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I remember reading a fantasy novel when I was younger. The book was in English, read in Canada in the late 80s early-to-mid 90s.

The big part of the book that sticks in my head is the party passing through a tunnel for a long time. Initially walking, then stooped over, then on their hands and knees, eventually crawling. At some point a party member ended up on their back, and they came upon a flooded section of the tunnel they needed to swim through.

The party was adventuring on some form of quest, I believe their goal was to pass information or to stop someone in particular. I'd put it in the fantasy genre. Swords, evil doers, magic and the like.

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    What makes this a fantasy or sci-fi story?
    – Valorum
    Commented Jul 13, 2014 at 16:14
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    Do you remember any of the elements that made it a fantasy ?
    – Stan
    Commented Jul 13, 2014 at 16:14
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    Edited to add more about the fantasy connection. Imagine remembering a chunk of "The Return of the King": there was some guys trying to get to a mountain, some other guys trying to defend something from the oncoming hordes, etc. You may remember it was "Fantasy", but have a hard time with your decades old memory remembering why.
    – preinheimer
    Commented Jul 13, 2014 at 19:25
  • The tunnel part is reminicent of Sleipnir by Linda Evans, the protagonist spends a long time travelling through a tunnel/cave system like you mentioned. He's on his way to confront the Norse god Odin
    – Dai
    Commented Jan 14, 2015 at 19:29

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I know the scene you are thinking of. It is from The Weirdstone of Brisingamen by Alan Garner. The two children and the two dwarves are going through a tight tunnel underground. Near the end, they come across a flooded section and have no choice (Garner uses the phrase "the choice that is no choice") but to keep going, hoping the water-filled section is not too long.

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    This sounds good. I've procured the book for my device, I'll read and update. Thanks!
    – preinheimer
    Commented Jul 13, 2014 at 22:23
  • Hi, I've read the book, it it definitely has a crawling for caves section. I'm left struggling as to whether or not it's the book I remember. I thought the caves section was longer in book time (days or weeks), and that bit with someone stuck belly up for a while. The book didn't seem at all familiar as I read it, which makes me think this may be the first time I've read it. All that said, it's been like 16 years since I read it, so it's possible my memory is mixing things up.
    – preinheimer
    Commented Jul 22, 2014 at 11:55
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I agree with The Weirdstone of Brisingamen. At one point they have to navigate a hairpin bend, and the boy (Colin) nearly gets stuck, as he is taller than the others. He manages to turn over, and is better off than the others, as they are now on their backs. Being mildly claustrophobic, I hate that bit!

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It sounds like the book Rhapsody: Child of Blood (Symphony of Ages, #1) by Elizabeth Haydon, except that this novel was written in 1999.

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    Welcome to SFF:SE. Your answer would be improved by explaining how your suggestion matches what OP is looking for. Also, OP has already accepted a different answer, which essentially guarantees that your answer is wrong.
    – Politank-Z
    Commented Dec 20, 2017 at 6:40
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I believe it's this - I specifically remember the tunnel scene as well!

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/299085.Goblins_in_the_Castle

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    Welcome to SciFi.SE! OP already accepted a different answer 4 1/2 years ago; could you explain why you believe your answer is a better fit?
    – F1Krazy
    Commented Jan 21, 2019 at 22:27
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    Hi there. The asker has found their book, as noted by the checkmark next to one of the above answers, but it can be a good thing to have other potential matches. Could you edit in the parts that match? :)
    – Jenayah
    Commented Jan 21, 2019 at 22:27
  • Thanks for taking a swing! I've now read Goblins in the Castle, and while it does have the tunnel scene, it wasn't quite as I remembered, and lacked a few of the details I really did remember.
    – preinheimer
    Commented Feb 15, 2019 at 18:28
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I'm looking for a book with a somewhat similar scene right now and just before clicking the link to this page was directed towards Rowan of Rin as a possible match. It turns out it's not the one I'm looking for, but sounds like it could be the one you remember. Note in particular the descriptions of chapters 10-12 in this summary, which include a cave with a body of water and tight tunnels that must be crawled through for days.

https://deltoraquest.fandom.com/wiki/Rowan_of_Rin_(book)

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    Hi, welcome to SF&F. Thanks for posting this, but instead of explaining how you found it, it would be better if you have more details of the story. Maybe describe the tunnel scene a bit more, and add a short summary of the book so the person asking the question can recognize other details.
    – DavidW
    Commented Feb 18, 2021 at 3:41
  • I've ordered the book, i'll try to read it this week.
    – preinheimer
    Commented Mar 7, 2021 at 19:14

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