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Area 7

This area consists of the Jou del Jultayu, the bowl between Jultayu and Cuvicente, and the slopes of Jultayu and Cuvicente. The area is bounded on the Eastward side by the Bayeya ridge and meets Area 5 in the North, the boundary being roughly at the Southern edge of the Jou de la Cistra.

The majority of the caves in this area were explored in 1987. The exceptions, 1-8/7 and 21/7 were first explored in 1981 or 1982, but have been included for completeness, full details can be found in OUCC Proc. 10.

$\otimes$: 1/7 Pozu del Bayeya
Location: Located on the Bayeya Ridge just below the cairned path to the Jultayu summit.
Description: Two entrances lead to an 80m shaft rigged in several hangs. (See Proc. 10 for further details). Re-examined (and where necessary re-bolted in 1989), but no way on was found.

$\oslash$: 2/7 Pozu del Ojo de la Bruja
See elsewhere.

$\otimes$: 3/7
Location: An open shaft about 200m from 2/7 in the direction of Ario
Description: 50m deep but no ways on. See Proc. 10 for further details.

$\oslash$: 4/7
Location: A little uphill from 3/7, further round towards Cuvicente.
Description: A 1.5m climb leads to a twisting descending rift that soon chokes, looks clearable, and may be worth digging. See Proc 10 and 12 for details.

$\otimes$: 5/7
Location: Reached by turning left at the Bayeya col, walking past 21/7, and then a few metres down into the bowl.
Description: A 25m pitch (free-climable) leads into a too tight rift. See Proc. 10 for more details.

$\otimes$: 6/7
Location: Located on the Jultayu side of the Jou de Jultayu on a bearing of 196 ${}^\circ$ to Jultayu, 194 ${}^\circ$ to the 2/7 doline and 238 ${}^\circ$ to Cuvicente. It lies on the same line as the 2/7 rift series but beyond Pessimists Pot. The original 6/7, not the later one, which has now been renamed 46/7
Description: A large rift partly filled with snow. See Proc 10 for more details.

$\oslash$: 7/7 Fridge Cave or Crossrift Cave
Location: Just outside the rim of the Jou del Jultayu, some 50m to the West of the Bayeya col.
Description: Rifts funnel into a shaft with permanent snow plug, descended for some 30m in the narrowing space between rock and snow -- see Proc. 10 for details. May be worth another look as snow levels were much higher when this cave was last looked at.

$\otimes$: 8/7 Cowskull Cave
Location: About 50-100m to the left of the Jultayu path, about a quarter of the way from the Trea path junction to the Bayeya col, just before the first steep bit.
Description: A triangular opening climbed into from uphill leads to a chamber with animal bones. A 15cm wide rift continues down whilst straight ahead the sky is visible through an even narrower rift. (See Proc. 10 for further details). In 1990 a second entrance was discovered over the the other side of the cliff face containing the original entrance. This leads, via 8m of rift passage, to a roomy chamber; a narrow crack bypassed by a free-climb leads to a second chamber -- no way on.

$\otimes$: 9/7
Location: On the North-western rim of the bowl, on the outside of the col just before the ridge rises steeply to the Cuvicente summit.
Description: A very large rift with rock bridges becomes 101m deep shaft, with no way on at the bottom.

$\otimes$: 10/7
Location: Just below the lowest point on the Juracao ridge.
Description: A 20m climb down tight rifts -- becomes too tight.

$\oslash$: 11/7
Location: Halfway around the basin towards Jultayu from 2/7, approximately halfway to the bottom of the bowl.
Description: A 2.5m phreatic tube -- may be diggable.

$\otimes$: 12/7
Location: On the grassy patch near the bottom of the Jou
Description: A 4m climb down to a very dubious dig.

$\otimes$: 13/7
Location: Contour to the East from the Bayeya col for 40m.
Description: Boulder choke on the inner slope of the Bayeya rim -- unpromising.

$\oslash$: 14/7
A choked meltwater sink at the deepest point of the doline below 13/7. Potentially diggable.

?: 15/7
Never relocated, but probably refers to obvious rift just above and towards Cuvicente from 14/7.

$\otimes$: 16/7
Location: Some 20m towards Cuvicente from 14/7.
Description: Choked shakehole

$\otimes$: 17/7
Location: Enter the Jou del Jultayu from the Bayeya col, follow contours and then descend left hand side of Bar Hill.
Description: Shakehole with a small hole in boulders at the bottom -- does not look diggable.

$\otimes$: 18/7
Location: A few metres further into the bowl and to the West from 17/7.
Description: Boulder floored rift 1-2m wide 10m long and 6m deep -- no way on.

$\otimes$: 19/7
Location: Larger shakehole towards Jultayu from 17/7 and 18/7, separated by a little ridge from 14/7 and 15/7.
Description: Climb down among loose chair-sized boulders to a partly overhung alcove, from where stones can be dropped 5m into the interstices between boulders and rock. A crawl winds back to the surface.

$\oslash$: 20/7
Location: Close to the grassy shakeholes forming the very bottom of the Jou, some 25m uphill on the Northern rim in an area of parallel southwest-northeast joints.
Description: Entrance is a rectangular manhole, climbable for 2.5m to a steep loose soil ramp with fragile roof and walls. This is followed 6m later by a fine elliptical shaft of 35m which lands in a 3m x 6m chamber. 3m above the floor a strongly draughting diagonal crack in the northwestern wall opens to 5cm and offers a view through the rockwall into an adjacent chamber. Attempts were made to get through to the parallel shaft, but without success.

$\otimes$: 21/7
Location: On the northern rim of the bowl, 30m to the West of the Bayeya col.
Description: A small hole in a corner overgrown with plants. 15m pitch followed by a squeeze leads to a choked chamber -- no way on.

$\otimes$: 22/7
Location: Outside the northern rim of the Jou 150m west and a little downhill from 23/7.
Description: A small entrance leads to an 8m freeclimb to a snow filled chamber. Impassable.

$\otimes$: 23/7
Location: On the Northern rim of the Jou, 100m up along the ridge from 21/7.
Description: 25m deep shaft landing on a rubble floor. A squeeze led into a small chamber with no way on.

$\otimes$: 24/7
Location: Two thirds of the way from 21/7 to 23/7. An 8m wide snow-filled pit with a rock bridge halfway along. 20m deep to the snow and boulders.
Description: A climb down between the boulders led to a further drop of 7m down a rift. Any possible way on in the rift was blocked by boulders.

$\otimes$: 25/7
Location: 40m into the bowl towards Cuvicente from 19/7.
Description: Shallow boulder floored rift.

?: 26/7
A shakehole a few metres from 25/7.

$\otimes$: 27/7
Location: 25m towards Jultayu from 19/7 close to 16/7.
Description: Steep shakehole funnels into a square pot 4m across and 6m deep. A stooping height hole in the Southern corner leads to a chamber which is choked with sand. To the left a bedding plane closes down after 2m.

$\oslash$: 28/7
Location: On the top of Bar Hill, taking the left of two grassy gullies after the Bayeya col.
Description: A series of pitches 37m deep ends in a boulder floored chamber. In one corner a rift continues but is blocked by a chockstone. The local dip is South and not North as elsewhere in the Jultayu area. Could be the results of local folding -- maybe Bar Hill is a huge erratic tilted out of its original position.

$\otimes$: 29/7
Location: A few metres towards Cuvicente from 19/7.
Description: 3m deep manhole leads to a tight rift.

$\otimes$: 30/7
Location: 30m towards Jultayu from 16/7, close to 6/7.
Description: Large doline at the intersection of two rifts -- no way on.

$\otimes$: 31/7
Location: From 30/7 follow the rift leading South past the next shakehole.
Description: Boulder floored rift that can be walked through.

$\oslash$: 32/7
Position uncertain. Possibly diggable.

$\otimes$: 33/7
Choked shakehole 20m from 25/7 (in the direction of Juracao).

$\otimes$: 34/7
Large shakehole just beyond 33/7 with a choked sink in the Eastern wall.

$\otimes$: 35/7
Location: A few metres from 34/7.
Description: A 3m shaft no way on at the bottom.

$\oslash$: 36/7
Location: At the lower end of the shakehole behind 35/7.
Description: A 3m climb in a loose boulder choke that might be diggable.

$\otimes$: 37/7
Location: 5m from 36/7.
Description: A choked shaft.

$\otimes$: 38/7
Location: Across the long shakehole just above 37/7.
Description: 7m high vertical slot visible from the Bayeya ridge which close down after a few metres. Before this a hole in the Southeast wall can be entered to a climb up that ends just below the surface.

$\otimes$: 39/7
Location: By 18/7
Description: Unenterable fissure.

$\oslash$: 40/7
Location: Reached by going up and to the West of 7/7, 25m to the West of 21/7.
Description: Entrance under a very large boulder gives access to a 16m pitch down a twisting rift. At floor level a squeeze leads to an undescended 10m pitch.

$\otimes$: 41/7
Location: Outside the Northern rim of the bowl, 70m downhill from 23/7.
Description: 2m wide rift in the slope with boulder floor 11m below the lower end. The rift closes down in both directions.

$\otimes$: 42/7
Location: 6m wide circular pit in steep slope to North of 22/7 visible as a slot from 41/7.
Description: A handline or ladder is advisable for the descent, but the rift appears choked in all directions.

$\O$: 43/7
Location: 50m straight downslope from 22/7. Above 46/7 on left (true right) hand side of limestone.
Description: Apparently undescended.

$\O$: 44/7
Location: Small hole 5m S of 46/7.
Description: Undescended 5m climb.

$\O$: 45/7
Location: 30m WNW of 46/7.
Description: Rift with snow plug: possible way on past snow.

$\oslash$: 46/7
Location: To west of Jultayu bowl, 50m North of 43/7.
Description: Large rift filled with snow, no way on in 1987 or early 1992; may be worth another look in a low snow year.

$\oslash$: 47/7 Skull Cave
Location: An inconspicuous entrance in a gravelly slope, near the Jultayu path, slightly below the level of 2/7.
Description: See elsewhere.

$\otimes$: 48/7
Location: Go to lowest part of ridge between Jultayu and Cuvicente. Walk along ridge towards Cuvicente until stopped by sheer rock wall. Contour at this level about 30-50m further. Large cairn by entrance. In a good place to drop into upstream 2/7. 83 ${}^\circ$ to Jultayu. 6 ${}^\circ$ to Ario Refugio
Description: 10m deep shaft. No way on at the bottom.

$\O$: unnumbered
Location: Jultayu 144 ${}^\circ$ and 10m W of 23/7 on Jou ridge.
Description: Small rift parallel to 23/7, 1m wide and 3m long. Stones rattle for 3-4s. 40m pitch?

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Gavin Lowe