Cave Descriptions

LITTLE HULL POT

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Return trip to the sump.

4 3 4 3 hours

Little Hull Pot is a rewarding SRT trip in a very typical Yorkshire Dales stream cave. A short easy crawl at the entrance leads to a succession of classic pitches, large water-washed shafts and fine situations which should inspire most visitors. All the action happens in quick succession too, meaning there is no chance of getting bored in Little Hull Pot!

Little Hull Pot is only five minutes’ walk from Hunt Pot. Visiting both in one day is recommended.

Parking:

Park in Horton-in-Ribblesdale near the Pennine Way footpath towards Penyghent (near the Penyghent Café). There is free on-road parking a few hundred metres south of the café. Alternatively you can park in the nearby village car park (small fee payable).

How to find:

Grid reference: SD 8217 7441

Follow the Pennine Way footpath towards Penyghent for about 2.5km (this is the footpath just south of the Penyghent Café and not the path behind The Crown pub).

After 2km you pass a fine limestone gorge on the right and then through a gate. After the gate, the Pennine Way footpath turns right towards the slopes of Penyghent. However, the way to the cave is to turn slightly left (off the path) and walk uphill, bearing 45o away from the left wall. Walk for 150m up a small grassy hill and towards a shallow valley. At the end of the valley nearest to you is the entrance to Little Hull Pot. There should be no water flowing at the entrance.

Navigation in the cave:

Inside the entrance, follow an easy passage for a short distance. This eventually lowers to a crawl through shallow pools of water. The crawl is quite short and soon opens out at the first pitch.

This pitch passes through a ‘window’ about 4m down. A traverse (with almost no footholds) then leads to the second pitch. At the bottom of this pitch, follow the water along a streamway to soon reach the enormous third pitch. To descend this pitch, you must first locate an upward climb several metres back from where the water falls down the shaft. This climb is protected by a rope traverse (so should be quite easy to locate). Climb up and follow the rope up through a small slot between boulders. Stay attached to the rope, as this leads onto an amazing (but very exposed) platform above the pitch, where a spectacular dry descent can be made. This is an excellent pitch!

At the bottom, a short wet crawl and a traverse in a rift reaches the final, much shorter pitch. This can be slightly awkward to descend. Many cavers turn around at the bottom of this pitch. However, a difficult 3m climb up a slippery ‘chimney’ just across from the bottom of the pitch (which may be quite hard to find) leads to further passages and the impressive downstream sump.

Additional reading:

Northern Caving (p171) or Selected Caves (p101)

Location Map: