News

COVID-19 Crisis – What’s closed or cancelled?

UPDATED 28th March 2020 NATIONAL RULES RESTRICTING MOVEMENT With the rapidly developing situation and the instructions issued by the Government now being enforced by civil ...
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BCRA newsletter March 2020

>>Latest COVID-19 News In this newsletter... Field Meetings and Library access (COVID 19) Membership Renewal Latest periodicals now online British Cave Science Centre For news ...
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Coming soon in Decent 273 – why some cave tourists got an eyeful!

As we enter interesting times across the country, you can still lose yourself in underground worlds by making sure you get your copy of Descent ...
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Losing yourself down the rabbit hole – an anthology of Mendip cave rescues

If you're anticipating having a lot of time on your hands and wondering what on earth you are going to do with your time during ...
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Using dental wear to estimate age at death – work on cave archaeology

Sammy Field, from the University of Southampton, visited the University of Bristol Spelaeological Society's collections as a PhD researcher to collect data for her thesis, ...
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Review: Adventures Underground

Following Alan Jefferys' review of Concrete Evidence by Victor S Wigmore, Darkness Below heard from Jim Pennington who came across another novel by Wigmore. Jim ...
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BCA Newsletter now available

The BCA Newsletter 37 - February 2020 is now available. Editor David Rose has put out a bumper edition which is both visually attractive, thanks ...
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In the news …

Here we go with our latest round-up of news and views from around the world. If you see anything you think we might have missed, ...
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Deep, dark and pretty – caves in the latest issue of Descent!

Descent 272 has now arrived! If a copy hasn’t reached you, it’s time to head over to Wildplaces Publishing to subscribe now or if you’re ...
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Why mines are secured against entry and why you should help keep it that way.
Pete Knight 2
Earlier this year, Pete Knight, Derbyshire Caving Association's projects officer published an open letter detailing damage to gates and the consequences including the risk to ...
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Tuning in to cave radio and comms
Mike Bedford talks about cave radios, cave communications and much more in the annual report of the BCRA's Cave Radio and Electronics Group. Our decision, ...
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Aveline’s Hole: A new twist in an old tale
New samples taken for DNA analysis from human bone from Aveline's Hole by Natural History Museum researchers have thrown up surprising results. Graham Mullan reports ...
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Descent 268 now available
Descent 268 is now available! If a copy hasn’t arrived with you, it’s time to head over to Wildplaces Publishing to subscribe now or if ...
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Book review: Underground
As the cover states, Underground sets out to tell a human history of the worlds beneath our feet. As a caver, I approached a book ...
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Data logging and much more at the British Cave Monitoring Centre
The British Cave Research Association (BCRA) recently held its Spring Field Meeting at the British Cave Monitoring Centre, Poole’s Cavern, Buxton in Derbyshire. This was ...
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Seek and ye shall find – the discovery of Beard’s lost passage in Bleadon Cavern
A dig in Bleadon Cavern on Mendip has revealed more pieces to a mysterious puzzle ... In 1833, a survey was carried out of Bleadon ...
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Cave and Karst Science Vol 46 No 1 now available
Reports on amphibians and reptiles in caves, 3-D cave mapping, and racial segregation in a South African cave are among the features in the April ...
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Descent 268 coming soon
The June issue of Descent is about to land on your mats, so take a moment to check whether your subscription is up to date! ...
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Go delving into the dark with Irish cavers
Thrill-seekers with a visual impairment are to get the chance to go underground in a ‘try-caving’ event in one of Irelands's most spectacular underground-exploration regions ...
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Irish cave gets a spring clean
Irish cavers have cleaned up, thanks to a grant from the Geological Survey of Ireland – and may also have found new access points to ...
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Have your say at the British Caving Association’s AGM
The Annual General Meeting of the British Caving Association is being held in the heart of the Yorkshire Dales caving area this year - at ...
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Deliverance from evil, climate change, and the Soviet Union
Peter Burgess hears about ritual protection marks, cars going underground, time capsules and threats from out east in the Subterranea Britannica spring meeting at the ...
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Access news: Parking no longer allowed at High Birkwith Farm
Jeff Wade abseiling in Calf Holes, Yorkshire Dales. Photo courtesy of Rob Eavis
Council for Northern Caving Clubs (CNCC) has announced that parking will no longer be allowed at High Birkwith farm, meaning cavers will need to park ...
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Breaking news: Josh Bratchley safe and well after Tennessee cave rescue
Numerous reports from the US confirm that Josh Bratchley returned to the surface safe and well around 7pm local time last night after being trapped ...
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BCRA Newsletter April 2019
In this newsletter... BCRA Field meeting. Saturday/Sunday 29/30 June 2019 in Alston, Cumbria This weekend field meeting is entitled "Hypogenic Caves of the North Pennines ...
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Descent 267 now available
Descent 267 is now available! If a copy hasn’t arrived with you, it’s time to head over to Wild Places Publishing to subscribe now or ...
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Archaeologists identify first figurative Palaeolithic cave art in the Balkans
An international team, led by an archaeologist from the University of Southampton and the University of Bordeaux, has revealed the first example of Palaeolithic figurative ...
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