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Digging Week 'The Other Side'words by Tony
Baker
pics by Martin Hoff
27th August - 3rd September
2006
| Aside
from the work done during digging week at Chas's Old Dig and Zach's/Gents' Dig,
described elsewhere on the website, several trips were made to the other side
of the valley. | Rusty Horseshoe Dig
Tony
Donovan, Paul Quill and others have recently started work here again, and two
trips were made at the start of digging week. A lack of stacking space had long
been the obstacle here but an alternative route to the sharp end has been engineered,
making the site a realistic proposition once more. An efficient digging/hauling
system was used and a great deal of spoil removed, but there is much still to
do, although the site holds great promise.
| Pwll
Porth Du
This site, near Waun Fignen Felen, has been receiving regular
attention from Tony Baker, Martin Hoff, Paul Meredith, Ben Stevens and Gary Vaughan
over the last couple of years. With most of the team away doing other things only
one visit was made during digging week but some valuable progress was made. A
planned follow-up later in the week was abandoned due to a lack of personnel and
some absolutely foul weather. | 
Ben
among loose boulders in Pwll Porth Ddu
| Twll
Tal-Draenan
Not to be confused with Tony Baker and Martin Hoff's ongoing
pet project, the sink at Twyn Tal-Draenan, this is an impressive section of cave
that was described by Stuart France in an SWCC Newsletter in 1989. A fresh investigation
of this site was long overdue and a team of five trekked over and, having removed
two dead sheep and one (extremely fortunate) live one, began work on an interesting-looking
hole in the floor. However, heavy rain before a follow-up trip provided an active
stream that served only to prove a connection with the low, unpromising passage
lower in the cave and the conclusion was reached that prospects here are not good.
Pictures below: | 
Ben
in the main chamber | 
Ben
again, but wetter | 
Paul
Craddy enjoying it all | 
Ben
again, but posier
| 
Stevie
climbing out of Twll Tal-Draenan
| | 'Harvey's
Hole'
This site, originally dug by Peter Harvey, involves a clamber down
from the entrance into a short and very interesting section of cave with two possible
ways on. Paul Quill, Tony Baker and Dan Sullivan investigated both options carefully
before choosing the right-hand passage. The approach to the 'digging face' was
enlarged, and on a follow-up trip in October '06 Tony and Dan moved significant
quantities of mud from a low bedding plane, in an attempt to reach a point at
which the roof appeared to rise. However, further work by Dan and James Squires
in November saw them reach this point only to find that the passage ahead was
completely filled with mud, and the depressing conclusion was reached that this
site was not a realistic proposition.
| A
more detailed report on the work done during digging week will be published in
a future edition of the SWCC Newsletter. Tony Baker. |
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