One of the attractions of the Yorkshire Dales is the vast collection of caves and potholes which, like a giant subterranean rabbit warren, weave their way through the limestone underpinnings of this beautiful part of North Yorkshire. Some of the potholes and tunnels have spectacular entrances. Others are accessed through quite small apertures.
Often an underground network will have one or more connections to others groups of tunnels to form very long stretches, but work carried out by UK potholers over a period of some 40 years has culminated in linking tunnels underneath Yorkshire, Lancashire and Cumbria to form the longest stretch of tunnels and caverns in the country and the 22nd known longest in the world. The work involved removing debris and clay left behind from the last Ice Age which had clogged up the links between two cave systems. But it was worth it as the new system – known as the Three Counties System – is a total of 60 miles (approximately 100 km) long.
The breakthrough occurred beneath the Yorkshire Dales when the Notts Pot and Lost Johns caves were linked after tunnelling through the final 150 yards, making it possible for a caver to go underground in Cumbria, travel below Lancashire and emerge in Yorkshire. It should be noted though that much of the route is very difficult and even very experienced cavers are unlikely to make the whole journey.
One of the potholers involved in the project is Andy Walsh, an expert caver from the Red Rose Cave and Pot Hole Club with many years expertise and who has been part of the project since its inception. Andy said, “When I first started, the geologists and experts all said there was nothing more to be found and we wouldn’t get a two-county system, never mind a three-county system. Unbelievably, in my lifetime, we’ve joined the whole lot up.”
Chris Jewell, from the British Caving Association, said, “It’s great for caving to have a good news story and it’s great for cavers seeing their fellow cavers being successful.” Chris added, “This shows that you don’t have to go to a different corner of the world for original exploration.”
Yorkshire, Lancashire and Cumbria are already extremely popular areas for caving and potholing but the newly created system is likely to attract an influx of the most experienced and dedicated cavers from around the world wanting to explore the Three Counties Tunnel.
Coda: this isn’t the end of the story. Work is continuing on extending the system deeper into Yorkshire, and while the world record (at 390 miles in the US) isn’t in danger, the next five longer caves are all under 70 miles long. So watch this space!
Many thanks to Rob Eavis for kindly allowing us to use his pictures. You can see many more of Rob’s spectacular photos here.
And see here for places to stay in the Yorkshire Dales.
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