Apocalypse. In biblical terms it might
shiver fear down your spine, but the word’s origins can be found in ancient
Greek and means to uncover or reveal. The arduous cliff like shaft
serving as the gateway to its secrets marked the beginning of a journey not
soon to be forgotten.
The cave system’s ability to deliver on an
innumerable amount of caving techniques is vast. The first impression, which
did not last for too long, was that this cave would be an easy walk through.
The size of the first corridor was spacious and a casual chattering eased the mood
after negotiating our way down the 50m shaft. A right turn led us deeper into
inviting darkness, eager to reveal as its name suggests. We were in the old
world part of Apocalypse.
Stromatolite fossils are abundant here.
These circular structures are fossilised single celled organisms which lived in
shallow seas approximately 2,5 billion years ago. They are the reason for life
in all its splendour because of their ability to absorb carbon dioxide and
release oxygen. It was such a privilege to be surrounded by so much history and
quite astonishing to be in a place which was totally different to what we see
today. Deep in a cave the residue of a shallow sea remains.
We were looking for a crawl through which
served as the link between the old world and the new world. Our map of the cave
disappeared with Steven and Irene and we had the pleasure of exploring this vast
cave system on our own accord. John victoriously found the narrow opening and
we were well on our way to dive into the depths of Apocalypse’s soul. Corridors
with narrow slits and exceptionally small passages were abundant. Herman
definitely won the award for conquering the most amazing squeeze of the day
when he passed a French Connection
like passage and nearly left his pants behind.
The new world had many surprises. We found
little nooks decorated in flowstone, numerous crystals reminding me of corals
and mud... Lots of mud. The walls had a soft, velvety texture and relatively
soon became the epicentre of Michelle’s absolute fascination. We also learned
at this point that everything was probably just about halfway. We kind of
accepted that this was John’s standard answer to all questions regarding distance
and depth. Needless to say, the corridors echoed our laughter to unknown places
at random.
A seriously angled mud slide awaited our
ascent and John went first with Michelle following. The aftermath of their
climbing looked like Wolverine clawed his way up there. It turned out that the
gecko-like skill acquired at a previous caving experience was about the only
fitting way to get up there. A wrong turn by me took us to a small corridor
ending in a crystal clear puddle of water. Mesmerizing crystals were growing
abundantly in this small space and shimmered like diamonds on the walls. John
was just around the corner, but we had to retrace our steps in an attempt to
save this little jewel for many years to come.
We finally made it back to our bags which
were left behind due to size and we started to make our way to the entrance.
Everybody was in good spirit and a lot of joking and playing kept our bruised
and tired bodies going. You could literally see a cloud of steam surrounding
everyone as we worked our way out. We finally made it back to a big corridor
similar to the starting point. A cool breeze brushed past my face and I knew we
were not far from the opening.
Apocalypse is an amazing cave and most definitely
surprised me in every way. The scenery changed constantly and, at times, felt
like a best of compilation from other
caves. When we surfaced, the setting sun was partially covered by a smear of
clouds and angel like rays shone down through the gaps in the cloud. Michelle
and Herman both found it most comfortable to lie down, smiling and tjirping
happily. Dusk turned to night and we eventually found ourselves on our way
home.
Karin Human
:-D
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