This mini-account is lacerated.

It was usual journey to Basckunchak - in my favorites caves.

I hadn’t time for full-size account, so that limited the very interesting moments, depicted to bare documentary language. Diggers Scamp, Bes and Kasatick were here. It was first visit in caves for the two latter. We purchase tickets a couple days, and, sure, places weren’t already. But as a result we was luck, and we with Kasatick passed almost 5 hours in railway station terminal and became possessors of last three tickets, all they being throw about different coaches…

5After journey lasted 5 hours, we arrived. As way on highway closed by frontier guards now, we started along station right away, extended on the steppe on kilometer and beginning our slow advanced by tangent with highway, where soon sprang out safely.

…We came to caves. As now time is not the one, even couple years ago, we couldn’t may passed the night in the main sleeping room – huntsmen conducted excursion and turned out of the cave all tourists. ( It was clear: there was a territory of frontier area and nature reserve).

I beginning searched for alternative passing place. I has an eye to three places, but all they was rejected – not long ago water stream was in small room near entry number 4, and there was very wetly. We can’t climbed in the room which being in the ending of «Syr» («Cheese») with rucksacks – there lately fell usual mini-landslip. I resolutely rejected spending the night in the ground. I arrived here not for that I slept at zero depth. Meanwhile day was breaking… And I remembered about the small sleeping room, which was at once after main. Of course, it was very crowded there, and height wasn’t more one meters, but it was even place for sleeping. We undergrounded there. We unpacked, cooked eat and get ready for sleeping. We with Bes decided to go in to the ground, scrambled out to big sleeping room and heard voices! At the very same time we flew through narrow chap in small sleeping room, switched off lights and became sat and listened.

… This excursion was leading in main sleeping room, and guides related any fairy-tales above 20 minutes. Only 5 meters, narrow passage and large stone in front of it partitioned off us and people, so that we wasn’t in obvious point-blank, but sometimes somebody commenced stubborn lighting from torch in our passage, and then we felt discomfort – what if somebody wanted check what is there – farther? Some more we were glade from moments, when people from back side of stone has «silent minutes». They switched off lights and sat in the silence couple minutes. In such moments I wanted very much stole up to they, flashed out by portable flash and bawled wicked voice. Consequence of this could be catastrophically for us.

In general 5 excursions were attached to us in these festive days! Sometimes we were awake in the presence of they, sometimes simply slept… I brought photo camera, tripod and searchlight from photographing with long time of exposure. I wanted this for a long time. When I leave from home, my searchlight was fit to work, after arrival I verified his serviceability. When I wanted to make first shot it not switched on. I open it and almost fell – short circuit occurred inside, all wires were fuse, accumulator swelled up, plastic melted down and warped. As a result I leave searchlight there. It was very pity, I did a great deal with it, and as well it was my first digger’s torch, so all has turned out. But in result I brought not bad photos all the same, part of them you can see below, part - in the photogallery.

We got in Syr, get out from 4th entrance, rose from ravine and collided face to face with girl, which sat in tent and looked to us… We all became torpid together, she solely asked: « Are you Sergey? » Unfortunately I wasn’t Sergey, and so we some get out and decided take a rest half an hour at ground. And here people beginning moved in from horizon, they was with bicycle and afoot. I finally became torpid after twentieth person!

…As proved to be, they were schoolboys and schoolgirls from Astrakhan, and some more two persons were from Samara. We acquainted with them, as proved, they even knew our site. It is trifle, but it is pleasant. All they settled in ground – they has official permit for visit, and we started to climb for sleeping an hour or so and collect our belongings. When we climbed out Samarian slept already. Then we gave they our email through wakerife children, gave they rest of the water and went to the railway juniction.

Dog ran with children – it attached with they just after frontier guards. It was big white cool dog. And then we beginning to leaved, it ran after us, not paid attention to our persuasions. Night was extreme ly dark, moonless and cloudy. It was pitch-dark, only white spot of dog came nearer to us, we fed it bread, and it ran away again to reconnaissance. Walked backwards was difficult in the light of what we must get all round the frontier guardians, but such we was far-away – we not knew. May it was 500 meters, or 5 kilometers? No referent points whatever was in night steppe… As a result I beginning made a hook beforehand, and we get out at all what the devil, nearly in ending of terribly long railway junction, and reached to station practical by rails and sat in train.

This is all. It is roughly a quarter of that I would write, if I have just a little more time :-)

You can see the best photos from this and another expeditions in this page of digger’s photo gallery.

 

There is in the UBC. It is simple underground life.	It is the games with pseudo-HDR in the main tunnel.	It is the ghosts of White Speleologists.
Bes generated dandelions from the smoke.	Main tunnel.	It is test of new type of headlamp with impulsive mode.
The main Sleeping Room.	The siphon to the Sleeping Room.	The Black Speleologists!
The view from above to Kasatick in Chemodan Room.	We were catching Bes to the lights.	"Speleologist’s prayer. "
On the entrance to the Labyrinth.	One of the large halls of the cave.	Some moonscape.
Chemodan (Trunk) (It is a stone, which be hanging in 2 fulcrums.)	In the deep to dozens meters…	Bes stormed vertical meandr.
Neighbors is arrival.	Here we slept. It is half of meter to the ceiling.	It is just the kind dog.

Digger Scamp.

Тranslation by Uho.