Swinsto Cave

Last updated

Swinsto Cave
Swinsto Hole
A caver descending Spout Pitch in Swinsto Hole.jpg
A caver descending Spout Pitch in Swinsto Cave
Yorkshire Dales NP map-pre-2016.svg
Red pog.svg
Location Kingsdale, North Yorkshire
OS grid SD 6938 7753 [1]
Coordinates 54°11.559′N2°28.239′W / 54.192650°N 2.470650°W / 54.192650; -2.470650
Depth131 metres (430 ft) [1]
Length914 metres (2,999 ft) [1]
Elevation384 metres (1,260 ft) [1]
Discoverybefore 1890
Geology Carboniferous limestone
Entrances3 (including Simpson Pot and Turbary Pot)
DifficultyGrade 4 [1]
Hazardswater, verticality
AccessFree
Cave survey On Cavemapper

Swinsto Cave is a limestone cave in West Kingsdale, North Yorkshire, England. It leads into Kingsdale Master Cave and it is popular with cavers as it is possible to descend by abseiling down the pitches, retrieving the rope each time, and exiting through Valley Entrance of Kingsdale Master Cave at the base of the hill. It is part of a 27-kilometre (17 mi) long cave system that drains both flanks of Kingsdale. [2]

Contents

Description

The entrance is in a shakehole, and enters a small active stream passage. This soon enlarges to walking size before reaching a 6 metres (20 ft) pitch with water entering from one side. Below a 234-metre (768 ft) long passage (The Long Crawl) which has some flat-out wet sections, leads to a short second pitch. Below this a succession of three pitches rapidly descends to a spray-lashed chamber. A little beyond here the 143-metre (469 ft) long Turbary Inlet enters from the right. At the end of this an excavated rift leads up into McShea Chamber in Turbary Pot, an alternative entrance. The main passage continues, descending a number of cascades and a further two small pitches, before entering a larger area where the water from Simpson Pot enters from on high on the left. The combined streams drop down a short climb into the boulder-strewn Swinsto Final Chamber, with Swinsto Great Aven soaring 45 metres (148 ft) above a steep boulder slope, to a second connection with Simpson Pot at the top. Kingsdale Master Cave can be reached from two different passages. On the true left of the waterfall a descent through boulders leads into Philosopher's Crawl, and on the other side of the chamber a climb down over boulders leads into East Entrance Passage. [1] [3]

Geology and hydrology

Swinsto Cave is a karst cave formed within the Great Scar Limestone Group of the Visean Stage of the Carboniferous Period, laid down about 335 Ma. It takes the water of Swinsto Hole Syke, and is a tributary into the West Kingsdale Master Cave System, combining with water from Simpson Pot, Rowten Cave, Bull Pot, and Yordas Cave to eventually resurges at Keld Head – a kilometre or so to the south. It is considered to be a classic example of a down-dip vadose cave descending in steps to a phreas. The upper passages follow bedding planes dipping gently towards the north until an area of joints is intercepted, where the cave descends rapidly down a series of shafts. At a level of about −65 metres (−213 ft) the passage intercepts an older phreatic system, within which the stream has incised a vadose canyon. [4] Both Swinsto Great Aven and Swinsto Final Chamber are formed on minor faults. [5] [6]

History

The first mention of the cave is by Balderstone in Ingleton Bygone and Present, published in 1890, where he accurately describes how it is possible to traverse the cave for 33 yards before encountering "a deep wide hole, with high vaulted roof, fine cone-like stalactites, and waterfall thirty feet high". [7] In 1908 a party from the Yorkshire Ramblers Club descended the pitch and explored the way on for about 90 metres (300 ft) before turning back when the route ahead became low and wet. [8] The baton was not picked up for over 20 years, but in 1930 a party from the Gritstone Club finally reached the bottom after a long siege lasting a year and many trips, the key to their success being the lowering of water levels in The Long Crawl. [9] Simpson Pot was explored through to Swinsto Cave in 1948 by members of the British Speleological Association. [10] Turbary Inlet was first explored by a party from the University of Leeds Speleological Association (ULSA) in 1962, and the connection made with Turbary Pot by Andy Jones, Darren McKenzie and Dave Ramsay in 2020. [11] The route to Kingsdale Master Cave was first entered in November 1965 when a party from ULSA dug out a choke in Final Chamber, into what became known as Philosopher's Crawl. [12]

Michael Midgley died when descending the cave after falling 15 metres (49 ft) down a pitch on 9th September 1971. [13]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rowten Pot</span>

Rowten Pot is one of several entrances into the 27-kilometre (17 mi) long cave system that drains Kingsdale in North Yorkshire, England. Its entrance is a shaft some 27 metres (89 ft) long, 10 metres (33 ft) wide, and at the southern end 72 metres (236 ft) deep.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mossdale Caverns</span> Cave system in the Yorkshire Dales, England

Mossdale Caverns is a cave system in the Yorkshire Dales, England. It is about 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) north of Grassington, and east of Conistone, where Mossdale Beck sinks at the base of Mossdale Scar. It lies at an altitude of 425 metres (1,394 ft) on the eastern flank of Wharfedale, and extends south-east beneath Grassington Moor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Great Douk Cave</span> Cave in North Yorkshire, England

Great Douk Cave is a shallow cave system lying beneath the limestone bench of Ingleborough in Chapel-le-Dale, North Yorkshire, England. It is popular with beginners and escorted groups, as it offers straightforward caving, and it is possible to follow the cave from where a stream emerges at a small waterfall to a second entrance close to where it sinks 600 yards (549 m) further up the hill. It lies within the Ingleborough Site of Special Scientific Interest.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rumbling Hole</span> Cave in Lancashire, England

Rumbling Hole is a cave on Leck Fell, in Lancashire, England. Its entrance is a 50-metre (160 ft) deep fenced shaft, and it rapidly descends a series of pitches to a low aqueous passage that has been connected to Lost Johns' Cave. It is part of the Three Counties System, an 87-kilometre (54 mi) cave system that spans the borders of Cumbria, Lancashire, and North Yorkshire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Simpson Pot</span> Cave in North Yorkshire, England

Named after Eli Simpson, Simpson Pot is a limestone cave in West Kingsdale, North Yorkshire, England. It leads into Swinsto Cave and thence into Kingsdale Master Cave, and it is popular with cavers as it is possible to descend it by abseiling down the pitches, retrieving the rope each time, and exiting through Valley Entrance of Kingsdale Master Cave at the base of the hill. It is part of a 27-kilometre (17 mi) long cave system that drains both flanks of Kingsdale.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Langcliffe Pot</span> Cave system in North Yorkshire

Langcliffe Pot is a cave system on the slopes of Great Whernside in Upper Wharfedale, about 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) SSE of Kettlewell in North Yorkshire. It is part of the Black Keld Site of Special Scientific Interest where the "underground drainage system which feeds the stream resurgence at Black Keld is one of the largest and deepest in Britain, although only a small proportion of its cave passages are accessible at present." Mossdale Caverns is also part of the Black Keld SSSI. Although a considerable length of passage has been explored in Langcliffe Pot, the current end is over 170 metres (560 ft) above the resurgence, and over 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) in distance. A trip to the far end has been described as "one of the most serious undertakings in British caving".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aquamole Pot</span> Cave in North Yorkshire, England

Aquamole Pot is a limestone cave in West Kingsdale, North Yorkshire, England. It was originally discovered by cave divers who negotiated 168 metres (551 ft) of sump passage from Rowten Pot in 1974, to enter a high aven above the river passage. All subsequent major explorations were undertaken from below before an entrance was opened up from the surface. It is part of a 27-kilometre (17 mi) long cave system that drains both flanks of Kingsdale.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Short Drop Cave - Gavel Pot System</span>

Short Drop Cave and Gavel Pot are different entrances into the same cave system on Leck Fell, in Lancashire, England. The main top entrance, Short Drop Cave, is a small hole in a fenced off shakehole near the main stream sink; Gavel Pot, a window into the system, is a large fenced shakehole some 40-metre (130 ft) deep requiring tackle to descend. There are two other smaller entrances into Short Drop Cave. At its base the system links via a sump with Lost Johns' Cave, and is part of the Three Counties System, an 87 kilometres (54 mi) cave system which spans the borders of Cumbria, Lancashire, and North Yorkshire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bar Pot</span>

Bar Pot is one of the entrances to the Gaping Gill cave system being located about 340 metres (370 yd) south of Gaping Gill Main Shaft, on Ingleborough in the Yorkshire Dales. It is a popular entrance into the system, being one of the easiest, driest, and having just two vertical pitches to contend with. It lies within the designated Ingleborough Site of Special Scientific Interest.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Disappointment Pot</span>

Disappointment Pot is one of the entrances to the Gaping Gill cave system, located in a steep grassy shakehole some 120 metres (130 yd) south-east of Gaping Gill Main Shaft. Its mainly narrow stream passage descends a number of small shafts to enter the main system as a major inlet of Hensler's Master Cave. It lies within the designated Ingleborough Site of Special Scientific Interest.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rat Hole, Gaping Gill</span> Cave entrance in North Yorkshire, England

Rat Hole is one of the entrances to the Gaping Gill cave system, located in the north bank of Fell Beck 30 metres (33 yd) upstream of Gaping Gill Main Shaft. A small, awkward, tube-like passage descends into a stream passage, and hence to a 100-metre (330 ft) shaft into Gaping Gill Main Chamber. The sharp and loose nature of the rock, and the quantity of water prevented full exploration for over 80 years, but the current route is described in one guide book as "a technical and exhilarating adventure". It lies within the designated Ingleborough Site of Special Scientific Interest.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Weathercote Cave</span> Cave in North Yorkshire, England

Weathercote Cave is a natural solutional cave in Chapel-le-Dale, North Yorkshire, England. It has been renowned as a natural curiosity since the eighteenth century, and was accessible to paying visitors until 1971. The entrance is a large shaft about 20 metres (66 ft) deep, dominated by a waterfall entering at one end. It lies within the designated Ingleborough Site of Special Scientific Interest.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yordas Cave</span> Cave in North Yorkshire, England

Yordas Cave is a solutional cave in Kingsdale, North Yorkshire, England. It has been renowned since the eighteenth century as a natural curiosity, and was a show cave during the nineteenth century. It is now a popular destination for cavers, walkers, and outdoor activity groups.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Death's Head Hole</span> Cave in Lancashire, England

Death's Head Hole is a cave on Leck Fell, in Lancashire, England. Its entrance is a 64-metre (210 ft) deep shaft. It leads into Lost Johns' Cave and is part of the Three Counties System, an 87-kilometre (54 mi) cave system which spans the borders of Cumbria, Lancashire, and North Yorkshire.

Lost Pot is a cave on Leck Fell, in Lancashire, England. It leads into the top end of Lost Johns' Cave, and is part of the Three Counties System, an 87 kilometres (54 mi) cave system which spans the borders of Cumbria, Lancashire, and North Yorkshire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Boxhead Pot</span> Cave in Lancashire, England

Boxhead Pot is a cave on Leck Fell, in Lancashire, England. It leads into the top end of Lost Johns' Cave, and is part of the Three Counties System, an 87 kilometres (54 mi) cave system which spans the borders of Cumbria, Lancashire, and North Yorkshire.

Long Drop Cave is a cave on Leck Fell, in Lancashire, England. It leads into Death's Head Hole, and is part of the Three Counties System, an 87-kilometre (54 mi) cave system which spans the borders of Cumbria, Lancashire, and North Yorkshire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Three Counties System</span> Cave system in England

The Three Counties System is a set of inter-connected limestone solutional cave systems spanning the borders of Cumbria, Lancashire and North Yorkshire in the north of England. The possibility of connecting a number of discrete cave systems in the area to create a single super-system that spans the county borders was first proposed by Dave Brook in 1968, and it was achieved in 2011. The system is currently over 86 kilometres (53 mi) long, making it the longest in the UK and the thirtieth longest in the world, and there continues to be scope for considerably extending the system.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jingling Pot</span> Cave in North Yorkshire, England

Jingling Pot is a limestone cave in West Kingsdale, North Yorkshire, England. Located adjacent to Jingling Beck, it is a lenticular-shaped 45-metre (148 ft) deep shaft that descends straight from the surface. At the bottom the rift extends to the north and descends steeply into a further chamber, at the end of which the initials of the original explorers may be seen scratched into the rock. A narrow shaft in this second chamber drops into a complex of small crawls and rifts, which approach close to a passage in the One-armed Bandit Series of Aquamole Pot. A second set of shafts descend parallel to the surface shaft. These can be entered through a rock window a little way below the entrance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Long Kin East Cave - Rift Pot System</span> Cave system in North Yorkshire, England

The Long Kin East Cave - Rift Pot system is a limestone cave system on the southern flanks of Ingleborough, North Yorkshire in England lying within the designated Ingleborough Site of Special Scientific Interest. Long Kin East Cave starts as a long meandering stream passage but then plummets down a 58-metre (190 ft) deep shaft when it meets a shattered fault into which Rift Pot also descends. At the bottom, the stream flows through some low canals and sumps, to eventually emerge at Austwick Beck Head in Crummackdale.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Allshorn, Sam; Swire, Paul (2017). Northern Caves. The Three Counties System and the North-West. Leeds: High Mead. pp. 89–90. ISBN   978-1-5272-1095-0.
  2. ↑ Wilton-Jones, Tarquin. "Longest Caves" . Retrieved 24 December 2018.
  3. ↑ Brook, D. (December 1971). "Caves and Caving in Kingsdale". Cave Science. VI (48): 35–38.
  4. ↑ Waltham, A.C.; Brook, D.B.; Statham, O.W.; Yeadon, T.G. (November 1981). "Swinsto Hole, Kingsdale: A Type Example of Cave Development in the Limestone of Northern England". The Geographical Journal. 147 (93): 350–353. Bibcode:1981GeogJ.147..350W. doi:10.2307/633725. JSTOR   633725.
  5. ↑ Waltham, Tony; Lowe, David (2013). Caves and Karst of the Yorkshire Dales: Volume 1. Hucklow, Buxton: British Cave Research Association. pp. 16–21. ISBN   978-0-900265-46-4.
  6. ↑ Waltham, Tony; Lowe, David (2017). Caves and Karst of the Yorkshire Dales: Volume 2. The Caves. Hucklow, Buxton: British Cave Research Association. pp. 332–338. ISBN   978-0-900265-48-8.
  7. ↑ Balderstone, Robert; Balderstone, Margaret (1890). Ingleton: Bygone and Present. London: Simpkin, Marshall and Co. p. 64.
  8. ↑ Brodrick, H (1911). "Swinsto Cave And Some Others". Yorkshire Ramblers' Club Journal. 3 (11): 291–295. Retrieved 31 December 2018.
  9. ↑ F.L.P. (1930). "Swinsto Hole". Gritstone Club. 1 (1).
  10. ↑ Gemmel, A.; Myers, J.O. (1952). Underground Adventure. Clapham, Yorkshire: Dalesman Publishing Company. pp. 29–38.
  11. ↑ Ramsay, Dave (October–November 2020). "The Turbary Connection". Descent (276): 16–17.
  12. ↑ Brook, Dave; Crabtree, Howard (October 1969). "The Kingsdale Master Cave". ULSA Explorations Journal: 11–12.
  13. ↑ Eyre, Jim; John Frankland (1988). Race Against Time. Dent, Sedbergh: Lyon Equipment (Books). p. 154. ISBN   978-0950687445.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.