Thu 31 May 2012 Session

We arrive at Prof. Robert Baxter White cottage bright and early the next day. He has assembled a collection of caving supplies with his assistant, John Browning (Mark's character.) We travel to Swildon's Hole, and descend ~150 feet through an alarmingly small trapezoid shaped hole covered by a basic hut. During the tricky descent, Compton sprains his ankle.

We then travel through a linear collection of caves for about an hour, through a rather narrow squeeze, on for another hour, and under a difficult sump which Hengst has considerable difficulty with. After another ~40 mins of more linear cave/tunnels, we come to a large cavern containing a waterfall (25 feet high x 5 feet wide) into a pool of water. There are two regular tunnels exiting the cavern, and we notice another behind the waterfall. However, not forgetting the importance being British, we first break for elevenses before exploring further.

After refreshments, we proceed through the more interesting exit, under the waterfall. We follow a steep 45 degree decline to a cavern with a large craves ~12 feet wide and ~36 feet deep. We all manage to safely traverse this obstacle by climbing across the wall, aided by ropes and pitons.

In the next cavern, which is ~12 feet x ~12 feet, we find old wall paintings of stick men fighting each other. One side appears to fight under the sign of the Christian cross, whilst the other is under something resembling a Wolf's head.

Further on we find what appear to be pre-historic cavemen paintings, showing black men hunting tigers, mammoths and green men!?

Further still, we find more paintings, apparently older than the previous pre-historic ones. These show some kind of large humanoid form with big ears, surrounded by smaller men (worshippers perhaps.) All this is further surrounded by "blob figures."

Beyond this the cave tunnels branch and turn a great deal in a confusing way, and we find it tricky to find out way through, but we eventually come to a large circular cavern. Within there is a skeleton lashed to three spears, clad in rusty chainmail, a rusty Saxon broadsword (9th century) laying near. There is a yellow parchment jammed into the eye socket, which we look at. It appears to be a Viking rant about fighting Christians and losing, by Coenwulf, son of Sigmund Penda, son of Aldwulf. It also tells of a great famine, the people turning from Christ and back to Woden (Odin.) It seems the people went cannibal, and then Christians came, fought and beat them, and threw them down a cave, denying the Valkyrie access to them.

There are also empty clay bowls on wooden shelves, and a book from 1848 in which Louis De Castris is mentioned!!!