EMMCA Cave, Ashwick, Mendip, England, 1985

 East Mendip Minor Cave (Ashwick) or EMMCA is a small passage, located at Ashwick, near Stoke St Michael, on Mendip.

On 5 January 1985 we paid our first visit. It was on the right bank, directly up from the old house, about 50'. It was in a small cliff and depression and was a tunnel approximately 10' long, 3' wide, and looked choked without going down. Ashwick House -

We thought it could be an old dig but could find no reference. We started digging the next day but it ended after 10'. By 6 Feb there were holes off to the left and right and straight ahead. There were also a few bones. The air seemed quite fresh. 

My next visit was 7 August. We spent ages removing a large boulder then dug for a while. We dug again on 4 September, there was a slight draught and many bones. 11 Sept there was a hole down in the floor and one at the top which connects with the one on the left.

By 13 November it had changed considerably. It was now very steep and required three people down and two pulling. We used a double pulley system. The dig was loose mud and silt with many bones. Easy digging but no draught. 

11 December "Emptying buckets is hard work!. Still very "ochreous" and boney. Is getting even deeper".

8 January 1986, as we walked over, we noticed the roof of the old cottage had collapsed since the New Year. We pulled up several buckets and collapsed a few boulders. Entrance now need stabilising.

22 Jan we worked on the entrance and removed the log/tree, then dug from halfway down as we were short numbered. 5 Feb we had more people but abandoned digging after half an hour because of the snow. 19 Feb we dug out the bottom, initially wet clay then dry earth. It began to taper in after a while, perhaps we've gone down too far? Pulled up a few boulders. 

Next visit was 7 weeks later, on 9 April 1986. At the end of the evening we found a hole in the left wall, full of dry leaves. 16 Apr the dig was hard work with few people and very muddy half way down. That was my last visit.

See EMMC(A) on Mendip Cave Registry -

Whopper Cave, Batts Combe Quarry, Somerset, 1980

 On 15 May 1980 we went to Batts Combe Quarry near Cheddar in Somerset to look at a large hole that had appeared after blasting and had swallowed up many tons of rock. We were quite staggered when we saw the size of it. The quarry itself was absolutely immense, built on 5 levels and we drove up there in a dust storm. The hole was on the top level and proved to be a really massive entrance with a vast chamber below it. However it was about 70' below the quarry top, and a fair way down on the other 3 sides, being funnel shaped.

We put 100' of ladders down but decided it wasn't at all safe -

We kicked some stones down on the shortest side and started up a landslide. So we had to wait until the surrounding rocks could be removed. The amount of stone already fallen down the hole was incredible and we still couldn't see the bottom. The quarrymen had not seen anything like it either.

On 21 May 1980 we returned and found it somewhat changed. The rubble on the 3 sides had all been removed down to the floor level, about 20' lower than before. One person tied onto a rope and kicked rubble down the hole to clear a way for the ladder. The ladder was belayed to a machine using a long belay and we put down 75', but only 50' was necessary.

We went down, it was only free hanging for about 7'. It was estimated that 2000-3000 tons of rock had fallen down the cave, landing as a cone  on the bottom, some 25' high at the highest point. The main chamber was incredible, really massive, about 100' long, 90' high and 25' wide. It obviously continued down the bottom, south end, but the way on was blocked with rubble. 

We looked at the other end and one person went down and noticed a way on at the north end, on the left, which led into a chamber, with another chamber off it. There was quite a bit of mud there. We cleared out a drop of about 6' down to a small section of old streamway. Unfortunately there was no way on. 

We managed to survey the cave. There was a climb up to an upper passage, with a passage going off that for about 40'. The cave was assumed to continue under the quarry itself. Photo 21 May -

We went back to the cave on 29 May and had a good look around , knowing it was going to be filled in.

Whopper Cave on the Mendip Cave Registry -

Triple Hole, Sandford Hill, Mendip

 Triple Hole Cave is in Sandford Wood at Sandford Hill on Mendip. I visited on 23 Feb 1985. This is the description from the Mendip Cave Registry :

My diary :

Andy looking down the entrances -

Andy at the bottom -

My turn -

Coarse geodes and calcite crystals 

The quarry

Scott's Grotto, Herts

I made a trip to Hertfordshire, which is north of London, in order to see Scott's Grotto. The grotto is located in the town of Ware, up on the hill opposite the railway station. It is classed as the UK's most extensive shell lined grotto. 

Scott's Grotto is in the garden of Amwell House, where the poet John Scott once lived. The house still exists, it is on the main road at the bottom of the hill and has been turned into apartments. The gardens stretched from the house up the hill to where the grotto is, but none of the gardens remain except for the small area around the grotto and summerhouse. Photo of Amwell House taken from Google Streetview

The grotto was built in the 1760s. It was open to visitors and became quite a tourist attraction in the 19th century. It was nearly demolished in the 1960s to make way for housing, but fortunately was saved by the local council in 1974, who have now had it for 50 years. 

It is now open on Saturdays and Bank Holiday Mondays from 2 - 4.30 pm between 1st April and 30th September. It costs just £2 to go in, which is a bargain! View of the grotto from the entrance gate -

I went up to the summer house first, which is above the grotto at the highest part of the garden. There would have been good views over the river valley. The summerhouse is octagonal in shape and was used by Scott for writing his poetry. The summerhouse was extensively renovated after 1990. 

John Scott (1731 - 1783) was a Quaker landowner, his father had moved from London to escape the smallpox. He constructed other summerhouses and seats in the garden. Today there are lots of woollen knitted animals dotted around the garden, which I found rather odd!

The drum in this alcove represents Scott's best remembered poem, The Drum, an anti-war poem written in 1783. 

I walked down to the grotto. Scott started building the grotto with the porch and chamber behind it, when finished in 1764, he called it his Shell Temple. The remainder of the grotto was finished by 1773. 

In the 1990s, the entrance porch and dome, which had been demolished in the 1960s, was rebuilt. 

Inside you are given a brief explanation then left to walk through the grotto on your own. You can borrow a torch as most of it is not lit. The corridors are rather narrow. Most are lined with flint stone and shells, though one long curving corridor is undecorated.

Air tunnel in first chamber -

Looking along a flint lined tunnel -

Passage with seats -

A seat -

This is the grand chamber, which, apart from the impressive shell decorations, is also the only room to be lit -

The Scott's Grotto official page. And see more on IanVisits .

 

Reigate Caves, Surrey - old sand mines

The town of Reigate in Surrey sits over a network of caves. The caves are actually old sand mines. The area is formed in soft sandstone and this has been mined over several centuries. It was used to make glass. There are 2 main set of caves, East and West Caverns in Tunnel Road and Barons’ Cave in the castle grounds. The castle mound overlooks Reigate town, though nothing remains of the castle.

Access to the mines is controlled by the Wealden Cave and Mine Society and they hold open days. Firstly I went to the Tunnel Road caves. Tunnel Road was built in 1823 and is now the oldest road tunnel in Britain and one of the oldest in Europe. It runs through the hill from the town towards the railway station. Looking from north to south -

Tunnel Road West caves were sand mines. The rock dates to the Cretaceous period, 145 to 66 million years ago. It is called silver sand and is quite pure and makes good quality glass. It is easily dug, using picks, yet the remaining pillars are strong enough to provide support. There is electric lighting.

It is thought mining stopped in the 1860s, probably because of a collapse of the ground above which caused a cave in. During the First World War, the tunnels were used to store explosives. During the Second World War they were used as public air raid shelters, people slept here over several months.

And now the caves are used by a shooting club. Because the sand is so soft and easily penetrated by bullets, wooden sleepers are used to protect some of the walls -

In the 1980s health and safety meant additional brick walls were put in places deemed necessary, as well as an emergency exit. Carvings of unknown date -

Remains of old bottles - ironic that the caves were mined to produce sand to make glass and then old bottles have been left in the cave.

Pick marks -

After the tour I went across the road to Tunnel Road East Cave, which is a self guided tour. These caves were dug specifically for storing wines and beers, from the middle of the 19th century. They were also partly used as a shelter and emergency services control centre during WW2. The cave now has lots of memorabilia about the history of the area.

In Tunnel Road -

After lunch I went up to The Baron's Cave. Very little is known about the history of the cave, it is not certain why it was dug or how it got its name. It is situated below the castle grounds. A few steps lead down into the cave, and it has been used as a show cave possibly since the 1770s or earlier. 

The cave is basically 2 passages. There used to be an upper entrance but this is not safe for visitors due to a collapse. There are lots of carvings of names etc on the walls. For detailed information and a survey, see The Baron's Cave.

And for more on Tunnel Road Caves.