Boundary Pot to Wretched Rabbit, via Wretched Rabbit Traditional Route

From Ease Gill

Boundary Pot to Wretched Rabbit, via Wretched Rabbit Traditional Route[edit | edit source]

Boundary Pot Entrance Series[edit | edit source]

A low crawl leads to a 2m climb down into a chamber, with daylight entering from a shaft to the left. A continuing crawl leads to a 2m climb down into another chamber, where a trickle of water enters from the left. An outlet runs to the right, as a hands and knees crawl. After a few metres, a junction is reached with the way on being to the right; [straight ahead eventually chokes.]

The continuing crawl passes a small side passage on the left, to reach a small chamber with a hole in the floor and dribbly inlets. A 4m broken climb descends the hole, with a dribble of water. Below, a continuing crawl, on bedrock, enlarges to walking in a rift. A pool is reached; warning: the water here can back up in wet conditions.

The passage lowers again to a crawl. A pool marks a junction.

  • To the left is Bar Steward's Passage, which takes the stream in wet conditions.

Savage's Bypass[edit | edit source]

Savage's Bypass follows a small inlet, leading to a crawl over cobbles. The passage soon meets a larger inlet entering from boulders. Following the water downstream leads round a double bend to a 2m climb onto a ledge overlooking a large chamber. Another, larger, inlet enters from the right, and drops down a chasm. The way down is to step across the chasm, round a prow (away from the water), and then climb down about 5m to the floor.

A few metres downstream, another inlet enters from the right; [the combined waters flow down the chamber.] The way on is opposite the inlet, a 1.5m step up into Crossover Passage. This descends steeply, and soon meets the impressive Fusion Cavern, where the route via Bar Steward's Passage enters via a 17m pitch. Downstream, to the right, leads towards Hiroshima.

Fusion Cavern to Hiroshima[edit | edit source]

Downstream in Fusion cavern, the passage splits; the two branches soon rejoin, and choke. Taking the left-hand branch, and carrying straight on where it swings right, enters a bedding plane crawl, which bypasses the choke.

Beyond the choke, the stream is regained. Easier walking passage passes Boxing Day Aven, and soon reaches Hiroshima. Warning: some of the boulders in Hiroshima are rather unstable. A route to the right leads to Nagasaki.

Hiroshima to Nagasaki[edit | edit source]

From the middle of Hiroshima, heading slightly right leads to a scramble and step up into a large bedding plane. Going slightly left leads to a descent into an antechamber. In the corner, a dig with scaffolding and meshing descends into the roof of Far East Passage. The easiest descent route is to traverse upstream, staying high at first, until the floor rises to meet the traverse.

Continuing upstream leads, after a couple of minutes, to an area of breakdown. A well trodden route leads up to the left, between boulders, into Nagasaki Cavern.

  • Doubling back (south-west) leads towards The Assembly Hall and the Easegill streamway.

Nagasaki Cavern to The Assembly Hall[edit | edit source]

From the base of Nagasaki Cavern, a large bouldery passage passes an inlet and a rope up an aven to the left. Soon Fairy Steps is reached, an awkward muddy polished climb on the right, which ascends 2m to an ascending traverse leading to an easier climb. The passage descends over muddy boulders, and then narrows to enter a rift.

The rift passes stal bosses, and continues as easy walking. After a couple of minutes, it reaches a step across a pot in the floor. Immediately beyond is a choice of routes. [To the right, a crawl leads to a descent into The Assembly Hall, which needs tackle.] [Ahead, a traverse along the top of a rift provides an alternative route into Easter Grotto.] The normal route is to descend the hole in the floor, ahead to the right: a constricted slot drops 1.5m into a mini-chamber, which opens out into the wall of the passage below. A further 3.5m climb follows: good footholds 1.5m down give a decent but precarious-feeling stance, from where a straddle across the passage allows the final descent.

To the right, a very short passage opens into The Assembly Hall.

The Assembly Hall to Holbeck Junction[edit | edit source]

From The Assembly Hall, a route leads ahead over boulders. To the left [with an alternative route to the right] leads to a descent into another chamber. Ahead opens out above a drop, with the sound of the main streamway coming from below. A crawl to the right leads to an in-situ rope (March 2016). A 2.5m climb down, with hidden footholds halfway down, drops into a 10m diameter sloping chamber.

At the bottom of the chamber, a rift runs to the left. The rift becomes a calcited oxbow, the White Way, above the stream, and very soon a short drop into the stream is reached. [Upstream soon reaches a very dangerous boulder choke.] Downstream, Thackray's Passage is a pleasant well-decorated streamway. The streamway is knee-deep in places in normal conditions, but is sometimes deeper, and floods to the roof in very wet conditions.

After about four minutes, the roof lowers. Just before it becomes very low, the way on is through a small window to the left, by a stal "grille". This opens out into an oxbow, with easy walking and stooping, passing several gour pools. Soon the passage slopes down to regain the stream. Downstream is easy walking passage, passing nice stal formations. The stream is lost in an oxbow, except in wet conditions. Soon afterwards, the passage reaches Holbeck Junction.

Holbeck Junction[edit | edit source]

Holbeck Junction is a major junction in the upper Easegill main streamway. The junction itself is often dry, as the stream runs in an oxbow.

Several routes lead from Holbeck; in clockwise direction:

  • Downstream soon leads to a choke; a crawl to the left provides an alternative route to Green and Smelly Passage.
  • Upstream is Thackray's Passage leading towards Top Sink with a connection to Boundary Pot.
  • To the left of the stream, behind a 2m high boulder, is a dry passage leading to Green and Smelly Passage, with routes to Pool Sink, Spiral Staircase in Wretched Rabbit, Slit Sinks and New Slit Sinks.

Holbeck Junction to Stop Pot[edit | edit source]

From Holbeck Junction, the route to Stop Pot ascends the boulder slope to the right of the streamway. [The route towards Gypsum Caverns leads off to the right.] Two routes leads off to the left after 4m and 8m; the routes soon reunite, with the latter providing the easier route. An easy bouldery passage continues, with the stream audible below. Parallel routes split and then recombine in a chamber, with the right-hand route providing the easier route.

Ahead, the stream is met at a large pool, deep in places; [an alternative route to the left, over large boulders, avoids most of the water.] The way to Stop Pot is quite complex; the general tactic is to follow the right-hand wall. In more detail, the route follows the stream on the right-hand wall, and then continues ahead where the stream cuts left. The route continues to follow the right-hand wall, gently up over boulders, and through a "doorway" to where the way ahead drops sharply. A clamber 1.5m up over boulders to the left leads onto a boulder-strewn ledge, descending gently towards the stream. Before the stream is met, a clamber up reaches a ledge with small stal bosses. This leads down to a short mud-floored section of passage. Then a route over more boulders, still following the right-hand wall, reaches Stop Pot.

Stop Pot[edit | edit source]

Stop Pot is a major junction in the Easegill streamway. It is in a very bouldery area, with a boulder choke downstream.

Several routes lead from Stop Pot. The following are described from a position in the streamway, surrounded by boulders, at the base of the boulder slope leading up to the fixed ladder, where the streamway splits. In a clockwise direction:

  • A few metres upstream, on the right-hand wall, a climb onto a ledge leads to Depot Passages.
  • Following the stream downstream to the left, and clambering ahead over boulders leads to a dry route through the choke, towards Eureka Junction.
  • Between the two branches of the stream is a large ascending boulder slope; part way up the boulder slope, on the left, is the route to Four Ways, a flood-escape route into Wretched Rabbit.
  • At the top of the boulder slope is the Stop Pot ladder, up to Mainline Terminus at the start of the high-level route leading towards Lancaster Hole and Cow Pot, with a connection to Link Pot, Pippikin Pot, Bye George, Peterson Pot, and Mistral.
  • Following the stream downstream to the right leads to the wet route through the choke, towards Eureka Junction.

Stop Pot to Eureka Junction[edit | edit source]

In reasonably dry conditions, the easiest route from Stop Pot to Eureka Junction is to follow the streamway, near the right-hand wall. The route is in, or just above, the stream, all the way through the choke.

[Alternatively, from Stop Pot, a drier route starts by following the stream to the left, into the boulders. A slight left turn leads into a flat-roofed crawl, with some small stal on the left. The crawl becomes lower, and has an orange floor in places. The way opens out beyond the choke, and a short slope leads back down to the streamway, to rejoin the wet route.]

Beyond the choke, two minutes of easy walking in a large stream passage leads to Eureka Junction.

Wretched Rabbit Passage, from Eureka Junction to Depot Junction[edit | edit source]

A muddy passage leads off to the left of the streamway at Eureka Junction. Very soon, a junction is reached: the route to Wretched Rabbit is to the left; [straight on leads to Poetic Justice and Trident Passage in County Pot.] A short roof traverse leads to a vadose passage. The walls here are covered with a thin layer of mud, caused by water backing up from Eureka Junction.

After about three minutes, the passage lowers to a crawl. The crawl passes calcited cobbles suspended from the ceiling; it is driest to the left at this point. The crawl passes stal flow and pillars; again, keeping left is the driest route. Ahead, the stream emerges from a low passage; the easiest route is to step up into a roof oxbow. Where the passage widens, holes connect down to stream level; a step across these holes reaches a traverse. A step up over the stream reaches a continuing roof oxbow, with various holes back down to the stream.

After a couple of minutes, the stream is regained at a junction; [ahead chokes after 3m.] To the left is a meandering streamway, narrow in places; this passes a large stalactite, and includes a short crawl. After about three minutes, an easy 4m climb is reached. Above the climb, the stream emerges from a low passage. The best route is a slightly awkward 2m climb up to the left, leading to a step across a pot in the floor above the stream. Soon, a junction is reached.

Wretched Rabbit Passage, from Depot Junction to Spiral Staircase Junction[edit | edit source]

A series of easy climbs lead up into a meandering vadose passage. The stream is lost, and after about three minutes, a junction is reached; [the passage ahead is blind after 1m.] To the left leads to a climb up to the left and a step across a hole in the floor, into an abandoned vadose passage. After about two minutes, an inlet enters from the left, and a 3m-deep hole, lined with boulders, is met. Descending the hole leads into Spiral Staircase Passage. Skirting the hole and continuing ahead leads to Wretched Rabbit Exit.

Wretched Rabbit Exit[edit | edit source]

Big Rift leads past a side passage to the left [which soon leads to a rope climb]. 30m ahead is the start of a series of climbs, rigged with handlines (February 2016). The first climb is 5m, and fairly easy, with good footholds. From the ledge at the top, the next climb, of 4.5m, follows immediately; the bottom 2.5m is steep and awkward with small footholds. [An inlet and a bedding plane crawl enter on the left at the top.] An easy 2m step up leads to the next ledge. The final 3.5m climb is steep with small footholds: there is a useful toehold about 1.7m up. From the top, a short crawl leads round a corner to the exit.