Trou du Vent main chamber photo trip
Tuesday, 23 August 2005
Caroline Fretwell, Footleg, Gary Cullen, Martin Jahnke, Olly Betts, Paul Dold
Back the next day after failing to reach the chamber via the Trou du Vent. This time Caroline and I went down the Trou du Vent with Paul to find the way on. Martin, Olly and Gary descended des Hrtiques to meet us in the main chamber. This time the junction was spotted, and confirmed as the correct route as we could hear the others in the main chamber. About an hour later we had rigged the final couple of pitches and joined them in the chamber. Olly had found a cave spider which we photographed before setting up the camera for my big chamber photo. Olly volunteered to ascend the final Trou du Vent pitch into the roof, and abseil back down on camera. Then we photographed the lower part of the chamber with Caroline and myself placing flashes and lighting each other while Martin operated the camera. The radios were very useful for co-ordinating everyone. Finally Martin ascended to rope while I photographed him, directing Caroline and Paul with the flashes. The pictures were all taken from a fixed tripod position so I can build some composite images of the chamber, and also make an animated sequence for an audio visual presentation.
With the pictures successfully captured, we experimented with lighting the chamber using a reel of magnesium ribbon which Gary had brought along. My camera battery was flat, so I left Gary to take pictures on his camera and went to help Paul light up the chamber. After the powerful flash guns we had been using, the magnesium was surprisingly dim, even when we twisted 8 strands together! Olly and Martin derigged the Trou du Vent while the rest of us exited via des Hrtiques, leaving the ropes in for another trip later in the week.
Returning to the campsite late, we drunk more wine and ate more find cheese until even later, and then had a day off caving, looking for other entrances in the forest in pouring rain the next day.
Images
Paul D. on the 3rd pitch in the TDV
Posted by: Dr Footleg
Size: 64kb
Width: 480 pixels
Height: 640 pixels
Posted: 16 September 2005
Martin ascending the final pitch in the main chamber (1 of a set of 45 taken in the chamber!)
Posted by: Dr Footleg
Size: 57kb
Width: 600 pixels
Height: 480 pixels
Posted: 16 September 2005
Spider found in the main chamber
Posted by: Dr Footleg
Size: 70kb
Width: 540 pixels
Height: 416 pixels
Posted: 16 September 2005