulder filled chamber. The boulders were calcited together. Dave found the route up through the boulders. This involved an exposed traverse leftwards along a calcited ledge and some squeezes in small holes between the boulders to effect upwards progress. We plopped out into yet another well decorated chamber : Great Chamber. This is neither as big nor as well decorated as the Main Chamber but is still well worth a visit.

Dave and Jim seemed to think that Bat Passage was the highlight of a trip into GB Cave. I wasn't so sure - it didn't have the majestic splendour of the Main Chamber. In any other cave, this would have been the jewel in the crown. Maybe I was just getting tired at this stage! Bat Passage is reached by continuing the climb back down from Great Chamber through more boulders. Dry passage eventually leads into the very well decorated Bat Passage. At the far end of Bat Passage, a downslope leads to a dig. I had a look at the dig site. It seems that it gets well sumped in the winter. I walked in deepening water to a duck. I looked through the duck. The roof rose a little, but then lowered and cut into the water. If I had been feeling better, I would have had a look, but by this stage, I was quite tired and ready to get out. We also had to get out in time for the pub.

We left Bat Passage at around 10pm and had every expectation of making it to the pub for last orders. In retrospect, this was a bit optimistic. We had to derig the ladders (Dave was the last man down and rappelled the pitch), tramp back up the gorge and find our way back to the car (in the fog!). There were several free climbs in the gorge where you have to take a bit of care. The waterfall was a particular case in point. Thankfully the water was low and the rock friction was good (you start climbing on the right of the waterfall, cross it towards the top and then finish on the left). We seemed to have a particularly torrid time of getting back across the field. I really couldn't tell what direction we were going in. We wandered aimlessly around the edges of the field until the car came into view - thankfully.

Unfortunately, we got back to the car at 11pm. If we want to make the pub, we're going to have to look for some shorter trips. As if to emphasise how important it is to get back to the Hunters Lodge Inn in time, our evening meal was a kebab from a dubious looking kebab shop in Bedminster.