Trip to Bull pot Yorkshire
26th July 09 by Doug.
We met up, as usual for a Yorkshire trip at 7.30, at Mikes house, there were 4 of us, so we elected to travel in Paul’s Vauxhaul estate which had room in the back for our caving gear.
We set off in a light drizzle, Paul, Mike, John, and myself, we were to meet guy at Bernie’s café.
The road to Yorkshire shares some characteristics with a river, in that it is long and winding, and it is usually wet, I believe that were it not for those little drains at the edges, much of the way to Yorkshire would be navigable by canoe.
It is a fact that during the summer months the M6 can hold more water than the river Alyn.
As we arrived at Bernie’s the rain miraculously eased to a complete stop “the force was with us after all”, Guy turned up and we partook of a hearty breakfast.
As we set off for Bull pot I noticed a few raindrops on the windscreen, and by the time we parked up, a mile or two along the road from Swinstow, the torrential rain was driving into the back of Paul’s car as we got changed into our caving gear.
It was not long before we were through the gate across the road and following a diagonal path up the hill to the left, Guy was leading the way and found the pot without any problem.
I sat in the rain and drank tea while Guy and Mike rigged the impressive fifteen metre vertical rift which forms the entrance.
At the bottom of the first pitch, the way on, slopes downward to the right following a small stream which turns suddenly to the left in a smooth washed channel.
The second pitch of about 15 metres was rather tight, just wide enough in the middle to abseil, and tapering off to a point at each end.
We followed the stream way down to the next pitch which was actually more of a traverse, in a tight vertical rift,
While I waited for my turn to abseil the fourth pitch I was struck by the beauty below me, of the little stream, which helter skeltered around and down in it’s smooth, curved, stone trough.
The fourth pitch was of about 25 metres or so and Guy had rigged it with two deviations, which mostly kept us out of the little waterfall which tumbled over one side of the high chamber which we were now in.
Following the water along another rift we arrived at the fifth and final pitch of about 25 metres, which led us down into the base of a small but very high chamber with a waterfall on one side, and two swirling, sink holes on the other.
The waterfall created a rather cold draught and we sat huddled while we ate some grub and drank some coffee.
As there was no enthusiasm to hang around longer than necessary, John elected to head back up the rope and was soon shouting rope free.
Paul said to me, do you want to go next, I said, I don’t mind, then, Mike said something that sounded like,truck you then I’ll go, and shot up the rope.
Paul went next, then I struggled up to where Mike and Paul encouraged me as I clawed my way along the tight traverse by wedging myself along with my elbows and knees.
John had already gone, and Mike said, I will wait for Guy, so Paul and I set off for the next pitch.
I was lagging behind a bit, and soon met Paul coming back, he said there is no way on, we must have missed the turning.
I was pretty sure the we hadn’t, so we checked again, our way was blocked by a thundering maelstrom of pounding water from above,
As it was beginning to dawn on us that we had not noticed this water on the way down, I spotted a tail of rope, thrashing about on the other side of the waterfall.
It was becoming clear that the quaint little water feature that we had abseiled past on the way down was now a thundering torrent of white water.
There was only one thing to be done, so I held my breath and dashed under the waterfall, grabbing the rope on the way past.
Then I clipped my gear on and swung into the tumbling water as my weight came on the rope, after the initial shock as I started up, I imagined the water eased a little.
There are not words in the English language to adequately describe the sensation of prussicking up a subterranean waterfall.
However, if you imagine a spider climbing up the inside of a drainpipe, while someone standing on the roof is trying to wash it out with a firemans hose, you should get a flavour of the experience.
After the first few metres the water seemed to be increasing, and I was gasping for breath, due partly to the effort, and partly because the sheer volume of water was leaving little room for air.
After a few more metres I was thankfully above the tumbling water and could relax a little, I struggled up the rest of the pitch and past the two deviations with my weight doubled by the water in my bag, wellies, pockets, and furry suit.
At the top I met John, who had done his best to reduce the flow into the waterfall by sitting in the channel as I had got on the rope.
Now as Paul got on the rope he did the same for him, and the water flow reduced considerably for a few seconds until the water backed up behind him and started flowing over his shoulders and generally around him.
After a bit of a rest to get my breath back, I moved on to the next pitch, where I could see lights above me and as I neared the top I met a small group of cavers from Lancaster on the way down, I hope I didn’t put them off, but they decided to go only half way down.
Eventually we all sat on the grass drinking tea, coffee, lucozade, etc and contemplated the cute little stream we had admired on the way in, which was now suitable for white water rafting.
Then before you could say Jack Robinson, (several thousand times), we were back to the car, changed, and in the Marston arms drinking superb cider.
Now you may have got the impression from reading my description that this trip was horrendous, not a bit of it, this trip was at least the best trip I have been on this year and possibly last year too.
And as another bonus, all my caving gear is cleaner than it has ever been, true, it was all new once, but it was never all new at the same time.
Thanks to Guy, for arranging the trip and for his and Mikes exhalent rigging.
Subject: Trip to Bull pot Yorkshire 26th July 09 
Sat 01 Aug 2009, 12:59 pm
