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Today you might have noticed there was a poor weather forecast. I was very diappointed as I had lost a wager with Liz that I would buy her a pint if it rained. It did and I did! Anyhow, there was also a walk. We all met up in Clapham in drizzle and donned waterproofs, it drizzled on and off for most of the day but it never really 'Wasdaled it down'. The heroic few today were: Liz and Barrie, Beth and Simon, Lorraine and myself along with our chief scout, Sam. After passing the honesty box with one or two mutterings of, "I've got no change", we followed Clapham Beck along Clapdale Drive to Ingleborough Cave we stopped for a quick rest here before heading for Trow Gill. The weather was still damp but never grotty and we made good time along Trow Gill, negotiating the slippery staircase as nimbly as mountain goats! Now on open moor we strode on past various pot holes and outcrops of limestone pavement, we then turned a corner and saw that the pot holing club circus was indeed in town! Time to join the circus! This year there was no long wait to go down the hole, 10 minutes of deciding who was going to mind Sam followed. Beth didn't fancy the descent so Lorraine thoughtfully opted to stay with Beth and Sam. I entered the pretty pink bosun's chair fearlessly (honest!) and began the drop. It seemed very quick and I thought, "Hmm, it's pretty dry this time". Rank stupidity on my part! A cold Yorkshire shower ensued. The four of us met up at the bottom and had a guided tour of the cave, which now has added lights in some of the passages to show off the variety of routes. Again, it was spectacular, the falls utterly beautiful. The formations amazing. My photos will never do the place any justice. Audio visual presentation by Simon Howard:
Apparently, we were down for an hour, although it didn't seem that long. I got into the chair and was told that there was a bit of a winch problem but, "Don't worry!" It's like saying there's a bomb in your pants and not to worry! After "not worrying" I was soon catapulted back up through the waterfall and back into the open air again. The rest of the group happily lunching. I tried to capture a cave fairy but the look on Lorraine's face said don't bother. Spoilsport. Whilst we decided to have a go at Inglebrough, Liz and Barrie opted to wisely head for home to get the car fixed. We plodded on but when the rain came in we chose the pub instead! We caught up with our tour guides eating ice lollies by Ingleborough Cave, then headed for Clapham and a pint. A nice relaxing finish to the day. Hopefully I'll be back next year. Many thanks to all involved, especially to Liz for accepting a bet that I could never win! Fancy me betting that it would be a dry day! A full album is available on Webshots at http://community.webshots.com/album/565530550EWUzuo
The pink chair, by the way, was because the leader of the meet this year was female and had chosen it - Thanks to Liz Lemal for this information.
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