Caving, for pleasure?

I agree, great shots, but I still say you are crazy!

:D
 
No no no - not for me! :eek: :runaway:
 
I like the 2nd shot better out of the two. Just because there's a bit more cave on show. You've done well with the lighting.
 
Gav-canon said:
Nice images, was it warmer in there then outside?
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Cave temp is always very stable year round - usually due to very little air movement..

The temperature of a cave is usually close to the average annual temperature for the region where it's located.

That also means that the water isn't that warm without a wetsuit - at least in europe.
 
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Nostromo said:
I like the 2nd shot better out of the two. Just because there's a bit more cave on show. You've done well with the lighting.
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Thanks, I had some expert help with the lighting and it really made a difference but did involve a lot of faffing about, the guy balanced above the pool got a good 30 minute core workout :)
 
Two nice shots but i prefer the 2nd one. What cave system was it?
 
Great stuff.

Although I should stop looking at these as they send me off down a YouTube rabbit hole ending up at Nutty Putty which reinforces my decision to never go near anything like this.
 
Harlequin565 said:
Great stuff.

Although I should stop looking at these as they send me off down a YouTube rabbit hole ending up at Nutty Putty which reinforces my decision to never go near anything like this.
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Wait till you start looking at Exploration Cave Diving.... Thats another level... lol
 
If I was meant to be under ground I would have been a worm , mole or tube train
 
Well done, good shots in a tricky environment.

I'm okay with 'show' caves (Cango, Sudwala etc, in SA) but I'm slightly claustrophobic and I'd get very uncomfortable in the more challenging parts of these systems!
 
I'm with Martyn (and others!) - deep, wet caves and fatties like myself aren't a good mix! I do enjoy show caves like our local(ish) Kent's Cavern and the Dictean Cave (Zeus's nursery on Crete) but they don't involve crawling and wet knees!
 
Whenever I see caving photos or videos I sometimes think of the horror movies the descent.
 
Vitalic said:
Whenever I see caving photos or videos I sometimes think of the horror movies the descent.
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You are more likely to be injured driving to and from the caves. It's nothing like the movies but then life rarely is
 
interesting stuff, wouldn't mind giving it a go. Though I should probably look into shedding some weight first and getting fit.
 
nandbytes said:
interesting stuff, wouldn't mind giving it a go. Though I should probably look into shedding some weight first and getting fit.
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I'm happy to take folks somewhere easy but it does need a certain amount of fitness. Most caves are "downhill" on the way in so it takes a lot more effort to get out on the return than it did to get in.
 
sirch said:
I'm happy to take folks somewhere easy but it does need a certain amount of fitness. Most caves are "downhill" on the way in so it takes a lot more effort to get out on the return than it did to get in.
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That's always the worry isn't it, in case you can't climb back up/out.
That's why prefer mountains to some extent the can always go back down the way you came ;)
 
nandbytes said:
That's always the worry isn't it, in case you can't climb back up/out.
That's why prefer mountains to some extent the can always go back down the way you came ;)
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Yeah but caves aren't full of people who couldn't get out, it's the best motivation :)
 
sirch said:
Yeah but caves aren't full of people who couldn't get out, it's the best motivation :)
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well they either got out or no one has dug up the skeletons yet
I'd like to photograph Gaping Gill at the minimum.... one day...
 
I'm afraid there is not a snowballs chance in hell that you would ever get me down a cave. :eek:
 
I get it, but caving for pleasure… an oxymoron if ever there was one, we’ll for me anyway. Nope, nope, nope!
Nice pics BTW
 
nandbytes said:
well they either got out or no one has dug up the skeletons yet
I'd like to photograph Gaping Gill at the minimum.... one day...
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A couple of caving clubs, the Bradford and the Craven, run winches on Spring bank and August bank holidays and they light up the chamber fairly well. It does get busy so you need to get up there early.
 
sirch said:
A couple of caving clubs, the Bradford and the Craven, run winches on Spring bank and August bank holidays and they light up the chamber fairly well. It does get busy so you need to get up there early.
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Yep been into gaping gill on the winch.
A snug fit through the upper section but then , wow, it opens up to quite an impressive chamber with cavers wandering off in different directions into what are presumably other chambers.
If I was still fit enough I would be up for spending time underground although like some other folk, I found several years back that I do suffer with claustrophobia in very enclosed places.

As a young teenager on a school trip to malham, we were taken through a small cave system which involved wading through a narrow section in water almost waist high…… as a youngster , I loved it !
 
I have been down Swildons Hole on the Mendips a few times. The last trip was a nice six hour adventure. i'm not sure i could do it now though. On April the 2nd i am going the opposite way. This time up Snowdon with my son and grandson. I have been up several times, twice with my son but this will be the first time with the grandson.
 
A story from Cango Caves in South Africa ...

The cave system goes for at least 4 - 5 kms, and possibly a lot further, but visitors can only access the first part and must go in groups with a guide. It's easy walking and spacious, until you get to the end of this section, but you can go a bit further if you book for the 'adventure tour'. That involves squeezing through the Tunnel of Love (it's very tight and gives you a gentle squeeze on the way!), up the Devil's Chimney and through The Letterbox, amongst other 'challenges'. It's still a guided tour but you have to be reasonably fit and slim for this part. My daughter and a friend did this when they were about 13, a couple of skinny, athletic, little South African teenagers who scooted through the tight bits without touching the sides. Not for me, the standard tour was just fine!

Just to put this into perspective, a very large woman - who had been advised against going on the Adventure Tour - slipped and got stuck in the Tunnel of Love about 15 years ago. The rest of her group (20 odd people) were unable to go on, or back, for about 10 hours until a rescue team got her out using liquid paraffin as a lubricant and a pulley system. OMG.

If anyone's interested, just search on cango caves adventure tour images for a lot of 'interesting' shots!
 
I belong to the WCMS & they occasionally do open days. On one of our trips 5 years ago with a group of 12 (all experienced) we were in the cheddar system (just a part not often utilised. A man of larger statue got stuck just behind me - lol. we tried for over an hour to get him unstuck, both from the front and back, and eventually managed to get him pulled back. He had done this set of mines a few years before but was maybe slimmer then lol. - 2 cracked ribs. He was stuck fairly firmly.
 
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