I’ve had more gas problems today, despite the new bottle, I was thinking it’s about time I replaced the hose but in hindsight I should have checked it and bought a new one yesterday. The issue this morning turned out to be a kink, formed when I put the new bottle in, but the hose is starting to crack at that point. I was able to get my sausages cooked but I doubt I’ll use the cooker again this trip (I had pizza for tea as there’s a visiting takeaway van) so I’ve disconnected everything.
In theory it’s a simple and easy walk from the site to Poole’s Cavern, unfortunately I missed the main path and ended up following lesser routes through the woods. It was actually quite pleasant and shouldn’t have been a problem until I stepped over a fallen tree and woosh, my left foot slipped away from me. There was no real damage done other than a muddy leg and hands with a couple of scrapes below my knee. Fortunately I was able to sneak in to the toilets at the Cavern and clean up a bit before getting a coffee.
The cavern is very different to Blue John with wide paths and relatively few steps as you’re going in to the side of the hill rather than down what was effectively a mine shaft. I’d rate the guide a solid 8/10, good but some of his attempted humour fell a bit flat. As with yesterday we scored by having a small party, just five of us this time.
One of the big differences from yesterday is that there are a lot of stalagmites and stalactites, which are largely missing in Blue John due to how the caves were formed, with this cavern being formed from water coming down whereas BJ was water being forced upwards under pressure leading to domed roof formations.
The large stalactite in the middle is the Flitch of Bacon - the Victorians liked naming things after food!
The previous photo shows the Long Gallery, also known as The Cathedral. There’s a river at the bottom which is dry at the moment but apparently can be swift and deep in winter/spring. The final formation is quite spectacular and goes by a variety of names.
Generally these formations grow very slowly, taking tens of thousands of years, but the remains of old lime workings in the hill above the cavern have led to the water dripping through being very rich in calcium speeding up the process considerably.
I’m not sure what it is about caves that’s so fascinating. One thing, as our guide said, is that they’re like living creatures, changing with the seasons but also over time, often many thousands of years; the other thing I find odd is that down a cave I can look over a 100ft drop, as I did at Blue John, without a qualm yet my fear of heights would make the same thing very difficult above ground. As you may know, the underground temperature in these caves is a steady 7-8C, so chilly on a warm day; this was really noticeable as we walked out of the cave, and glasses promptly steamed up!
After lunch I was able to easily follow the correct way-marked path up to the top of Grin Low (Low meaning hill!) and Solomon’s Temple. There are a couple of reminders of the industrial past though, with these two sculptures of a lime burner and his wife. Some people think life is tough these days, and it can be, but imagine living in a cave scooped out of the quarry waste o, on a hillside, working hard outdoors all day in unpleasant conditions. As the gentleman I was talking to at the second sculpture said, we should count our blessings.
It was an easy walk back down to the site but I will admit I’d had enough by then! According to the watch I’d done about 4 miles, which probably is about right, but there was quite a bit of climbing (it was mostly either up or down with very little flat walking). I got the ‘van mostly packed up ready for an early departure as I’m heading to Staffordshire for a model railway show.
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