Caves of the Mendip Hills

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Stalagmites and Stalactites in Gough's cave
Stalagmites and Stalactites in Gough's cave
Entrance to Swildon's Hole
Entrance to Swildon's Hole

The Caves of the Mendip Hills are formed by the particular geology of the Mendip Hills, with large areas of limestone worn away by water makes it a national centre for caving. The hills conceal the largest underground river system in Britain.[1]

Contents

[edit] Geology

The hills consist of anticlines of Carboniferous Limestone lying over Devonian Old Red Sandstone. When a surface stream running down one of the Sandstone peaks reaches the layer of Limestone it sinks below ground through a "swallet", continuing on its way down towards sea level by enlarging existing cracks in the rock to form caves. The catchment area of the Cheddar Yeo, which rises in Gough's Cave, measures 54 km² (20.8 sq mi). Dye marking shows that some of the water travels underground for up to 10 miles (16 km), taking up to 14 days to reach Cheddar.

[edit] History

The earliest scientifically dated cemetery in Britain was found at Aveline's Hole, near Burrington Combe. The human bone fragments it contained, from about 21 different individuals, are thought to be between roughly 10,200 and 10,400 years old.[2][3]

Archaeological evidence including pottery, flints, hearths, coins, burials and metalwork from the Mesolithic, Neolithic, Bronze Age, Iron Age and Roman eras have been found in many of the caves.[4]

[edit] Access

The caves which are easily accessible to the public are at Cheddar Gorge and Caves and Wookey Hole, but the vast majority of the caves require specialist equipment and knowledge. Many of the caves are gated and operate leader systems in an attempt to reduce the damage caused when the caves are visited.[5] Local caving groups organise trips and continue to discover new caverns.

[edit] Cave Diving

Attempts to move from one cave to another through the underground rivers led to the development of cave diving, with Swildon's Hole being the site of the first cave dive attempt in Britain, in 1934 and the first successful cave dive in Britain, being achieved the following year at Wookey Hole where the last sump is currently the deepest sump in Britain at 76 m (249 ft).

[edit] Sites of Special Scientific Interest

The cave complexes at St. Dunstan's Well Catchment, Thrupe Lane Swallet, Lamb Leer and Priddy Caves have been identified as geological Site of Special Scientific Interest. There are also caves within the Cheddar Complex SSSI.

[edit] List of caves

A selection of the better known caves are listed below

Name Location Map Length (km) Depth (m) Notes
Aveline's Hole Burrington Combe ST47615867 0.067 16 Site of early cemetery & cave markings
Axbridge Ochre Mine Axbridge ST429552 0.132 33
Banwell Caves Banwell ST38225881 0.097 21 geological Site of Special Scientific Interest
Banwell Ochre Caves Banwell ST40605904 geological Site of Special Scientific Interest
Compton Martin Ochre Mine Compton Martin ST543566 0.4 21 geological Site of Special Scientific Interest
Cox's cave Cheddar ST46465390 Open to the general public as a show cave
Fairy Cave Quarry
*Balch Cave
*Conning Tower Cave
*Fairy Cave
*Fernhill Cave
*Hillier's Cave
*Hillwithy Cave
*Shatter Cave
*W/L Cave
*Withyhill Cave		 Stoke St Michael ST65654775 1.17[6] <60[6] Many highly decorated.
GB Cave Nr Shipham ST47595623 1.95[6] 134[6] Named after Goddard and Baker who first discovered it. Part of the Cheddar Complex SSSI.
Goatchurch Cavern Burrington ST47585823 0.75 55
Gough's Cave Cheddar ST46705391 2.135[6] 90[6] Open to the general public as a show cave
Lamb Leer East Harptree ST54325505 0.64 67 geological Site of Special Scientific Interest
Longwood Swallet Cheddar Complex ST48615571 1.65 175 Part of the Cheddar Complex SSSI.
Manor Farm Swallet Charterhouse ST49825566 1.06[6] 156[6]
Priddy Caves
*Eastwater Cavern
*Hunter`s Hole
*St Cuthbert's Swallet
*Swildon's Hole
*Wigmore Swallet		 Priddy ST53885062
Rod's Pot Burrington ST47215844 0.188 45 In September 2007, digging established a link through to nearby Bath Swallet
Sidcot Swallet Burrington ST47545828 0.2 28
Stoke Lane Slocker Stoke St Michael ST66874745 2.18[6] <60[6] A low, wet cave containing sumps early on and decorated chambers later. The cave is well known for producing cases of Weils Disease.
Thrupe Lane Swallet Shepton Mallet ST60384580 1.147[6] 120[6] geological Site of Special Scientific Interest
Tyning`s Barrow Swallet Cheddar ST47135638 1.28[6] <60[6]
Upper Flood Swallet Charterhouse ST50575576 2[6] <60[6] A very well decorated cave with plenty of walking passage, and some tight sections to reach some recent extensions.
Wookey Hole Caves Wookey Hole ST53184802 3.66[6] 152[6] There are 25 sumps on the main route through this resurgence cave, several of which are deep, some of which have nearly claimed lives. The first sump was the site of the first successful cave dive in Britain, in 1935, and the last sump is currently the deepest sump in Britain at 76 m (249 ft). Open to the general public as a show cave

[edit] References

  1. ^ Fact Sheet 8: Rivers (pdf). Cheddar caves. Retrieved on 2007-01-27.
  2. ^ Earliest British cemetery dated. BBC News. Retrieved on 2007-01-27.
  3. ^ Aveline's Hole - An Early Mesolithic Cemetery Site in the Mendips. Rick Schulting. Retrieved on 2007-01-27.
  4. ^ Mendip Hills: An Archaeological Survey of the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (pdf). Mendip Hills AONB. Retrieved on 2007-01-27.
  5. ^ Mendip. Protect Our Caves. Retrieved on 2008-04-15.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r Mendip. UK and Ireland Cave Lengths and Depths. Retrieved on 2007-01-15.

[edit] Bibliography

  • Barrington, Nicholas; Stanton, William (1977). Mendip: The Complete Caves and a View of the Hills. Cheddar Valley P. ISBN 0950145920. 
  • Irwin, David John; Knibbs Anthony J. (1999). Mendip Undergound: A Cavers Guide. Bat Products. ISBN 0953610306. 

[edit] External links

v • d • e
Mendip Hills
Settlements:
Rivers and lakes:
Caves and gorges:
Quarries:
SSSIs:
Asham Wood · Axbridge Hill and Fry's Hill · Banwell Caves · Banwell Ochre Caves · Barns Batch Spinney · Blagdon Lake · Bleadon Hill · Brimble Pit and Cross Swallet Basins · Burledge Hill · Burrington Combe · Chancellor's Farm · Cheddar Complex · Cheddar Reservoir · Cheddar Wood · Chew Valley Lake · Cloford Quarry · Compton Martin Ochre Mine · Cook's Wood Quarry · Crook Peak to Shute Shelve Hill · Dolebury Warren · Draycott Sleights · Ebbor Gorge · Emborough Quarries · Harptree Combe · Hobbs Quarry · Holwell Quarries · Kingdown and Middledown · Lamb Leer · Priddy Caves · Priddy Pools · Perch · Rodney Stoke · St. Dunstan's Well Catchment · Sandpit Hole and Bishop's Lot · Shiplate Slait · Viaduct Quarry · Windsor Hill Quarry · Wurt Pit and Devil's Punchbowl
Councils:
Surrounding areas: