In Reply to: Re: Sion Hill/Rathbawn Lake Caves posted by Nom on April 20, 2006 at 16:04:27:

There were indeed caves and crevasses in the Rathbawn area locally known as The Rocks. This area was a limestone outcrop that over years had become over grown with hazel, whitethorns, blackberry and even elderberry. In Autumn it provided an abundance of berries, nuts and sloes. To us youngsters in the 60's it provided a natural playground with old paths through this "jungle" which zigzagged in every direction. Once inside the cover of this jungle it was easy to loose your sense of direction and get lost. You had to be careful with your footing as the limestone was moss covered and heavily crevassed (clints and grikes I think they are called. Some of these crevasses were narrow and shallow but others coul be quite deep. At the edge of the rocks opposite what was then McGarry's house the limestone met the bog and here it had small cliff face of about 10 feet. There was a pothole here on top of the cliff which went down through the rock and then exited the cliff face a ground level. It used to be a dare for youngsters to descend through the hole and come out at the bottom. I once had a scary 10 minutes stuck in this cave when my clothimg got caught near the bottom of the pothole, I could neither go up nor down. My pals did everything they could to free me,pushing me down and any trying to pull me at the same time. Eventually they managed to work me free and back to safety. To this day I have a distinct dislike of small enclosed spaces.
The Rocks and their caves and crevasses are now only things of memory as they have all been filled over and built on.