Black Reef

Location
Grid Reference: SD 7742 7941

Altitude: 275m.

Description
Upstream starts as waist/chest deep wading in a canal for 40-50m before becoming shallower and eventually walking along streamway. An inlet is passed on the right and the roof gradually lowers to stooping/crawling and eventually a flat-out crawl in the stream which ends blocked by a fallen block. The inlet can be climbed (about 2m) to a crawling/walking passage at the end of which are two short branches, to the left is a low crawl that eventually becomes too low; to the right is a further short section of streamway.

There are some nice helictites about half way along and the whole passage is made quite sharp by thin veins of what appears to be secondary mineralization.

Downstream is a short walk down the stream way to a sump. The passage splits and rejoins so either branch can be taken.

The main stream was dye tested from Green Slack Cave by the CUCC in 1976.

Access
Prior permission not required.

Take the footpath through the field down towards the foot bridge. Do not cross the bridge. To the right (west) is a collapsed building, and just beyond this is the entrance where the stream breaks the surface of the field.

History
First explored by OUCC in 1959.