Operation W.E.K.A
Cutting Creek
Michael Batey getting ready to dive Cutting Creek
Cutting Creek is one of the shorter dives on our radar but a pretty one none the less The cave itself is a 120m swimthrough with an air bell in the middle at the base of a rockpile making it a perfect training site for new members to get aquainted with the environmental aspects of cave diving on the West coast.
Mike Batey re-surfacing at the end of cutting creek into the colapse sinkhole
To dive Cutting Creek, it must first be located. The cave is situated just up the road from Winchead Resurgence but lies deeper in the beach forrest making it harder to find.
Gearing up in the small entrance pool is easier said than done without stirring up the visibility which is usually 1-4m. Divers must pass through the entrance archway single file before the cave opens up into a single phreatic passage. Moving along the cave, it is apparant that there has been some serious flow at some stage causing scolloping on the walls and tree trunks to be washed into the dark zone. Halfway along a rockpile is encountered with an airbell above where divers can rest and talk before continuing. The passage then continues at a depth of around 8m before gradually becoming shallower before reaching the surface on the other side.
Once in the far sinkhole divers can remove equipment and follow the streamway to two other small sumps that need to be dived. another sinkhole with water in it has also been found inbetween cutting creek and Winchead but will prove difficult to dive due to the nature of the entrance.
