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showed the Yorkshire explorers at work in the various pot- 
holes and caves in Kingsdale, special reference being made 
to Rowton pot-hole, one of the finest in the district. There 
was a straight drop of 230 feet before the rocks were touched. 
Many attempts had been made to fathom this pot-hole, but 
they had all failed on account of the water difficulty. The 
Yorkshire Ramblers explored it in 1897. Five different 
attempts were made, extending over two years. The great 
difficulty was on account of the falling water which they 
could not get away from. To get to a depth of 365 feet they 
had to pass five waterfalls of various lengths. 
One of the largest and most awe-inspiring pot-holes was 
Alum Pot, 300 feet deep. They had been able to get a number 
of photographs of the interior, which was most picturesque. 
For a long time Gaping Ghyll pot-hole had remained a 
mystery. It was not until 1895 that a Frenchman, M. Martel, 
succeeded in getting to the bottom by means of rope ladders. 
It was an exceedingly plucky descent. Although he had 
plenty of assistance, none of his helpers knew his language, 
so that if he had got into difficulties it might have been very 
awkward for him. He found the actual depth 350 feet. 
It so happened that one of the lecturer’s party was actually 
making preparations for the descent, unknown to M. Martel, 
and they were not aware that M. Martel purposed exploring 
it until he had actually gone and done it. It was a disappoint- 
ment to them that he had come and taken the prize before 
them, but at the same time, they were quite willing to com- 
pliment him on his plucky work. In the following and suc- 
ceeding years many descents have been made by the members 
of the Yorkshire Ramblers’ Club and complete surveys made 
of the numerous caverns and passages at the bottom. After 
many fruitless attempts they had succeeded in getting an 
admirable photograph of the interior, showing the long rope 
ladder used. They had also discovered within the Gaping 
Ghyll pot-hole a further pot-hole 150 feet deep, so that from 
the surface of the moorland to the water at the bottom of 
the interior pot-hole, it was about 500 feet. 
The water which went down Gaping Ghyll came out near 
Clapham Cave. Their object had been to trace the connection 
between the two, but they had not yet succeeded and he 
had little hope of being able to do so. 
Many of these chasms are unprotected by either wall or 
fence, and it is a common experience that when walls have 
been built the stones have been thrown down the holes by 
thoughtless tourists. 
