Cussey Pot
During Lockdown 2020 a new hole was spotted to draught bigger and stronger than any cave in the Peak. We dug it open and this is what happened....
Full description of the trip can be viewed here.
The current survey can be downloaded from here.
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- Written by: Ben Shannon
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Rob E, Jon P, Joe B, Ben S & Fabian E
I sit down for lunch at work to a message from Rob. “Bring everything and a wetsuit if you have one, I have some options”
I normally pack so that I can go straight from work; but as I hate being cold I raced home on the strike of 4.30 to grab my wetsuit and made my way to the usual watering hole, which happened to contain the entire population of Eyam. In a shock turn of events it was decided to forego the digging tonight and go for an explore around Doom.
Ben Wetsuited up ready for the trip, by RobE
We took the long walk to Cliffstile and as Jon was suffering from “neck arm” he declared that he was not going last as the hatch is heavy. This was an 80m descent with 2 re belays. Sounds simple right. Well, you would be correct, unless you are me. After Jon’s declaration of it being a fast rope was expecting a swift descent, however it was the complete opposite. I was using a simple and a braking krab as standard but I had to work hard to feed the rope through and was getting arm pump. I passed the first re belay with no issues. The second is a Y hang in the centre of the shaft. My first mistake was to clip one of my cowstails into the bolt rather than lower all the way to the Y hang itself. The second was not paying attention to the ropes as I clipped my simple on. I tested the simple, unclipped the cowstails, was ready to lower and then realised I had got the rope tangled with the re belay loop. Now, normal people would just clip their cowstails into the Y hang, redo the simple and go again. For some reason my brain thought I needed to get back up to the bolt and clip there so I faffed around do all sorts, standing in the rope loop. Using my hand jammer and foot loop. I was spending a lot of energy trying to get to this bolt. Conscious I had Joe above me at the first one waiting to come down and the 3 on the floor also waiting.
A moment of clarity made me realise what an idiot I was being and I knew what I needed to do, only, I couldn’t get the hand jammer off the rope despite trying to unweight it. I realised I could bridge in the shaft and eventually sorted my life out. I dropped to the floor of the shaft and made my apologises. “You got a bit of a sweat on there Ben” said Jon laughing. I couldn’t tell if it was sweat from embarrassment, the effort I had put in to sort things out, or the 5mm wetsuit I was wearing.
We slipped into chest deep water and followed a sough for around 15 minutes. This was a pretty little section with varying depths from shin deep to neck deep with beautiful brickwork archways. I was now very grateful for the wetsuit. Eventually we hit a ladder and climbed up to a step over to another ladder. “Don’t die” came a voice with a giggle as I was looking to step over to the other ladder. Good tip duly noted.
This took us into Glebe mine. Rob Jon and Joe have been here plenty, however, for Fabian and I, it was our first time. So there was a lot of (and for the whole trip) “WOW, this place is incredible” as we tried to keep up whilst also trying to look at everything.
At the end of this section we reached a chamber with some pools. On the right we passed a duck and followed the water to a climb back on ourselves and made our way crawling up some tubes. Rob and Jon pushed through a boulder choke to explore a draughting lead. I followed through the choke but had lost my sense of humour trying to manoeuvrer in tight spaces with an SRT kit and decided to make my way back to the other two who were playing around in another pool in a dead end. We followed the pool to the left which lead us to a dead end eventually. So we turned back, found a ladder and climbed on up and followed some passage.
Passing through one of the ducks, by RobE
Once again we reached a ladder, but this one I knew because at the base of this ladder you drop down into Doom. Here the world renowned Eavis Mine Tours began in earnest. We took a left and headed into a tight rift for Static Passage. This amazing passage gets better the further in you get. Jon, whilst not enthused by the start of the passage got excited as he slipped through the keyhole squeeze into a large walking rift that took us into a phreatic tube decorated in pristine stals.
Back to Doom and only a few steps further on “and on your left we have the unclimbed aven” we slid under a small gap to enter into a huge impressive dripping aven that went far higher than my fenix light could reach. This is still unclimbed and I could see on Rob's face how much he wants to get it done.
Back to the main passage again and as we ambled on Fabian asked where the waterfall was. Rob stated it was at Elastic Passage. “Oh cool, I love a waterfall” exclaimed Fabian. “not today you don’t” Rob retorted as we took a left turn just before Elastic Passage to head on deeper into Doom.
This section feels like stepping back into time. “Oh my god, look at all the hoof prints. Can you imagine what it was like for the donkeys” Gasped Fabian. After a moment of bemusement we all realised he was pointing out hob nail boot prints from t’owd man. Naturally we then mocked him about donkeys being sent down the shafts.
The hobnail boot prints were everywhere and led up a slope to a curved dry stone wall, this slope continues up to a windlass they had stone steps leading up to it and onwards. From here a manicured smooth slope winds upwards lined by dry stone walls. It feels like this area had a lot of care and attention given to it when being built. We poked left to look at a rotten stemple ladder and then pressed on to the T junction. Now my directions will get vague here because we went everywhere. We headed left at the junction which eventually lead to a dead end with a shaft that Rob had bolt climbed in the past. The impressive bit was looking up and seeing the stope rise up to darkness with stemples everywhere. On the way back to the junction we poked into other areas that were looser than a taco bell bowel movement which provided a bit of excitement to the trip.
Back at the T junction we headed over the wall and went to the Black Lagoon. This is as the name suggests, a dark black pool that we waded through with black stals and allsorts of yellows and oranges all over the far wall.
Once we had sufficiently poked in to most places we headed back to the entrance of Doom where we had stashed our SRT kits. Everyone opted to put their kit on, but having to crawl through Loper Lust I didn’t fancy it, so I chose to push my gear ahead of me. Loper lust in a wetsuit is a slip ‘N’ slide which is great on the flat and down, but to get out of Loper Lust it's mostly uphill. Once again I removed my helmet for the duck and dipped my head under to pass the low ceiling. Fabian however decided to dunk his face.
Fabian's mud facial, by RobE
So we are now in Inglorious Bastards of Cussey Pot. I wasn’t looking forward to prussicking in a wetsuit, however it wasn’t as bad as I thought. I adopted the strategy that I had used all trip in the dry areas, to unzip fully, much to the teams disgust.
This is my 3rd time in Cussey and I am starting to finesse the obstacles. It's a highly technical cave that can be insanely hard, or relatively easy depending upon whether you can find the subtle hand and foot holds. I climbed the second pitch with my chest jammer as back up. Its a lovely climb and far easier than prussicking due to the confines of the rift.
I removed my chest jammer for the vertical squeeze because that always becomes a pitch point and the gouges in the chest jammer make me wince. This did make the squeeze much easier. Although this time the tears were for the sounds of sharp rock scratching and catching on my wetsuit. The final feature that I find a challenge is the stemple climb in Coconut Airways. Today however my feet found the elusive footholds and it was almost easy, I popped up between the two stemples and knew that I was basically out now. Just a simple traverse over a drop and you are at the final pitch. Again much easier to free climb so I made my way out into the cold winter at midnight. Rob and Joe headed to secure Cliffstile's lid before we all piled into my van for warmth, snacks and the obligatory post session drink. Quite possibly the finest through trip I have ever done, Fabian agreed as he handed over an Eldon membership form.
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- Written by: Rob Eavis
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Team: Rob Eavis, Jon Pemberton, Joe Buck, Alex Ried
Written by Alex
If you think the title is the peak of unoriginality, wait until you read the rest. A couple of months ago Rob had an episode as a broken tape recorder stuck on: Are you single, Are you German, Are you coming to Cussey. Apparently I led him on about the first one, which Jon says really isn’t very nice. The Eldon were known to me for pushing shit promising digs, and as I had my own shit enticing digs to pursue I couldn’t be arsed with 2h of driving for an evening session. But after being stuck in quarantine for two weeks in Munich I probably would’ve crawled through a sewer just to get underground.
That’s how I found myself legging it from work to make my way up the M1 and to the Eyam Dogging Society meeting point. Miraculously I was the first one to arrive, but was soon joined by Rob, Joe and Jon. Being woefully underprepared, it was fortunate that Joe had a beer for me. There was some discussion over wetsuit vs. furry, I normally overheat so went with a furry. So did Jon, whereas Rob and Joe opted for wetsuits – thus ensuring they’d be the ones digging in the slop. I had no idea what awaited me, and was slightly worried at the mentioning of tight bits and warned Rob I didn’t fit through the Freeze Squeeze. He then proclaimed he didn’t even touch the ceiling on the way to Derbyshire Hall. What a dick. After a long and arduous journey to the cave entrance Jon and Joe disappeared and Rob stayed behind to babysit me. Quick pitch/ slide down to a traverse, shout up to Rob to make sure I was going the right way, and then just followed the draught and sounds of the other two. The general appearance of the cave is complex with highly textured rock, as opposed to say sth. formed in deep/ lagoonal limestone. Good amount of calcite, too.
Classic Cussey Pre-Beers, by JonP
Psyched Alex, by RobE
A constricted rift that I just knew would be an arse on the way back up lead to the squeeze, which didn’t look too horrendous so I tried it with SRT kit on first. Nope. Then undid my central and shoved it to the side, had a good wriggle, but something kept getting caught. In the end I just took my kit off and wriggled through; it’s not outrageously tight (maybe Long Churn Cheese Press tight but a lot shorter?) but I wouldn’t complain about a cap or two in the right place to make it more accommodating for us fatties. Another little pitch down soon leads to the head of Inglorious Bastards, and soon we all de-kitted at the bottom. Loperamide Lust is a convenient downhill slide for the most part, but also includes some fairly wet crawling with a nice ear-wetter at the end. The side light on my helmet did an excellent job of pushing my head underwater, and like an idiot I must’ve left my eye open and got a nice load of grit in it. The way on through mine workings and then natural again quickly lead to the dig where we assumed our positions. Rob was bursting for a piss in his wetsuit, but Joe didn’t fancy digging in Rob’s piss so took the first shift in the slop at the front, Rob behind him, me at a corner in the passage hauling, and Jon at the junction emptying drag trays. And so we spent an entertaining two hours or so chatting and hauling, Joe and Rob definitely had the hard work whereas I’ve had the most relaxing digging session I can remember. The mud and water quickly combined to form something comparable to drilling fluid which gives the drag tray great buoyancy. Jon and I had a nice chat, one of the gems I recall was on the topic of running: Rob proclaimed all fell runners joggers, to which I said “Well, if you had to lug 85kg up the hill you wouldn’t be going any faster, either.”, followed by Jon’s: “85kg?! What are you made of, lead?”. Over that we discovered that Jon and myself both sink like a rock when put in water. Best stick to caving, really.
Joe and Rob swapped places so Rob could finally have his wee, and eventually Jon and myself started to feel a bit chilly which coincided with Rob having a small breakthrough of a few metres and then deciding to stop and have a rethink for next week. Rob and Joe both proclaimed how “absolutely perfect” their temperature was thanks to the wetsuits, which drew a supportive: “I hope you cook on the way out” from Jon and me. The way back through Loperamide Lust is a bit more engaging than the way down, on account of trying to work your way up a greased slide. I definitely learned from my mistake going through the duck on the way in, so instead of pushing the right side of my face underwater and getting loads of grit in my eye I went for the left side this time.
Joe lobbed some nice rocks down the Inglorious pitch, one of which got quite a bit closer to me than I would’ve liked. After Rob Jon headed out to warm up, but promised to wait at the squeeze, which turned out to be better on the way out but I still didn’t fit through with SRT kit on. Having undone my central the harness decided to strip itself, so by the time I was through it was dangling from my ankles. Didn’t exactly distinguish myself in the stempled rift section either, which took me a good amount of upwards wriggling. Internally I excused that with not being familiar with the cave, and it is true that these sections get easier the more often you do them. Just the final clamber up to the lid, and out into the surprisingly warm night. Rob and Joe were fully de-kitted, so set off for The Moon to keep it open whilst we washed our stuff in the sewer.
All that was left was a pleasant debrief in the pub where I was treated to a pint – my 2nd free beer of the evening, now I’ll have to come back for at least one trip to repay the favour. We also had a good moan about sub-par pork scratchings and then went our separate ways into the night. Great first trip of the year!
Joe happy with his wetsuit choice, by RobE
Hats off to the Moon for letting this in, by JonP
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- Written by: Kristian Brook
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Kristian Brook, Rob Eavis, & Joe Buck
Everything was new. The oversuit, new. The harness, new. The light, new. I was ready to be reborn as a Derbyshire caver. Setting off from Glossop I was the first at the Eyam car park as I could drive in my oversuit as it was so nice and new just bought from lil tony the week before. Rob was second and Joe quickly following and hence failing as his set task of being 10 minutes late. I wasted no time and was already moaning that I did not like caving or being outside, so I was out to make a good impression for my first Eldon trip.
Changed. Beers. We set off for the cave. Not knowing the distance to the entrance, I mentally prepped myself for the massive walk in and the great expanses of fell we would have to cross in order to reach our objective. We crossed the road and within 15ft of its edge Rob opened the lid to the cave where a massive gust expelled itself. This Rob told me it was due to the fans in the connecting lower mine which is still active. You don't get that type of thing in Yorkshire.
Base of the entrance pitch reached, we set off for the first task of the night. Stabilising the area just above the climb down to Shattered Dreams. Twenty minutes with a lump hammer according to Rob although, Joe was sceptical about this. Setting off down the left hand passage facing away from the entrance pitch, we crossed a quick traverse and arrived at the worksite. I was at the rear of the group when the worksite was reached and decided to crawl over Joe in order to get a better look at what we were to tackle. There were three blocks that were loose and could potentially end up down the climb, so had to be stowed in a more rigged position especially as the largest one was peeling away from its original position. 20 minutes with a lump hammer and it was done. With two blocks propping in the larger one, it has a guarantee to not move for another thousand years.
First objective done. The second awaited, heading down the less often travelled right hand route so Rob could show Joe and I the signs of miners past NCA pitch. Great bit of cave that had me swearing loads with the constrictions above NCA pitch and with all the small rocks lying on every surface that made the cave appear as if it were pebbledashed reminding much of the caves on the Loser plateu in Austria but much smaller.
View from the bottom of the first climb of the right hand series, by Kristian Brook
Through the Time Warp and down another rope to enter a Chamber with signs of a blast hole in the wall indicating that miners had been there in the past. Another feature you don't see much of in dales caving. Rob explained to Joe and I the theories on the chamber and its connections with other parts of the cave and mine, and with that it was time to head out. Uneventful trip out with myself taking a couple of photos and, we were out.
Rob Coming up NCA Pitch, by Kristian Brook
Rob at the belay of NCA Pitch, by Kristian Brook
Cleaned the gear in the culvert below the car park and off to the Miners just to be kicked out whence we went to the Moon in Stoney which was much more accommodating to post digging trip drinking. Good trip, good folk. Looking forward to future trips.
Kristian at the "worksite". by RobE
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- Written by: Rob Eavis
- Hits: 1956
Team: Joe, Luke, Rob
A rare Saturday trip, originally coined as the TA Christmas trip but the naming changed when Jon prioritised going away for Christmas instead of joining us. Also a rare but pleasant show for Luke, although he admits it’s probably his last trip for a few months due to work (and other questionable priorities). It felt strange meeting in the Cussey carpark at 10am in daylight and with a drum full of snacks and beer we headed down. The plan was to explore some of the more modern mine workings below which head over to the NW which were abandoned pre 1970. Some of this is many kilometres away from Cussey so it needs a full day to do it any justice.
As expected Loper Lust was horrific again but not quite enough to stop Luke going through so once passed I was excited that we would get the trip done. I’d previously visited some of these workings before during the Credit Crunch expeditions when we found Doom, but then we mostly just stomped through it all quickly rather than today’s plan which was to have a good look about. Heading north we passed a level off to the West which was giving the strong draught which goes up Cussey and continued (now with the draught) until we got to the massive shaft up to daylight, although to my surprise it was totally dark today. From here we carried on NW, now wading waist deep into a really strong wind which was getting me cold for sure. We found a blind side passage at the start of the big worked rift and settled down for some much welcome chocolate and beer.
Heading back to the main level the mine all of a sudden takes on a new and exciting change. Every 50m or so is a short level to the north which breaks into the worked vein. In places it is massive, totally massive! Some bits have a lake instead of a floor with the most crystal blue water I’ve ever seen and no end in sight. Others are so high that the roof cannot be seen. And some bits the vein is really wide, maybe 6m or so. Every cut through revealed a new exciting window. We were bouncing around like kids.
A little further west the workings stepped over to the south side of the level and the proportions shrank slightly, although still very impressive in places. We reached a level to the south which the draught was coming up strongly but continued for now along the main line. After not long the way ahead was collapsed and totally blocked, apart from a small gap through boulders mostly filled with water. The air gap was seemingly being kept open by the wind which was creating impressive waves and spray.
After a careful poke about we headed back to the southerly trending level and followed it to a T junction. The draught was going from right to left here so we headed west into it, exploring a level that was full of orangey crusty formations which we nicknamed Crème Brûlée passage. After quite a way we reached a dead end collapse under a high stope, the draught seemingly coming down from somewhere far above. The end of the road for today.
Back to the T junction where we devised a theory that if we headed the other way it might be a shortcut back to the draughty level we passed ages ago, which is pretty close to Cussey. Joe made a quick decision and headed off east. Turns out this was a very bad call.
Quite soon the floor got very sloppy with a smooth white sludge, which at first was inconvenient but soon became hard work. Once it got to above knee deep it actually became easier to crawl, being careful not to break through the light crust on top. This was hardest for the person at the back who had to plough through the other's wake.
On we went, with only the hope it would end soon and the knowledge that it was getting deeper only by the fact that the roof was getting gently lower. After what seemed an eternity we reached a level heading off north but unfortunately this wasn't taking a draught and was blind. Also to our demise it was a small inlet, so the mud ahead was even more fluid. Luke bravely ventured forwards and quickly realised he was in too deep and fought his way back to me and Joe, who were waiting carefully by laying totally flatout. An executive decision was easily made and we reluctantly turned around. As expected the return was even harder. In places we were forced to pull ourselves along by the metal piping hung off the roof. It was desperate and fatigue was definitely kicking in. We all agreed it would indeed be possible to die here from exhaustion-induced drowning. What an adventure.
With muscles burning and heart rates pumping, slowly the going got easier and our fears were replaced with a keen desire to get outta here. There were none of the frivolities of our inward trip just a determined trip straight to Cussey and out. Even the deep duck of Loper Lust was inviting compared to where we'd just been and soon we were all thankfully on the surface enjoying a beer in the drizzle.
After reviewing a survey since we probably made the right decision to turn around as the connection looks to be quite a bit further on from where we got. The scale of this mine complex is incredible and I'm sure there are still many more secrets to discover in there, not least where all the clean ladies are...
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- Written by: Ben Shannon
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Team: RobE, RobM, JonP, BenS
This was my second trip with the Eldon crew and as per tradition we met at the Miners for a pre-cave drink. Rob was a bit worried about Loper Lust being sumped based on the previous weeks water levels, but he reassured us he had numerous other back up plans.
As we approached the entrance to Cussey you could see the strong draft billowing at the trees and I felt the thermal top under my furry was going to be a good choice. Last one in I shut the hatch and slipped down the rope. The boys clearly were happy with my abilities from last time as I got to the bottom of the pitch alone. I remembered the route and its intricacies well and quickly caught up with Jon after posting myself down the vertical squeeze.
The four of us gathered at the bottom of Inglorious and ditched the SRT and headed for Loper Lust. Jon led the way in dubiously checking the water levels whilst holding his peli case up like a silver service waiter. The previous week's water had effectively turned Loper lust into a muddy slip and slide, and as it is a gently descending tube it was easy going. At the second steep bit Jon took some time eyeing up the water before ploughing through. I allowed myself to slide into the pool, turned my head side ways for the air space and promptly had a face full of water. My spare light lives on the side of my helmet and was pushing my face into the water. Drowning here would not do my chances of joining the club much so I unclipped and held the helmet out in front of me. Once that was off it was a pleasant albeit cold duck.
The going to the dig after this was fast and Jon and I sat for a while as the other two caught up. Rob appeared to be carrying a dairy milk chocolate bar, which actually turned out to be his phone that did not enjoy the submerging as much as we had. 1 press of the screen and about 7 million functions started occurring.
RobM coming through the wettest bit of Loper Lust, by RobE
We agreed on the same hauling system as before, so Rob headed into the dig first with me taking up the position in the cross rift, Jon on the corner and RobM at the back. I made a seat out of the spare dig tray to avoid being swallowed by the slop and began my job of hauling and switching trays.
After quite some time we switched positions to let Rob (Middleton) have a go at the dig face. I took up Jon’s position, which I must say, I was less of a fan of. It was an easier job which meant it was colder. Eventually we all got cold and decided to go and look around Doom. Good progress on the dig meant we all felt that it had been worthwhile.
Ben shifting buckets in Vulgarious Bastard, by JonP
I was excited as I had not been into Doom before, RobM expressed interest to go and look at a sump that he intended to dive and so we dropped down the ladder and made our way into Doom. We had gone from flat out crawls to huge walking passage, the whole nature of this place is different, with old mining artifacts lying around. We climbed up a rope to be greeted with a big drop into blackness. “Yeah don’t fall down there” Rob nonchalantly said as we traversed higher into the mine.
The entrance to Elastic Passage is interesting as it is a letterbox slot next to a waterfall above stacked deads so I was careful about my footing as I climbed into the slot. Rob and Rob leading the way up the streamway it was a mixture of hands and knees and flat out crawling. Behind me I could hear Jon, “no chance am I carrying bottles for you Rob” he has a point, this would have been hard work dragging diving gear along. Eventually we got to the sump. Rob Eavis decided to let Rob Middleton have a look first so that he didn’t silt it up as Jon and I headed back to get some photos.
Ben at the start of Elastic Passage, by JonP
Eventually the Robs returned. “what do you reckon then Rob?” I asked. “Yeah I’m not diving that” came the very unimpressed reply. That’s that then. However there are plenty of more leads to explore which I am looking forward to.
The good thing about Cussey is that no matter how cold you get, you will warm up on the way out. The ducks through Loper Lust did a good job at cleaning some of the slop off of my over suit, but I was still absolutely caked. (some people pay a lot of money for a mud bath so I wasn’t complaining)
Happy Ben, by JonP
One thing I learned last time, is never stand anywhere near the bottom of the Inglorious pitch whilst someone is on the rope, this includes the hand line. Standing well back with Jon, a large rock came flying down and hit with a loud crack. “You’re next” Jon said laughing.
The pitch following Inglorious is just plain awkward being in a narrow rift. Last time I prussicked like a frog but it was really hard work. This time I clipped my chest jammer on and climbed up as there are plenty of holds and was a really fun climb and much easier than silly prussicking.
The feature that I struggled with most last time was the vertical squeeze. Now I am good at squeezes, but with gear on I was getting trapped with my chest jammer or cowstails. This time I pushed myself as hard left as I could possibly go and managed to thrutch my way through. I was crying inside as I could hear all of my gear scrapping against the rock. (note to self, take the time to take the chest jammer off before ascending next time)
The final obstacle is the stemple climb in a tight rift (Coconut Airways). I still havent quite got the right technique right here because on reaching the second stemple I feel like I am missing foot holds. Lots of thrutching, wriggling and squeezing was working. I stopped for a breather and could hear my heart beat in the rift. Finally I managed a one arm muscle up to get my left foot jammed enough for some purchase and eventually freed myself.
The final pitch is effectively a steep slap with a back wall, so I clipped on the chest jammer and did my best Jonny Dawes impression to get out and avoid another prussick. Eventually my head popped out of the entrance shaft into the night.
Everyone was cold to the core, so we all piled into my van, I had set the heater to 24 degrees before we went underground, so we sat in beautiful warmth with post session drinks and Christmas cake. The conclusion to a fantastic trip.