Goatchurch Cavern

Coordinates: 51°19′15″N 2°45′13″W / 51.320792°N 2.753543°W / 51.320792; -2.753543
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Goatchurch Cavern
View into main entrance with a group of school children
Map showing the location of Goatchurch Cavern
Map showing the location of Goatchurch Cavern
LocationBurrington Combe
OS gridST 47585823
Coordinates51°19′15″N 2°45′13″W / 51.320792°N 2.753543°W / 51.320792; -2.753543
Depth55 metres (180 ft)
Length750 metres (2,460 ft)
GeologyLimestone
Entrances2
AccessFree
Cave surveyM. Rennie 1959
BRAC gradeDC
RegistryMendip Cave Registry[1]

Goatchurch Cavern is a cave on the edge of Burrington Combe in the limestone of the Mendip Hills, in Somerset, England.

Description

Tradesman's Entrance - second smaller entrance to the cave.

Due to early attempts to turn it into a show cave,[2] there are remains of iron handrails inside the cave and a large amount of decoration throughout the cave. Many of the surfaces within are highly polished and slippery, as a result of numbers visiting over many decades, which have also damaged the decoration.

The cave is especially popular for training people who are new to caving. This is due to its easy access and wide range of experiences that do not necessitate the use of special equipment such as ropes or ladders.

The two entrances to the cave enable cavers to do a through trip.[clarification needed]

History

The earliest written record of this cave was in 1736 when John Strachey of Sutton Court at nearby Stowey made reference to "guy Hole" or "Goechurch". In 1829 John Rutter wrote about the large cave and in 1864 William Boyd Dawkins referred to it as "The Goatchurch" although he also used the name "Goat's Hole" in 1874. It is possible that the local dialect corrupted "Guy" into "Goat" to provide the current name.[3]

It is thought that Goatchurch Cavern was explored by lead miners in the 19th century.[4] Around 1900 the owner unsuccessfully tried to turn it into a

UBSS dug open the second entrance.[2]

Notes of exploration in the 1920s record finds from the

During November 2003 inscribed marks were noticed in Goatchurch Cavern while cleaning away

Surveys

The cave is historically understood to be approximately 750 metres (2,500 ft) long, although 1500 m (4900 ft) of surveyed passage has been measured (

caver
halfway is not a pleasant experience. Another notable feature of the cave is 'The Coffin Lid'. This is where a rock, often likened to a coffin by cavers, partially blocks the way down.

A survey was conducted within Goatchurch Cavern to investigate the effect of seasonal variations on the recorded radon concentration, from which an average summer to winter ratio of 4.79 was determined. Radiation doses to users of the caves were estimated and for occupational cavers doses of in excess of 16 mSv were found to be likely.[8]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Goatchurch Cavern". Mendip Cave Registry & Archive. Retrieved 30 March 2012.
  2. ^ .
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  5. ^ E.K. Tratman, OBE, MD, MDS, DSA (1963). "The Hydrology of the Burrington Area, Somerset". 10 (1). UBSS: 22–67. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  6. .
  7. ^ "Goatchurch Cavern marks". Apotropaios. Archived from the original on 31 December 2006. Retrieved 27 January 2007.
  8. .