Streaks Pot, Stoney Middleton

Karen and I met Pete and Keith at the Orpheus hut and then drove to Outside cafe at Calver crossroads for breakfast. After driving up and down Middleton Dale looking for a place to park we changed and walked up to Streaks Pot top entrance. Keith went in first and rigged the first pitch and we followed and I went last. It was a short crawl to the pitch head then a short drop to a ledge. I decided to stop here as I knew there were awkward places and I didn't want to risk injuring my shoulder again which was now much improved. So I said goodbye to the others and headed for the car to drop off my SRT kit and then return to the bottom entrance.
This was an easy clamber down about 8 feet in an oil drum which was concreted in. The continuation was low, so I squatted down and poked my legs through. This released a cloud of flying insects with big wings! I quickly stood up and clambered out again. I decided to wait for the others but when they didn't appear after 2 hours, I returned to the car and got changed. The three of them appeared not long afterwards: they had got a bit lost and took longer than expected.

Monday 26 May 2008 Giants Hole

Karen and I were about to go in the village shop when a car pulled up with Jim in it. After making our purchases, we headed off to the OCC cottage and met Chris with his friend Duncan. They joined us, along with Dawn, for a trip into Giants Hole doing the Round Trip using a ladder for Garlands Pot. An excellent trip as usual with Karen bringing a short rope to protect the handline climb up towards Maggins Rift. Also the water level in the Giant's Windpipe wasn't very high. We returned to the surface after a 3 and a half hours trip.

Sunday 25 May 2008 Oxlow Cavern/Maskhill Mine

Karen and I were about to go in the village shop when a car pulled up with Jim in it. After making our purchases, we headed off to the OCC cottage and met Chris with his friend Duncan. They joined us, along with Dawn, for a trip into Giants Hole doing the Round Trip using a ladder for Garlands Pot. An excellent trip as usual with Karen bringing a short rope to protect the handline climb up towards Maggins Rift. Also the water level in the Giant's Windpipe wasn't very high. We returned to the surface after a 3 and a half hours trip.

Saturday 24 May 2008 A mine near home

We joined some other cavers were planning to set up a winch to drop down a shaft into an old mine near home. They set up a good scaffolding tripod and a neat little winch powered by a small, two year old Honda engine. First we had to move two concrete railway sleepers after digging a layer of soil out of the way and assemble the scaffolding. Some of the party were lowered down around 60 metres before swinging into a side passage and then it was my turn after Karen. I sat on the seat which was just a bit too wide to go in the gap width-wise but my thigh bones were too long to fit through the gap between the railway sleepers when the seat was in line with them! Damn! So I stayed on the surface with a couple of the party who were manning the winch. The others returned to the surface after 2 or 3 hours reporting an excellent trip.

Tuesday 20 May 2008 - Climbing at Harborough Rocks

A group of us had an evening trip to Harborough Rocks near Brassington and then a drink afterwards in The Old Gate in the village.

Saturday 17 May 2008 OCC Caving Weekend Derbyshire

We met the others at the Orpheus CC hut in the morning and it was decided that Keith, Karen, Dave and Phil W would have a trip down JH (James Hall Over Engine Mine) to see the bottom of Titan while Pete W, Paul T and Chris took prospective member Dawn on a trip to Youds Level from the shaft near Masson Quarry (Gentlewoman's?). I wanted to join the JH group but was worried whether my shoulder would be up to it so I decided on a solo trip into Knotlow Cavern to the Waterfall Chamber.

Tuesday 13 May 2008 Walk around mines Wensleydale and Mill Close

Karen and I joined a walk led by Tony Wood seeing the mines associated with the Mount Pleasant and Davies mines, passing Mill Close Mine and Sough along the way.

Sunday 11 May 2008 Rescue Practice Peak Cavern

Another warm sunny day and Karen decided to stay at home to do some work in the garden. I drove to Castleton and after getting changed at the Chapel walked to Peak Cavern car park to join some others by the DCRO van. A group headed for Speedwell and Colostomy Crawl while another group headed for Victoria Aven to support the divers who were diving Buxton Water Sump and were to simulate a rescue with communications and stretcher-carry and haul up Surprise View. I was assigned Control duty. I spent the time in my furry suit manning the main radio on the van and keeping the log on the grounds that as I was a new and therefore trainee leader, the experience would be good for me! Two others were on the other end of the radio with a Heyphone in order to communicate with the underground teams and position on the ridge above Peak Cavern.
After the debrief, I joined several others at the DCRO store behind Buxton fire station to sort out and clean the gear used during the exercise.

Saturday 10 May 2008 Karen's Birthday and DCRO Street Collection Matlock

Karen drove down to meet Jill and Lorraine at Bradgate Park for birthday celebrations while I joined Andy and Bill at Sainsburys in Matlock for a DCRO Street Collection. It was dry and warm and I was standing at Sainsburys door with Bill at the DCRO van nearby in the car park. Andy was in the town and was joined by another caver he knew but I hadn't seem before. Later on Chris also turned up and tool up a position in the town.
In the evening we were joined by Keith Slatcher and Pete Collins, who were at the OCC hut for the weekend, for a meal at the Bowling Green.