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One of the easiest but often overlooked ways to escape a potholes is with a partner assist. You'd be amazed how much an extra person can help, even with no specialized gear. There are a lot of ways that teams can work together to escape potholes. Here are a few ideas to get you started:
The Boost - One or more people boost the climber up. It works best to have one person support each foot. This can be hard to do it the water is too deep.
The Return Hand - Once one person makes it out, they reach down and list the next person out.
The Handline - Once one person makes it out, they act as a meat anchor or sit on a pack that has a tether tied to it. This gives the next climber a handline to use when climbing.
A 2-to-1 Haul - Once one person makes it out, they attach one end of the rope to an anchor, lower the middle part of the rope to the person in the pothole, and hold onto the other end. The person in the pothole runs the rope through a carabiner on their harness (short easy hauls) or through a Micro Traxion on their harness (long hard hauls). The person in the pothole grabs onto the strand of rope attached to the anchor and pulls up while the person at the top also pulls their strand. The mechanical advantage makes the haul fast and easy.
The partner assist is almost always the best option if it works. It's fast and simple and doesn't require complicated gear.
A partner assist is difficult if the water is too deep or the pothole rim is too high.