Bax Pot

Regions \ Yorkshire Dales \ Wharfedale and the North East\ Bax Pot

Location


Grid Reference:SE 099761

Parking is available by the road next to the picnic tables up the valley from Limley Farm. Access is via the gate, field and second gate towards the obvious entrance in the cliff face. Be sure to close both gates. Rather than enter Goyden's main entrance, walk up the river bed following the small cliff face. Ascend the bank to the gap between the end of the cliff face and the wall. Once through the gap, turn left and the metal entrance of Bax Pot can be seen next to the wall.

Access
Permission for access is currently granted by the farmer, and there is no need to call.

Description
Overall

Entrance through to Diver's chamber of Manchester Hole with possible through trip to Manchester Hole, or link with Goyden Pot.

Detail

The metal lid opens to reveal a small vertical rift. An easy slide, and scramble down the continuing rift descends into the top of Divers Chamber. From the top of the mud slope it is possible to traverse left through to the rest of Manchester Hole, or descend the slope and follow the stream towards the Eternal Optimist link with Goyden Pot.

Through trip to Manchester Hole

From the top of the mud slope in Diver's Chamber traverse left into a muddy crawl, Swinton Bypass. Follow this until the stream is reached. Right leads immediately to Sump 1, while left soon leads to a duck. The duck is about 5m long and in normal conditions it is possible to just your head out of the water and just about keep your chest dry. '''NOTE: Do not attempt the duck if there is no airspace. The section of passage from the duck to the crawl including Fossil Passage has been known to flood rapidly, trapping cavers between. ''' At the end turn left into a fine walking passage. After a few metres on the right is a calcite slope with a small hole at the top. A squeeze through this and then slither down the ramp opens out by the sump pool. This is the start of a 45 m static sump connected by divers to Pillar Pot in Goyden. Walking past the calcite slope a muddy oxbow goes off left while the stream passage continues to the right. At the point where the passages re-join are fine example of fossils on the wall before the crawl. The crawl is short and soon opens out into a fine gallery. At the end of the gallery two routes are possible. Up the mud slope on the left leads to a traverse across the roof of the Main Chamber, but the stream can be followed through the gap in the boulders. Both routes re-join at the point where easy walking passage is gained and a large stalactitic formation hangs. The large stream passage can now be followed to large boulder pile and entrance slope leading up left. Note: The continuing stream passage soon ends at a boulder choke close to the stream sinks on the surface. This must not be dug as the increase in water flow sumps off the duck and crawl at then end of the cave.

Eternal Optimist Link with Goyden Pot

In Diver's Chamber descend the mud slope to the stream. Follow the stream right and then shortly before Sump 2 slither through a bedding on the right, and ascend the following rift. This leads into Eternal Optimist Passage. To the right is the way through to the now-sealed entrance of Lesser Stream Passage. Eternal optimist starts as a low crawl but soon develops opens out into a fine phreatic tube for about 20m to a point where a delicate descent into a rift by some scaffolding is required. From here, follow the stream down the rift and into the bedding on the right. At the end of the bedding ignore the obvious way to the right where most of the stream exits, but instead go left to the choke. Climb down with care into Lesser Stream Passage below. Follow the water through the narrow slot to the right, and then on working your way round boulders as required until the passage finally connects with Goyden's main stream at the cascades.

History
The entrance was opened up from the inside by Paul Baxter (Bax) and Chris Fox of the Black Sheep Diggers in 1998, an event witnessed by a family having a picnic nearby. The parents told the kids to be quiet to watch the rabbit or mole surface, and were shocked to see Bax and Chris appear like a scene from The Great Escape!