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Traligill Rising

Assynt, Traligill, Sutherland.

The main resurgence for the River Traligill, located in a small gorge beneath a pronounced 6 m drop. Normally the riverbed upstream of the rising is dry but in wet weather, it flows along its entire length concealing the entrance to the rising below a pool at the foot of the waterfall In flood conditions the entrance can become sumped. The river emerges from an inclined rift plane and progress is made initially in fairly deep water.

After 20 m, progress at stream level becomes too tight to follow but a climb up to the left reaches a roomier section of the thrust and this is followed for 15 m to a constricted sump pool. An initial flat out underwater squeeze leads down the thrust to a roomy straightforward dive of 34 m. This surfaces in a gently rising thrust plane from which 30 m of sporting passage leads to a small cascade and a boulder pile. This is easily passed to reach an unstable boulder chamber where 15 m of careful progress reaches the roomy sump 2. This has been probed for about 28 m. It is more than 1 m high, 4 m wide and can be seen to continue in favourable style for at least another 5 m. The furthest point must be close to that reached in the downstream sump of Uamha a' Bhristedeadh-Duile.

GSG passed sump 1 in 1990 and reached the current limit in 2012.

Alternate Names: None recorded.

Notes: The entrance is not directly below the waterfall but slightly further (5-6 m) east.

The conditions at the entrance are a good indicator of the conditions within the cave . If it is necessary to wade a stream to enter the cave then it is probably a wet crawl to where it quickly becomes impassable. Only in dry or drought conditions can the full extent be explored.

Hydrographic Feeds: River Traligill

Hydrographic Resurgences: River Traligill