Hunter's Hole

Hunter’s Hole is a cave in the Mendip Hills near Priddy in Somerset. It lies behind the Hunters Lodge Inn, where visitors can leave their cars. A permanent ladder leads down into the cave, which sits in a small hollow among trees. The entrance is not obvious, so cavers look for the dip behind the pub. The cave was first entered after Wessex and BEC cavers dug their way in during 1954. The cave is valued for practising single rope technique because it is mostly vertical shafts and drops. Its main chamber is called the railway tunnel. Priddy Caves Site of Special Scientific Interest recognises Hunter’s Hole as an excellent example of a shaft complex that drains a closed depression. The roof shows soil and boulder bridges, scalloped walls and speleothem-lined rifts. Unlike other caves at Priddy, it appears not to have formed as a stream swallet. Visitors find a vertical cave system with several shafts leading to the main chamber. The railway tunnel chamber is spacious enough for training groups. The roof above the shafts displays varied geological features. The surrounding Mendip Hills provide quiet walking once cavers return to the surface. The pub offers a place to warm up after exploring the cave.