Book Overview

'Not for the Faint-Hearted' is a detailed and practical guide to a selection of 50 harder (non-diving) caving trips in Yorkshire. The guide is written specifically for use by small groups of experienced cavers who want to extend their caving beyond easy club meets and popular SRT routes. All the caving trips in the guide have difficulties or hazards which are likely to demand more skill, effort and personal commitment from visiting cavers. None of the trips are suitable for inexperienced, unfit or unwary cavers and there are no concessions to such users in the text. Each caving trip has its own location map; tackle list and detailed route description. Suggestions are provided for pitch-rigging (SRT only) together with possibilities for free-climbing, bypassing or handlining pitches. Interesting side trips and alternative routes are clearly separated in the text and approximate timings should help with planning. Each trip has a brief exploration history to acknowledge the achievements of the original explorers and a selected reading list to assist cavers who want to do more research. The production of this caving guide was sustained by the enjoyment associated with undertaking the research. There is no desire for personal financial gain and any profits will be donated to cave conservation initiatives in Yorkshire (see below). The caving guide book can be purchased directly from:

Mike Cooper
c/o 135 Henderson St.
Levenshulme
Manchester
M19 2QT

For £20.00 plus £3.00 postage and packing (within the UK). Cheques made payable to M. Cooper

Warning
Caving is a potentially hazardous activity and a huge effort has been made to ensure the accuracy and integrity of information in this guide. Nevertheless, there are likely to be errors, significant omissions and (over time) a growing number of inaccuracies due to changes in the physical characteristics of a cave and changes in caving techniques. It is incumbent upon all cavers to exercise appropriate care and caution when going underground. The author and publishers accept no responsibility for any damage, injury or loss (however caused) resulting from the use, misuse or misinterpretation of information in this guide and on this website.

Donations to Cave Conservation
Sales of 'Not for the Faint-Hearted' have (so far) raised £2,900 for cave conservation in Yorkshire. From this fund, £989 has been donated to conservation initiatives (see below). The current balance of £1,911 is available to any caver(s) undertaking conservation projects which impact positively on one or more of the caving trips in 'Not for the Faint-Hearted'. If you have a conservation project in mind and would like a modest contribution to expenses, please seek approval from Paul (Beardy) Swire or Sam Allshorn (both easily tracked down via the staff in Inglesport) or e-mail Mike Cooper.

Donations already made:

Dale Head Pot - Entrance stabilisation (£200)
Trapdoor Pot - Improvements to underground access (£88)
Boggarts Roaring Holes - Improvements to underground access (£72)
Brown Hill Pot - Re-opening of original entrance (£40)
Providence Pot + Dowber Gill Passage - Cave clean-up (£36)
Ease Gill (Lancaster Hole) - Conservation work (£33)
Gingling Hole - Entrance repairs (£25)
Link Pot and Mistral Hole - Protective walls around entrances (£25)
Bye George Pot - Entrance repairs (£40)
Cow Pot - Wall repairs (£40)
Lancaster Hole - Footpath repairs (£40)
King Pot - Improvements to underground access (£60)
Hammer Pot - Some rubbish removal (£60)
Dale Head Pot - Cave clean-up (£80)
Craftsman's Pot - New entrance (£130)
Newby Moss Pot - Re-opening of entrance (£20)