Further Progress at The Flyunder

27-29 January, the second digging trip prior to the ‘discovery’ of the Flyunder Passage, a possible key to passing the choke at the end of Eastern Flyover.

Friday night; Gonzo, Andy and 3 Daren virgins, Matt, Mandy & Niall from the Cerberus entered the cave.

A leisurely start on the Saturday (life is always leisurely at the HRC) before heading off for the 3/4 hour journey to the dig. Light the candles to heat the kettle, let digging commence. Digging in a half hour shift pattern, we dug constantly for around 6 1/2 hours. Occasionally slow if a rock is in the way, sometimes digging in a cloud of dust as you plough through the sand faster than number two can fill the skip, always following open air space with a tantalising view of a few inches of open airspace. I was lucky to have a half hour of dry sand with an ever-increasing airspace before the passage was high enough to be able to peer over the brow to around 2m of open, descending passage to an open archway, albeit only body-sized.

Another short spell of digging by the next man and it was possible to descend the slope. Unfortunately squeezing through the arch showed that the passage swung to the left into a cross-rift, about 2-3m long, sadly only a couple of inches wide at the end. The rift at floor level appears to be a couple of feet wide and blocked with rocks. Not terminal, but unfortunately further progress will be a lot harder and slower.

Tired bodies and demotivated minds put a stop to activities at around 8.00pm. Niall and I headed back to camp to collect water and start tea, while the rest spent a while looking pretty in front of the camera.

Cups of tea, dry clothes, curry and cocktails (too many for some!), we were all chilled out and ready for bed by 1.30am Sunday. 

A leisurely start Sunday, pack up camp and a steady 4 hour journey out.

The dig's not finished. Hopefully in the next couple of weeks an accurate survey will be done. With that info, it should be possible to determine exactly where the end of the Flyunder lies. We can then make a decision as to our next course of action. 

Andy