Stream Passage Pot facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Stream Passage Pot |
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Entrance to Stream Passage Pot
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| Location | Ingleborough, North Yorkshire, UK |
| OS grid | SD 7484 7252 |
| Depth | 151 metres (495 ft) (To Mud Pot sump) |
| Length | 579 metres (1,900 ft) (To Mud Pot sump) |
| Elevation | 415 metres (1,362 ft) |
| Discovery | 1949 |
| Geology | Carboniferous limestone |
| Entrances | 1 |
| Difficulty | IV |
| Hazards | verticality, water |
| Access | Permit |
| Cave survey | 1966 ULSA survey on Cavemaps |
Stream Passage Pot is an exciting cave entrance in the Yorkshire Dales in the United Kingdom. It's one of the ways to get into the huge Gaping Gill cave system. This cave is known for its three large, wet shafts, making it a popular spot for experienced cavers.
Stream Passage Pot is the highest entrance to the Gaping Gill system. This means that the total depth of the entire system, which is about 198 meters (650 feet), is measured from this very entrance! You can find it on Ingleborough mountain, within a special protected area called the Site of Special Scientific Interest.
Contents
Exploring Stream Passage Pot
Imagine a valley that just ends, like a dead-end street. That's where you'll find Stream Passage Pot. Before the valley completely closes, water disappears into the ground. The cave entrance is hidden among a pile of boulders.
To enter, you go down a 6-meter (20-foot) deep shaft that has been lined to make it safer. After a short, tricky passage, you reach a small 6-meter (20-foot) drop into a chamber where the stream flows in.
The Journey Deeper
From this chamber, a tall, winding passage stretches for about 200 meters (650 feet). This leads to a deep crack in the rock, about 85 meters (279 feet) deep. Cavers go down this rift in three separate stages. It's a challenging descent because they have to use ropes and special techniques to avoid the waterfalls! The final drop takes you right into the main Stream Passage of Gaping Gill.
Water's Path Underground
The water from Stream Passage Pot flows through the Stream Passage and into a place called Stream Chamber. From here, one path leads towards the main Gaping Gill Chamber. However, the stream itself finds its way through a jumble of boulders in Stream Chamber. It then goes into a lower passage and drops down a final 15-meter (49-foot) pitch known as Mud Pot.
At the bottom of Mud Pot, there's a pool of water called a sump. Divers have explored this sump, going down 9 meters (30 feet) and swimming 67 meters (220 feet) through the underwater passage! The water from Stream Passage Pot eventually reappears in a deep pool at the bottom of another cave section called South-East Pot.
History and Rescues
People first started digging into Stream Passage Pot on March 10, 1949. Members of the Northern Pennine Club explored it during the Easter weekend that same year.
In the early 1980s, the entrance became blocked. But in 1984, the Bradford Pothole Club worked to reopen it. They installed strong metal tubes through the unstable pile of boulders at the entrance, making it safer for future explorers.
Brave Rescues
Caving can be an amazing adventure, but it also has its risks. Stream Passage Pot has been the site of some dramatic rescues:
- In November 1979, a caver named Jeremy Peterson went missing during a solo trip. After 57 hours, he was found safe! He had gone off the planned route and fallen down the Mud Pot pitch. He had a broken wrist and some bruises, and his only food during the long wait was a Mars Bar!
- In 1989, Andrea Wynne was rescued after she fell about 19 meters (62 feet). She reached the end of her rope while going down a 34-meter (112-foot) pitch. She suffered head injuries, a broken arm, and many cuts and bruises. She later shared her story about the experience.
