“I want to do some more SRT” Jonathan told me.
“Let’s do Bagshawe lower series” I said, “it’ll be fun!”
And off we went! Siobhan, Monika and Judith dropping the Dungeon like Zip. Zoop. Zeep. Jonathan being more of a “wee” and me more a “thunk”.
SRT’d up with false achievement, we stumbled through the cave in our SRT kits.
Soon we were at the climb to straw chamber. The least fun climb. The climb with no handholds and only footholds.
I whacked an italian hitched lifeline of a sling on a metal stake and belayed everyone up – whilst encouraging Judith onwards. Scrraay. Scruut. SCREECH!
“Timmy Tim Tim” cried my mumsie.
“Timmy Tim Tim, I think I’m stucky wuck”.
I leapt into action and shot into the slot like oiled weasel into a drainpipe. Except it was more like a weasel wearing a huge amount of bling, no oil, and a drainpipe that had been hammered flat.
I found the floundering damsel. Stuck between the rock and a hard place.
I tried pushing. Progress appeared slow.
I tried pulling. Progress was better.
I slid in by her side to overtake her.
Some people, at this point, might say it didn’t work. Some people might say that rather than one person being in a tight bit, there were now two people.
Those people at face value, would be correct, were it not for the fact I was mentally carrying out a detailed dynamic risk assessment of the paradigm-changing-shift within which the cave synergies aligned.
After Jon had pulled us both out by the wellies, we dropped our egos, SRT kits and excuses and easily slid through the constriction. Lesson learned.
Being too tired to enjoy the pretties, we ventured down the Slide of Doom and into The Lake which Judith expertly surveyed for us.
Onwards we powered, onto boulders, through passages, over broken rocks – where Monika attempted to use her helmet to make the passage a bit taller – and to the gorgeous crawly sand of salvation.
Eventually, we reached the fun hole in the floor…
Continued in first comment…
Originally posted on this post on Instagram
