Thrupe Lane Swallet
51°12′38″N 2°34′08″W / 51.21047°N 2.568998°W / 51.21047; -2.568998
| Site of Special Scientific Interest | |
| Location | Somerset |
|---|---|
| Interest | Geological |
| Notification | 1992 |
Thrupe Lane Swallet (grid reference ST603458) is a 0.5 hectares (1.2 acres) geological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Somerset, notified in 1992. It is also a Geological Conservation Review site.
The name Thrupe Lane comes from the nearby hamlet of Thrupe, which in Anglo-Saxon meant dairy farm.[2]
The swallet is a small, single pothole cave system that is dominated by a series of deep (117 metres (384 ft)) and mainly vertical passages, which follow fault lines, natural joints in the rock and mineral veins.[3] It shows a form of cave development not seen elsewhere in the Mendips and contains the tallest vertical shaft in any known cave on the Mendip Hills, Atlas Pot, which is 60 metres (197 ft) deep.[4] The stream that flows through the cave is one of those that feeds St Andrew's Wells in the grounds of the Bishop's Palace in Wells.[5]
Thrupe Lane Swallet was first entered in 1974 following digging by three caving groups. The entry shaft has been blasted open to ensure a stable entrance.[6]
See also
References
- ^ "Thrupe Lane Swallet". Mendip Cave Registry & Archive. Retrieved 30 March 2012.
- ^ Witcombe, Richard (2009). Who was Aveline anyway?: Mendip's Cave Names Explained (2nd ed.). Priddy: Wessex Cave Club. p. 180. ISBN 978-0-9500433-6-4.
- ^ "Thrupe Lane Swallet" (PDF). English Nature. Retrieved 29 January 2007.
- ^ "Mendip Caves: Eastern Mendip". British Geological Survey. 2008. Retrieved 6 February 2009.
- ^ "Thrupe Lane Swallet". Mendip Cave Registry & Archive. 2009. Retrieved 30 March 2012.
- ^ Irwin, David John; Knibbs, Anthony J. (1999). Mendip Underground: A Cavers Guide. Bat Products. ISBN 0-9536103-0-6.—which also contains a detailed description of the cave.
External links
- English Nature website (SSSI information)
- v
- t
- e
Geological Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Somerset
- Ben Knowle
- Blue Anchor to Lilstock Coast
- Brean Down
- Brimble Pit and Cross Swallet Basins
- Bruton Railway Cutting
- Cheddar Complex
- Cloford Quarry
- Cook's Wood Quarry
- Crook Peak to Shute Shelve Hill
- Doulting Railway Cutting
- Emborough Quarries
- Glenthorne
- Godminster Lane Quarry and Railway Cutting
- Greylake
- Ham Hill
- Hobbs Quarry
- Holwell Quarries
- Hurcott Farm
- Hurcott Lane Cutting
- Lamb Leer
- Langport Railway Cutting
- Laycock Railway Cutting
- Leighton Road Cutting
- Low Ham
- Maes Down
- Maesbury Railway Cutting
- Miller's Hill, Milborne Wick
- Moon's Hill Quarry
- Priddy Caves
- Priddy Pools
- Rodney Stoke SSSI
- Sandpit Hole and Bishop's Lot
- Seavington St Mary
- Shepton Montague Railway Cutting
- Snowdon Hill Quarry
- St. Dunstan's Well Catchment
- Thrupe Lane Swallet
- Vallis Vale
- Viaduct Quarry
- Windsor Hill Quarry
- Wookey Hole
- Wookey Station
- Wurt Pit and Devil's Punchbowl
- Avon
- Devon
- Dorset
- Wiltshire
