CHIRINGKOL, Mahadeo nala
25.233300,90.875000
Description
Several entrances give access to an apparently perennial stream cave, which functions as a subterranean short-cut for the Mahadeo River (note 1), and starts most easily on the »far side« (east) of an apparently deep, blue pool of unknown size, from where a swim through a low »Blue Arch Entrance« without identified dimensions »ends« (sports cavers' patois) in about a mile of generally ENE-WSW and NNE-SSW aligned stream cave passages (modified after BROOKS & SMART 1995: 47). ETYMOLOGY: Needless to say this is not a »Mahadeo River Cave« (BROOKS & SMART 1995: 46-47) that takes the entire Mahadeo River but a stream cave that happens to lie in the valley of the Bengali speaking plains people's Mahadeo Nala (Hindi: Mahadeva nala) or »Great God's River Valley« named after the Hindu's god Shiva --an allochthonous name pleasing some far away bureaucrats and would-be mass tourism providers. The team of sports cavers, who reported to have explored this cave in search of recreational adventure, did not identify the local name for this »Chiringkol« (sinkhole cave) where the Garo "chi" is the word for »water, stream, river« and "chiring" translates by something along the lines of »flowing under« and means a sink, while "kol" is a »home« (house, shelter) and "rongkol" would be an extensive cave. SITUATION: At a vague location in the »Mahadeo Nala«, the "Great Canyon" of tourist information leaflets and professional Internet websites. Brooks (1995 Mss "Meghalaya … British / German cave tourism … February 1994" undated): »… down the Mahadeo river … the valley floor was found to have cut a grorge through limestone. The reported cave entrance was found to be a low arch on the far side of a deep pool …« According to BROOKS & SMART (1995: 46), »The entrance to the cave lies in the left (west) wall of the Mahadeo river gorge, (also known as "The Grand Canyon"). It is best approached by a path leading off [note 2] from the track that connects the Forester's Offices (Hatisia Beat, Mahadeo Range), to the Jawarlahaal Nehru Helipad. Just past a small village [without identified name] on the left [without direction] some 6 km from the Forester's Offices, a track on the east (right) weaves down through the forest to emerge on the west (right) bank of Mahadeo river. Ten minutes walking upstream leads to an obvious large cave entrance in the east (right) wall of the river gorge, and 300 m beyond this is a 20 m diameter pool in the left wall with a stream flowing into it. This is the main entrance.« CAVE DESCRIPTION 1: Brooks (1995 Mss "Meghalaya … cave tourism … February 1994" undated): »The reported cave entrance was found to be a low arch on the far side of a deep pool where a swim through the entrance lead to an impressive stream cave …« CAVE DESCRIPTION 2: (modified after BROOKS & SMART 1995: 47): A swim east across the entrance pool to the far wall and then north through the low Blue Arch Entrance continues 70 m (now inside the cave) before it enters a »large chamber« without known dimensions. Some 40 m downstream east-southeast along a stream cave passage, a pile of collapse boulders can be bypassed on both sides. About 250 m from the entrance (70 m beyond the collapse), the almost man-high stream passage, apparently active throughout the year, takes a right-angle bend south-southwest and enters the so-called "Railway Tunnel" enlarging to an estimated 15 by 10 m (either wide and high or high and wide) and leading via the so-called »Four-way Junction« (an intersection about 450 m from the entrance) not only some 350 m straight to sand chokes containing flood debris but also (about 90 m SSW from the intersection) to some 120 m of stooping passage --initially off to the west but later downstream to the south-west-- leading to another, second sump, preposterously mis-nomed "Quicksand Sump" as if the slurry there had anything to do with quicksand. A »canal« from the intersection east and past »oxbows« (bypasses) and alcoves occupied by many roosting bats, requires 100 m of swimming to gain yet another, a third sump (clear and »large« but of unknown dimensions). A passage from the intersection west leads after 20 m to a swimming lake (20 m long) and continues (up to estimated 10 m high and 5 to 10 m wide) sand-floored to a confusing boulder collapse area (about 150 m WNW from the intersection) with several possibly, difficult to reconstruct routes: »At this boulder collapse small passages can be followed to chokes straight ahead [sic!] and up to the right [sic!]. The main way on is left [sic!] and several routes lead on through and over boulders to enter … a hading rift (18 x 0.6 to 2 m). The passage at the top of the rift leads to a shallow pool from which two passages lead off. Right [sic!] is a stooping passage leading to a choke and left [sic!] is 50 m of walking passage to a T-junction. A passage entering on left [sic!] about halfway before the T-junction leads to a deep canal, 20 m long, which connects back to the hading rift. At the T-junction the right-hand [sic!] passage leads directly to an entrance and daylight after about 10 m. To the left [sic!] a daylight entrance, Boulder Entrance, is also reached by following a totuous route through a massive boulder ruckle for 70 m. Daylight can also be seen at several other points in this area. Back at the start of the hading rift, a low, sandy crawl can be followed into a series of higher level sandy phreatic tubes [note 3] averaging about 1 x 1.5 m in diameter [which] … at one point debauch [sic!] into an entrance about 15 m above the river level …« CAVE LIFE: Bats (Chiroptera) and an unknown kind of animal leaving foot prints reminiscent of a tiger's.
NOTE 1: According to BROOKS & SMART (1995: 47), »… this impressive river cave occupies an unusual location in the side of the gorge, running parallel with the river. It obviously acts as a sink for the river, although the water would seem to return to the river gorge after a short distance.« NOTE 2: If I understand BROOKS & SMART (1995: 46) properly, this »path« is »leading off« into an unidentified direction (east or west) from a point that lies at a travelling distance of about 6 km from the »Forester's Offices (Hatisia Beat, Mahadeo Range« towards the »Jawarlahaal Nehru Helipad«. NOTE 3: It is quite a surprise to learn about »phreatic tubes« above the vadose level of this stream cave as the phreatic zone encompasses the water saturated rock below the water table, within which all conduits and sub-conduits are water filled. Probably meant were relic tubes of phreatic origin, now abandoned and indicating a senile phase of cave development. NOTE 4: Needless to say one has to turn this view upside down to put it on grounds as it was, of course, not the "survey" which yielded »a total of 1697 metres of cave passage« (Brooks 1995 Mss "Meghalaya …" undated) but the cave passages which yielded a survey length of 1697.3 m.
Documents
Bibliography 25/03/2016History
EXPLORATION HISTORY: 1994.02.21: Unidentified »local forest guides« (no names mentioned) guided Christopher M. "Blitz" Smart (book), Boycott, Antony 'Tony', Helen and Rob Harper to the cave, which was "surveyed" (sports caver standards) to a degree yielding a "survey" (total sum of survey leg lengths) but only a very quick and easy survey (sketch plan). 1994.02.22: »Heavy rain in Balpakram and fuel shortage prevented the jeep from even getting to the Forestry Office [where prerequisite »local forest guides« could be picked up] so Tony, Rob, Helen and Chris stayed in bed and watched elephants« (BROOKS & SMART 1995: 22). 1994.02.25: »Tony, Rob, Helen and Chris continued the investigation / exploration of Mahadeo River Cave (Chirenkol) …« (BROOKS & SMART 1995: 22). According to Brooks (1995 Mss "Meghalaya … British / German cave tourism … February 1994" undated), the »… stream cave called Mahadeo River Cave (Chirenkol) … was explored, photographed and surveyed of this and the following day to yield a total of 1697 metres of cave passage« (note 5).
Caves nearby
| Distance (km) | Name | Length (m) | Depth (m) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0.0 | MAHADEO BAT CAVE (aa -) | ||
| 0.0 | MAKKREKOL, Mahadeo nala | ||
| 0.5 | GNIGIPA TSANGSIM CHIWARIKOL | ||
| 0.6 | CHONGIPA TSANGSIM SAGAKOL | ||
| 1.9 | STALACTITE CAVE, Mahadeo nala (aa -) | ||
| 3.1 | KANAI CAVE | ||
| 3.1 | KANAI RESURGENCE | ||
| 3.1 | KANAI SINK | ||
| 3.1 | BANDINI JALANG, Kanai Nala |