The club publishes a regular professionally printed newsletter containing a round up of members’ caving trip reports, news, reviews, photos and more. This is currently being produced quarterly and is sent to club members as well as UK and international caving clubs in a publication exchange scheme.
All newsletter issues from year 2000 onwards are available on this website as PDF files, and can be downloaded by volume and issue number using the Newsletter Archive page.
Latest Issues (2022 - Volume 64)
Use the buttons to view or download the PDF version (members login required to access these latest issues).
Nos. 1-3, January-March 2022
- CSS Annual Dinner Weekend - Review of the CSS Annual Dinner held at The Old Rectory in January 2022.
- A Trip to Rampgill Mine - Horse Level - A trip report from Rampgill Mine in Cumbria, with a journey to see the Horse Whimsey in Scaleburn Vein and a foray into Rampgill Vein.
- Charterhouse Cave - The Charterhouse trip that almost never was, from the CSS Mendip Meet in February 2022.
- St Cuthbert’s Swallet - Another trip that took place on the CSS Mendip Meet, with a smattering of SRT and good dose of interesting obstacles in St Cuthbert’s Swallet.
- An Uphill Struggle - A look at the small caves and interesting features of Uphill Quarry near Weston-super-Mare in Somerset.
- Wookey Hole Update - Update on digging progress in Wookey Hole, plus trip reports from Wookey 24 and including a diving/caving exchange trip through the new connection.
- Old Daren Sunday School - Looking Back and Forward - A recap on work done so far on the Old Daren Sunday School, with an update on current progress and what still remains to be done.
- Stay Connected - How to stay in the know about CSS events using the members’ chat forums.
- Aggy Bat Count 2022 - Report from the Annual Aggy Bat Count that took place in January 2022 with data and statistics compared to previous years, plus data from counts done in Ogof Cnwc.
- New OFD Callout System - Information about the changes to access to OFD and the new Digital Destination Board app.
- Wendy Camp Cleared! - The removal of the long abandoned “Wendy Camp” in Epocalypse Way, Daren Cilau.
- A-Z of Caves Part 3 - The concluding instalment of Andy Watson’s A-Z of caves, including caves with letters S to Z.
Nos. 4-6, April-June 2022
- New Locks at Whitewalls - Information about the new external and internal locking system at Whitewalls and how to use it.
- Tywarnhayle Copper Mine - A trip to Tywarnhayle Mine, an interesting copper mine in located in Cornwall.
- Mull - Mackinnon's Cave - Mackinnon's Cave and other sites of spelaeological interest along the coastal walk of Lochbuie to Carsaig on the Isle of Mull.
- Three Trefil Caves - A day caving in Ogof Ap Robert, Garn-y-Bica and Tarddiad Rhymni with plenty of walking in between.
- Hydrology and digging potential in the environs of Trefil - A brief look at the possibility of an undiscovered cave system in the Trefil area based on hydrological test results.
- A Trip to Llygad Lllwchwr 1 & 2 - Trip report from the April CSS trip to the Llygad Llwchwr caves and the interesting tale of the discovery and history of Llygad Lllwchwr 1.
- It's a Cracker - The first of a collection of trip reports from the CSS Yorkshire Trip. This from a trip from It's a Cracker to Notts 2 in Leck Fell.
- Car Pot and Juniper Gulf - After finding a Car Pot more constricted than usual the team on to Juniper Gulf instead. Which turned out to be lucky for a sheep in need of rescue.
- Short Drop Cave and Gavel Pot - A trip from Short Drop Cave to Gavel Pot and back, with a bit of rigging complication along the way.
- Notts Pot - A trip to Notts Pot with two different routes rigged, and a lot of water on the lower pitches.
- Lancaster Hole - Wilf Taylor's trip - Photos from a Lancaster Hole to Wilf Taylor's trip.
- Pool Sink - A trip to Pool Sink with some alternative rigging options suitable for low water conditions.
- Magnetometer Pot - An evening trip to Magnetometer Pot as far as Caton Hall.
- Scanty Lardos Pot - Trip report from this interesting and seemingly under-visited cave in Upper Littondale.
- Big Meanie - An exchange trip between Big Meanie and Death's Head Hole in Leck Fell, where the constriction in the Big Meanie entrance proved 'interesting' for some.
- Swinsto! - The classic Swinsto pull-through trip, one of the best trips in the Dales!
Nos. 7-9, July-September 2022
Arnaud, Aude, France. Photo by Martyn Farr.
- New Cottage Windows - New double glazed windows fitted in Whitewalls.
- Could We Put Trefil on the Map - A suggested plan of action for digging in the environs of Trefil and Ffynnon Shon Sheffrey.
- Waterhay to Cardiff via Whitewalls - A two day cycling adventure from Wiltshire to South Wales.
- Powerballs Recipe - Recipe for 'Powerballs', the perfect energy-rich snack for caving, cycling and outdoor pursuits.
- Beeline - A gear review for Beeline, a handlebar mounted cycling navigational device.
- Adventures in Aude - Caving and sightseeing in the Aude area of France, with trips to Tunnel de Pierre Lys, Font de Dotz, Gouffre de Matte Arnaude and Grotte de Limousis.
- Wookey Hole Culverts - A post-dive exploration of the culverts beneath the Wookey Hole Paper Mill.
- This is what the trendy caver was wearing back in the early 60s - Before and after photos from a Swildon's Hole trip in the 1960s.
- The Burren on a Bike - A cycling journey to the Burren to look at various on-going and prospective digging projects there.
- The Old, The Bold and The Cold Visit Ogof Craig a Ffynnon - A caving trip to Craig a Ffynnon and some tips on cave photography.
- The 1984 Series - A caving trip to the 1984 Series, a rarely visited collector's piece in Agen Allwedd with some new discoveries.
- A Jubilee of New Passage - The discovery of Anniversary Chamber and Jubilee Passage on a trip to the 1984 series in Agen Allwedd.
- CSS Meets 2022 - Details of club meets for the remainder of 2022.
- Cwmorthin/Oakeley Slate Quarry - CSS trip to the Cwmorthin/Oakeley slate mines in Blaenau Ffestiniog, North Wales. With two round trips and a visit to an old showmine, plenty of artefacts and some gymnastic srt.
- Daren Cilau Fixed Aids - Restaurant at the End of the Universe - News of ongoing rigging improvements carried out by the Daren Diggers in the environs of REU.
- Maenofferen Slate Mine - The trip to Maenofferen Slate Mine on the CSS North Wales weekend.
- The Abercwmeiddaw Binoculars - The boreholes in Abercwmeiddaw Quarry made by the George Hunter Tunnelling Machine (also used in Maenofferen Slate Mine).
Nos. 10-12, October-December 2022
- Upcoming Meets - Meets list for club events Jan-March 2023.
- New CSS Rope Washer - News of the newly installed 'Scrubbarope' and 'Ropeaway' installed outside Whitewalls for easier rope cleaning and coiling.
- Wookey 22 - Edmund's Chamber - A photography trip to Wookey 22 via the relatively recently discovered 'dry route', with the photographic result included.
- A Tale of Two Round Trips - Write up of the two SRT round trips in Peak Cavern undertaken on the CSS Derbyshire Meet - JH & Ride of the Valkyries and White River Series.
- Eldon Hole - Trip report from Eldon Hole, one of the Sunday trips from the October Derbyshire Meet.
- P8 - Report from the trip to P8, also on the Sunday of the Oct Derbyshire Meet.
- 18th International Speleological Union Congress - A summary of the UIS caving congress that took place in Le-Bouget-du Lac, France, July 2022.
- CSS Annual Dinner and AGM - Information relating the upcoming 2023 Annual Dinner and AGM weekend.
- Club Website Updates - News relating to the newly revamped and enhanced club website and the new features added.
- Daren Cilau - Beyond Hard Rock Café - Route description taking you on a journey from the Hard Rock Café camp to Last Spit Choke, the very end of the cave roughly 6 miles from the surface.
- Canyoning in Hell Gill - A canyoning trip through the Hell Gill gorge on the Cumbria/Yorkshire border in the Eden Valley.
- Bye Bye Bruce Bedford - Tribute to former CSS member Bruce Bedford and the many contributions he made to the caving and literary world before his death on November 2022 aged 79.
- Earlier Mine Exploration - Reminiscence of a surprising artefact discovered on a mine exploration trip.
- Agen Allwedd - Midnight Passage - Write up of 2 digging trips and a recent breakthrough in Midnight Passage in Agen Allwedd, coupled with information of previous digging efforts in the area.
- Index to Volume 64 - Index to contents of the 4 issues of CSS Newsletters Vol. 64 (2022).
Previous issues of the CSS Newsletter are available in the archive