County Pot to Lancaster Hole, via Manchester Bypass and the High-Level Route

From Ease Gill

County Pot Entrance Series[edit | edit source]

An easy 4m climb down leads into a pleasant winding passage. [An inlet on the left leads to a pitch down.] Five minutes pleasant caving in a well-sculpted passage with short climbs leads to the first pitch.

  • Ladder descent: 8m ladder rigged to two P-bolts; 20m lifeline.
  • SRT descent: 12m rope; back-up to P-bolt; Y-hang off two P-bolts.

There are two ways on from the bottom of the pitch.

  • The normal route is a 3m climb down, just round the corner from the pitch. This lands in The Broadway.
  • Ascending a boulder slope to the right reaches a crawl to The Snake.

The Broadway[edit | edit source]

The Broadway is a large passage in the County Pot entrance series. There are four routes from the Broadway.

  • Upstream, the stream can be followed for a few minutes until the roof lowers; eventually an aven is reached.
  • Downstream to the left, following the stream, is Razor Passage, leading to Molluscan Hall.
  • Downstream to the right, over a rock slope, is Showerbath Passage, leading to Trident Series, the Manchester Bypass, and Eureka Junction.
  • Part way along the largest part, on the left (looking upstream), is a 3m climb up into the County Pot Exit Series.

Showerbath Passage, from Broadway to Battle of Britain Junction[edit | edit source]

Showerbath Passage is easy walking passage. The Showerbath itself is on the first bend, bringing in a sizeable streamway.

Downstream, an inlet on the right leads to a climb, [and then becomes small.] After a few minutes, Confusion Corner is reached. [To the right is The Snake, the original route from Oxford Pot]. [On a ledge on the left is the start of a crawl, which rejoins the main route in Spout Hall; this provides a useful bypass to The Spout in bad weather.]

Shortly after, are two side passages on a ledge on the right.

Ahead leads towards Poetic Justice.

Manchester Bypass, from County Pot to Main Line Terminus[edit | edit source]

The Manchester Bypass is usually reached from Showerbath Passage in County Pot, starting on a ledge on the right, 1m above the stream, a few metres upstream of The Spout. A walking-size passage leads, after about 10m, to a junction. To the left, a crawl leads into Battle Of Britain Chamber, a low flat-roofed chamber. A stream flows through the chamber in very wet weather.

The way into Manchester Bypass is slightly to the right, a crawl up over boulders. About 5m from the centre of Battle of Britain Chamber, where the passage becomes taller, is a crawl off to the left. This leads over boulders and below perched boulders, into a taller passage. A few steps ahead, a 3m climb up the rift leads to a crawl, which opens up at the top of a descent into a 10m by 2m chamber. At the far end of the chamber is a 4m fixed iron ladder.

At the top of the ladder, a rift leads off to the left. [The ladder can by bypassed by a tight crawl, Coño Crawl, entering on the right at the top of the ladder.] The passage soon closes down. The way on is through a window to the left at head height, which enters Brown and Smelly Chamber, a 5m diameter chamber with stal bosses.

To the right in Brown and Smelly Chamber is a 3m climb up, with an in-situ knotted handline (February 2016). This enters Spangle Passage, which starts as a narrow ascending rift, but soon widens. A mix of walking and crawling leads after five minutes to Old English Chamber, sloping up to the left.

The way on is a hole down on the right at the bottom of the chamber, which soon reaches a junction of crawls. [To the right, a very low crawl leads to Carrot Chamber.] To the left, the floor soon lowers to reach comfortable walking passage with straws and stal bosses. Ahead, three minutes of walking, with occasional boulder obstacles, reaches a junction. [To the left is Main Line Passage.] Ahead, a step up and over a mud bank reaches another junction. [To the right leads to Carrot Chamber.] 20m ahead is Main Line Terminus.

Main Line Terminus[edit | edit source]

Main Line Terminus is at the eastern end of the high-level series leading from Lancaster Hole to Easegill. Several routes lead from Main Line Terminus; in a clockwise direction:

  • To the west is the very large Monster Cavern, leading towards Lancaster Hole.
  • To the left (as seen from Monster Cavern) is an alcove, leading to a split of routes: [to the left leads to a long dug passage]; to the right leads towards Stop Pot.
  • Ahead, and slightly right (as seen from Monster Cavern), leads after 20m to a junction: to the left leads to Carrot Chamber; to the right over a mud bank is Manchester Bypass, an important flood escape route leading to County Pot.

Monster Cavern to Snail Cavern[edit | edit source]

From Main Line Terminus, Monster Cavern is the very large (10m wide), boulder-strewn passage, leading westwards. The passage gradually widens to 20m wide, and passes a blind alcove on the right.

After about four minutes, a junction is met with three passages on the left.

  • About 4m up the left-hand wall is a window, which is the end of Main Line Passage; reaching the passage requires pre-rigging: it is normally entered from the other end, near Main Line Terminus.
  • A few metres to the right of Main Line Passage, about 6m up, is another window, with a rope leading up to it (February 2016); this is Sideline Passage.
  • Below and to the right of Sideline Passage is a steep descent, which leads into Lower Snail Cavern.

Continuing up the boulder slope ahead leads into Snail Cavern.

Snail Cavern to Cornes' Cavern[edit | edit source]

Snail Cavern is another very large, boulder-strewn passage. After about two minutes, some taped-off formations on the right are reached. Ahead, the passage narrows to about 3m wide. It soon widens again into Cornes' Cavern. Hidden behind a very large boulder on the left at the start of Cornes' Cavern is the start of the Mancunian Way.

Cornes' Cavern to the Minarets[edit | edit source]

Cornes' Cavern is an extremely large chamber. A gulley can be followed through the middle of the passage.

At the end of the cavern, slightly to the right, clambering over boulders leads to a crawl to the right, which steps down into the Minarets, a series of parallel minaret-shaped passages. The first passage leads for 10m to a low crawl to the left. A stooping passage leads for 10m to another low crawl to the left. This leads into another minaret-shaped passage which runs back to the right for 30m. The passage leads up a slope to the right, and then steps up into Oakes Cavern.

The Minarets to Oxbow Corner[edit | edit source]

Oakes Cavern is another very large passage. The route through the cavern passes a pile of large boulders chocked against the roof, with stal bosses. At the end of the cavern, by some formations taped-off to the right, the way narrows.

Ahead, the route soon widens again. The way on is a climb down to the left, by a stal boss on a rock. [Ahead leads to a steep descent.] A crawl leads round a couple of corners. The roof briefly rises in a chamber, but then lowers again to continuing crawl, which emerges on a ledge overlooking Oxbow Corner.

At the end of the crawl, the passage slopes down to the right to Oxbow Corner. [Descending the slope reaches the streamway; downstream, the stream can be followed through a choke towards Stake Pot.] Ahead, the right-hand wall becomes undercut. At the point where the undercut stops, and where the left-hand wall is streaked with calcite, is an easily missed junction.

  • 3m to the right of the trodden path is a 50cm by 70cm hole down between boulders. One metre into the hole is the start of a thin rope that acts as a guideline. Following the guideline soon leads to an awkward 3m handline climb down. A further 5m clamber down reaches the streamway. Downstream leads towards Stake Pot. [Upstream leads through a choke to Oxbow Corner.]
  • Continuing ahead is the high-level route to Stake Pot.

Oxbow Corner to Stake Pot, via the High-Level Route[edit | edit source]

About two minutes ahead, the floor rises towards the roof, forcing an easy crawl. A couple of minutes beyond the crawl, the passage starts to descend towards Charybdis, a large hole dropping to the stream. The descent route starts to the right, and then crosses to the left wall. A step up leads to the start of a traverse on a ledge to the left, the latter part of which has a traverse line; take care to avoid damaging the footholds here.

Very soon ahead is Scylla, another large hole dropping to the streamway. Again it is bypassed by a ledge on the left, with a traverse line.

About three minutes ahead reaches the fine Painter's Palette formations. A 4m hand-line climb descends past the formations.

After about another five minutes, an important junction is reached.

  • To the left, behind boulders, is an irregular-shaped hole, marking the start of the E.P.C. Series, leading to Link Pot.
  • Continuing ahead for 30m leads to the top of a 3m hand-line climb, which descends to Stake Pot.

Stake Pot[edit | edit source]

Stake Pot is a major junction on the high level route between Lancaster Hole and the caves of Easegill, with a connection down to the man streamway. The following are described in clockwise order. Each route has an in situ handline (March 2016).

  • Ascending to the left of the stream route leads to Montagu Passage East, leading to Fall Pot in Lancaster Hole.

Montagu Passage East, from Stake Pot to Fall Pot[edit | edit source]

From Stake Pot, the way into Montagu East is to the left, when looking downslope, an 8m hand-line ascent.

Montagu Passage is a fine passage, mostly about 5m wide and 5m high passage; it is mostly mud floored with some boulders. The holes in the floor should be avoided, as they drop into the main streamway: the best route is to the left at first, then crossing to the right, and then back to the left.

After about four minutes, Fall Pot is reached, with inlets audible. Descending between boulders reaches a route forward between boulders to a 4m hand-line climb. Descending the muddy slope to the left reaches Fall Pot.

Fall Pot[edit | edit source]

Fall Pot is a major junction in Lancaster Hole.

In extremely wet weather, the streamway backs up from the sump, and floods the whole of this area.

The following are described from near a memorial plaque on the wall, in a clockwise direction.

  • Up-slope and to the right, just to the left of the plaque, is the start of the route towards Bill Taylor's Passage, leading to Lancaster Hole exit.
  • Down-slope, just to the right of the plaque, a route below huge jammed boulders joins the previous route.
  • Down-slope, at the bottom of the chamber, is a route down to the Main Streamway.

Fall Pot to Bill Taylor's Passage[edit | edit source]

From Fall Pot, ascending to the top right of the chamber, to the left of the memorial plaque, leads to a route through into a smaller chamber. [The same chamber can be reached by a route below huge jammed boulders to the right of the plaque.]

At the top of this chamber is a large stal boss with a stal flow above it. By these is a step up into a rift between a very large boulder and the left-hand wall. This soon opens out into another small chamber, at the base of an 8m hand-line climb.

Ascending the climb leads to a balcony overlooking Fall Pot. To the left, it is possible to skirt a hole in the floor to the left; care: the hole drops into the streamway.

Beyond, a mud slope leads up to the left, from where a slot to the right leads to a mud slope down to the end of Bill Taylor's Passage, leading towards Bridge Hall and the Lancaster Hole exit. [Alternatively, continuing ahead leads to a careful step across a hole. Ascending the mud slope ahead leads to Montagu West, while turning left also leads to the end of Bill Taylor's Passage].

Bill Taylor's Passage to Bridge Hall[edit | edit source]

A awkward climb through a V-shaped slot between a large boulder and the left-hand wall, or a stoop underneath to the left, leads into Bill Taylor's Passage. Following the main passage passes a chamber with an inlet entering from the roof. Ahead, the passage lowers to stooping/crawling passage. Eventually it leads to a crawl up through boulders, Kath's Way, which pops out in Bridge Hall.

  • To the right leads towards the Colonnades and The Graveyard Series.

Bridge Hall to Lancaster Hole Exit[edit | edit source]

From Bridge Hall, a long boulder slope leads up to a ridge. From here, a short section of rift leads to a climb down into a 5m diameter chamber, at the base of the Lancaster Hole entrance pitch (P30), which needs pre-rigging.