Ogof Hesp Alyn (the end) 14th Aug 2010
By Doug Thompson
The short summary of a trip to the end of OHA could be described thus, ladder, mud, water, mud, mud, sand, mud, mud, water, mud, mud, mud, mud, water, mud, mud, mud, water, mud, mud, mud, mud, mud, water, exhaustion, then back the same way.
We entered at 10 am Sat morning, the party included, Mike, Tim, Guy, and myself.
We had intended to start early, but as ever, things contrived against us actually breaking with tradition and doing it, so 6.30 to 7.00 turned into 8.30 then 9.30. then, Mike discovered that he had left his wetsuit at home, Tim came to the rescue as he lives nearby, and we ended up squeezing Mike into a wetsuit which was only a bit too small.
I was well prepared, because last time I was at OHA I got soaked in the canal and was frozen for the rest of the day so I had got myself a new goon suit from the army surplus.
We plodded through the system, and got to the canal in thirty min’s or so, that’s when I discovered the leak in my goon suit, I sometimes wonder if they get their name because I, buy them.
Anyway we all got our srt kit on to descend the eighty foot cliff, experience had told us that a figure of eight is the simplest and best devise to descend, in the conditions that prevail beyond the canal.
And we were off, into what is really the main part of the cave, OHA is a cave of two halves, being completely different, beyond the cliff, and even more so beyond the sumps.
Before we could get to the sumps, we had to negotiate some pretty slimy pitches and slither down the worm way, you can’t help thinking as you slide effortlessly down the tiny sloping mud passage, “how the hell am I going to get back out of here”
Before long we had more important things to worry about, such as, how to stay upright, and get off a rope which has alighted you onto a forty five degree sloping mud bank with what looks like a precipice below it.
Nobody wants to be negative in situations like this, so we, each in turn, clawed at the mud and writhed snakelike up the slope and over the top.
I believe there are fifteen pitches on this rout and every one, is difficult, they are not technically difficult, but when every bit of rope or equipment is coated in mud, including every reachable surface and your entire body, even simple things, like mud in your eye can be an eternal nuisance.
However, after more of the same, struggling up, and sliding down mud slopes, and wrestling with slimy ropes, we arrived at sump one, where, thanks to our friends at North Wales caving club, the siphon was running, and there was an air gap of about three inches, if you know me, you will know that I thoroughly dislike sumps, however, needs must, so through I went, as did the others who tend to love them.
From here we clawed our way up to sump two, which, as expected, was full of water, however, by the time, I arrived, Mike and Tim had got the siphon running and the water level was starting to fall, we all settled down to get some lunch, and a hot drink while we waited for an air gap to appear in the sump.
After lunch, I reluctantly doggy paddled through sump two, trying, (and failing) to keep my nose in the air gap, while the other three, shot through like eels escaping from a killer shark.
I may have given you the impression up to now that Ogof Hesp Alyn is a dump of a cave with no merit whatsoever, this would be very far from the truth, it is a beautiful cave without a doubt, and I for one, am glad to have seen it,
However, after the sumps, for some reason, I was expecting it to become cleaner and more like a Yorkshire pot, this proved to be otherwise.
The mud, in OHA ranges in consistency from something like Cheshire cheese, (with a slippery coating of brown sauce) through whipped cream, chocolate mouse, banana smoothie, and back to dirty water, as to the flavour, Tim would be best qualified the answer that.
After sump two I began to get cold, due in large part to the heavy intake of water into my worse than useless goon suit, this lead to my getting cramp which is never welcome, so at this point I was considering turning back.
I had thought that, as we were almost at the end, I could take my time on the return trip and not be slowing down the others, who would catch up with me after going to the end.
The fault with this idea turned out to be that we were nowhere near the end, so it was just as well that the others talked me out of it, and the cramp improved as the sump water warmed up in my goon suit.
From here on are to be found some of the nicest parts of the cave, with one beautiful large shaft and some nice boulder strewn chambers, apart from the muddy, but still nice passages, the final pitch is particularly nice, delivering you, as it does into a lovely little chamber with a beautiful waterfall crashing into it.
We spent time here, enjoying the waterfall, and drinking tea, while sitting around the splash pool, wellies dangling in the turbulent water.
For me, this was the end of OHA, yes, I know there are passages leading out of here, but they are for water, and I am happy to leave it at that.
Heading back, I took the lead, nice as this cave is, I did not want to hang around here any longer than I had to, and anyway, my cramp was coming back.
The going was quite arduous and I was pretty knackered by the time I got back to sump two, sliding into the pool, I could not see any way on, nor could I feel one under the water, and I was not looking forward to diving it, I hate sumps.
At that point, Mike turned up, and after some deliberation, he said, hang on you bloody fool, this is not the sump.
When we arrived at the real sump, which was twenty yards further on, down a passage to the left, it contained no water at all, the siphon had drained it completely, leaving just the mud.
Sump one still had an airspace, and after swimming through it I felt I was getting back to familiar territory, there was still a long way to go, the worm way was difficult as usual and the small free climbed pitch just before the cliff pitches is much harder when you are tired.
By now we were a bit strung out, with Mike ahead, and Tim and Guy behind, I caught up with Mike at the top of the cliff, and we made our way to the canal, where he, went through like a fish, I on the other hand decided to avoid the worst of the cold water by balancing on the ledges just below the water.
I would have succeeded in this endeavour had I not bumped my head on the arch at the end of the canal, lost my balance, and, not sounding too negative, the rest went swimmingly.
The cold dunking, brought my cramp back and I was a pretty pathetic sight when I emerged out of the entrance shaft about forty minutes later.
As Mike and I sat on the bank of the dry river Alyn, waiting for Tim and Guy, I reflected on what we had just done, it was twelve hours of toil, there was no relief from the endless mud, for me it was cold, and rather exhausting, we each wore out a figure of eight, on the filthy, abrasive ropes.
Of course it was not all bad, mud is very good for the complexion, the exercise does you the world of good, the waterfall at the end was a delight, and the joy of seeing Tim licking the mud off his camera lens to get the video footage was priceless.
And I couldn’t end without thanking Mike, Tim, and Guy, for bolstering my moral at difficult times, and of course, the lads from North Wales caving club for maintaining the siphon at sump one and generally opening up the trip, and Marc for the inspiration, Thanks.
Subject: Ogof Hesp Alyn (the end) 14th Aug 2010 
Sun 05 Sep 2010, 2:13 pm
