Ease Gill Caverns facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Ease Gill Cave System |
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Easter Grotto
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| Location | Cumbria, UK |
| OS grid | SD 6640 8072 |
| Depth | 137 metres (449 ft) |
| Length | 66,000 metres (217,000 ft) |
| Elevation | 294 metres (965 ft) |
| Discovery | 1946 |
| Geology | Limestone |
| Entrances | >10 |
| Cave survey | cavemaps.org |
The Ease Gill Cave System is the longest and most complex cave system in Britain. It has about 41 miles (66 kilometers) of underground passages. Some parts are so full of water that you need special cave diving gear to get through them. This huge cave system stretches between two hills called Leck Fell and Casterton Fell. Water that flows through the caves eventually comes out into a stream called Leck Beck.
Contents
Discovering the Caves
The first entrance to the Ease Gill Cave System was found on September 29, 1946. Two explorers, George Cornes and Bill Taylor, discovered it. They named this entrance Lancaster Hole.
Exploring Lancaster Hole
Lancaster Hole is located on Casterton Fell in Cumbria. When it was found, it was a small opening with air blowing out. This opening led straight down to a deep shaft, about 110 feet (34 meters) deep.
First Journeys Underground
After the discovery, members of the British Speleological Association started exploring. One of the explorers was Jim Eyre. Over the next few weeks and months, they explored the passages at the bottom of the shaft.
They found the main underground river, called the Ease Gill streamway. They also found older, higher passages that were once used by water but are now dry. These passages led to many complex smaller tunnels where water flows in.
Connecting the Caves
Over the years, explorers connected these underground passages to other caves found on the surface. These include caves like Top Sinks, County Pot, and Pool Sink.
In 1978, the passages near the Ease Gill main streamway were connected to Link Pot and Pippikin Pot. Later, in 1989, Pippikin Pot was connected to Lost John's Cave by cave diving through underwater sections.
Exploring the Ease Gill System
The Ease Gill system has many entrances, which makes it exciting for cavers (people who explore caves). They can plan many different "through trips," meaning they can enter one cave and come out of another. The Ease Gill streamway, with its flowing water, is known as one of the best underground river trips in the UK.
Main Entrances
Here are some of the ways to get into the Ease Gill Cave System:
- Top Sink
- Pool Sink
- The Borehole
- Slit Sinks
- Wretched Rabbit
- Corner Sink
- County Pot
- Cow Dubs II
- Cow Pot
- Lancaster Hole
- Link Pot
- Mistral Hole
- Pippikin Pot
- Bull Pot of the Witches
