De Hoop Guano Cave
Stuart Macpherson, Extract from SASA Bulletin 1960 Part 1
Across the inlet and around a headland lay the guano cave, some 100 feet above the level of the water and at the top of a gteep incline, Those who had been on the reconnaisance advised against cave clothing owing to the heat of the cave. Some heeded the advice. The Main purpose of this visit was to survey the cave, assess its tourist potential, and try to find extensions. A report on the suitability of the remaining guano deposits was also to be compiled, In the entrace lay the rusting remains of the generator and overhead, spanning great gaps, ran the electric wires. As yet : there was no sign of a coco=pan railway, The roof here was 12 feet high and the guano level clearly demarcated on the walls at about 8 feet, The first visitors to the cave mst have moved in cramped quarters. On rounding a corner the roof closed down to a passage 4 feet high and here we found a rickety track and a trolley which in its heyday would have carried a large sack of guano and little else. On a nearby table we found fresh guano had been deposited to a depth of two inches, and since the cave had not been mined for 15 years, we had some idea of the replacement rate. Being fairly fresh and loose, it still needed to be compressed.
The passage gave us the first formations and after some 50 feet there were side extensions on the left. Some speleothems were still active in this part. More and more bats were appearing and their angry squeals grew louder with every step. The cave swelled out and the roof lifted up to 50 feet. The whole area had once been filled with guano, in places, to within inches of the ceiling, The ‘gaint on our hard hats, from the present inhabitants, never ceased, The thermometer shot up about 15 degrees and the ammoniated atmosphere was stifling. Those in ordinary hiking clothes were fine, those in overalls baked. But there was more to come.
At the far end the Walls, liberally coated with guano, lay back slightly. A way up was forced and a juicy slide down the far side took as beyond the min Living area of the bats, The air cooled and the formitions returned again, some active, We pushed on, and eventually crawled through a flowstone curtain into a passage going right and left, The latter closed down at 1200 feet from the entrance, The left fork broughtus back into the entry passage mar the bottom of the guano slide.
This was a most interesting section of the cave and with the temperature back to a pleasant 67 degreea F,, exploration was carried out thoroughly. No extensions were found, but by the removal of some columns at the far end of the cave, the crawlway might be extended. Permission to do this has now been granted and the job will be tackled shortly.
