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Breakish Cave

Skye, Breakish, Invernessshire.

Cave at Breakish.

A low bedding plane entrance at the foot of a small cliff on the west bank of Allt Lochain Cruinn, 120 m upstream of the bridge on the Broadford - Kyleakin road.

The 6 m long entrance crawl contracts to a tight tube before emerging 1.5 m above the floor of an attractive stream passage. The upstream passage continues at stooping height for a few metres to a point where the floor steps up to a bedding plane with profuse formations. At the foot of a step, a low crawl at floor level leads to a small chamber and a further crawl continues to where a larger passage is glimpsed through decorated bedding but ends in boulder choke. Downstream, a roomy streamway leads to 'the Door', a square opening where the stream cuts the calcite vein. Beyond, a crawl on the right (leading to a chamber with a mud bank with marine shells of some antiquity) and a well decorated oxbow. The passage lowers to a wide bedding plane which divides. Each branch ends, becoming too low, a few metres from Breakish Bridge Cave. A crossover crawl links the branches &and a small chamber on the right branch has a draughting high level boulder choke.

Entrance crawl dug out & explored by cavers from Moldywarps Speleological Group, June 1982. [MSG Journal]

The caves were at risk in 1982 by blasting for road works [GSG Bulletin].

David Morrison visited a knowledgeable local with interests in mountains, geology etc., to give him a tour of the Breakish caves. He lives in the lowest house beside the surface burn which feeds the caves. 'I had been in touch with Seonachan Macleod after receiving an email from Goon asking about a lost cave in Broadford. After some research, it seems the 'lost cave' is actually a lost souterrain. On our way up the burn Seonachan pointed out a hole in the true left bank and told David that some years past a party of English cavers (presumably Moldywarps SG -Ed.) had taken a look at it saying that it didn't go very far. David went for a look and found that after a duck and a squeeze the passage led on for about 3-4 metres to a double bend and another 3-4 metres of sitting height passage ending in a sump. The total length is about 9 metres, with little prospect for more. The two main caves were then toured and some possible extensions looked at'.

Breakish Caves, Skye, Invernessshire, extension.

David Morrison noticed a tight passage in December 2008 and returned march 2009 with Toby Speight and some tools. 'The tube was too tight even for Toby. But a slot in ceiling was enlarged to gain entrance to a small breakdown chamber. Toby found the way on but digging is needed. A second spur passage was found near the end of the cave. A low wet inlet crawl went 5-6 m, ending in choke. Not on the original survey but easy to spot. Has something shifted? I returned 1 week later with Ritchie. We smashed the rock at Toby's dig. Ritchie slid through into a parallel hands and knees passage. On the left was a flat out and too low. On the right was an easy crawl to a steep sediment choke, full of shells. Total new passage found 12-15 m. The dig at the choke beyond the formations, near the entrance, continues too low but produced a pig's jawbone of some vintage'.

Alternative Names: None recorded.

Hydrographic Feeds: Allt Lochain Cruinn

Hydrographic Resurgences: Allt Lochain Cruinn