texascavers Digest 25 Apr 2012 00:54:11 -0000 Issue 1534
Topics (messages 19872 through 19873):
book review: Guide to Indiana caves
19872 by: Mixon Bill
Punkin Cave Easter Survey Trip Report
19873 by: Saj Zappitello
Administrivia:
To subscribe to the digest, e-mail:
<[email protected]>
To unsubscribe from the digest, e-mail:
<[email protected]>
To post to the list, e-mail:
<[email protected]>
----------------------------------------------------------------------
--- Begin Message ---
"A Guide to Caves and Karst of Indiana." Samuel S. Frushour, with a
contribution by Julian Lewis and Salisa Lewis. Indiana University
Press, Bloomington; 2012. ISBN 978-0-253-00096-5. 5.5 by 8.5 inches,
152 pages, softbound. $22.
Since "Caves of Indiana" was published by the Indiana Geological
Survey in 1961, there have been some books on specific Indiana caves,
notably Wyandotte and Binkleys, but the only general books on the
state have been NSS convention guidebooks. "Caves of Indiana' was a
traditional, for the time, catalog of caves, with locations, brief
descriptions, and maps. I am on the cover of that book, but I didn't
realize it until more than ten years later, when I saw a larger copy
of the photograph and recognized my helmet.
This new popular introduction to Indiana caves and karst, written by a
caver recently retired from the state's geological survey, is part of
the press's Indiana Natural Science series. It is mainly an elementary
introduction to the geology and biology of Indiana's caves and karst
areas. Some of the karst areas, such as the Lost River and the
sinkholes of the Mitchell Plain (now apparently the Mitchell Plateau)
have long been famous and, in fact, literally textbook examples, as in
Thornbury's "Principles of Geomorphology" of 1954. (The fact that
Thrornbury was at Indiana University might have had something to do
with that, but his long chapter on karst was and still is unusual for
an introductory textbook.) These and other features of the
physiographic provinces in Indiana that have caves are described and
illustrated by color photographs or drawings on nearly every page. I
would have liked to see a discussion of the special problems of
groundwater pollution in karst. The biology chapter by the Lewises is
less satisfactory, being almost entirely a catalog of critters, with
no overview of cave ecology or evolution. It is also especially prone
to use technical words without defining them, although many can be
found in the glossary.
Besides the scientific content, the book includes descriptions and
simple maps of the show caves in the state, and there are also maps
and descriptions of eight wild caves, all of them simple horizontal
caves managed by state agencies and suitable for beginners. There is
good information on safety and conservation for cavers, largely based
on the little NSS booklet on responsible caving, and an appendix lists
national and state caving organizations.
The book is somewhat disorganized and could have benefited from
editing in other ways, but this guide meets its educational goal
fairly well.--Bill Mixon
----------------------------------------
Nature is a hanging judge.
----------------------------------------
You may "reply" to the address this message
came from, but for long-term use, save:
Personal: [email protected]
AMCS: [email protected] or [email protected]
--- End Message ---
--- Begin Message ---
After tracking down the complete survey notes, here is the anxiously
awaited trip report from the Punkin Cave survey over Easter weekend...
Punkin Cave Survey, Easter Weekend, April 6-8, 2012
Friday: Don Arburn worked on the cabin porch roof and other cabin
improvement projects. Ellie Watson, Jen Foote, Phil Thommes, and
Garrett Jorgensen started the day with a familiarization trip into
Deep Cave. Maya Ye Liu, Matt Zappitello, and Saj Zappitello arrived
on-site early afternoon. Matt rigged both drops into Punkin, and Phil
and Garrett tested the ropes. Turns were taken conquering (or
almost-conquering) the alternate entrance (very tight squeeze) into
Deep Cave. Then Matt, Saj, and Maya embarked on a familiarization trip
into Deep Cave, accompanied by Ellie, Jen, Phil, and Garrett for more
familiarization. Geary Schindel, Sue Schindel, and Jacqui Thomas
arrived on Friday evening. Some folks watched a movie while other
folks were serenaded by tuba practice.
Saturday: Matt was designated trip leader en absentia due to his utter
excitement about caving in general and this trip in particular. He
dutifully organized teams and assigned leads with assistance from
Ellie. Don and Maya journeyed into Davey Jones Locker and re-surveyed
35.95 meters with 13 shots. Ellie and Geary surveyed 29.89 meters with
9 shots in Sleepy Hollow. Saj, Matt, and Jacqui went back to Saj’s
exciting lead in Superstition Maze and surveyed 68.87 meters with 24
shots. Garrett, Phil, and Jen surveyed 32.67 meters with 14 shots in
Sleep Hollow including squeezing through a very tight lead… someone
may have temporarily lost their pants. Sue enjoyed the day top-side as
surface support and camp guard. Considerably more ramen was consumed
than usual on this trip without our fearless leader and chef
extraordinaire, Crash Kennedy.
Sunday: Matt successfully learned how to use the family size coffee
pot. Everyone packed up, cleaned up, and headed home.
A total of 167.38 meters were surveyed over the weekend. According to
Crash’s calculations: this gives Punkin Cave a new total of 4345.34
meters of surveyed passages, making it the 339th longest cave survey
in the US, and still the 10th longest in Texas. Punkin is now only 109
meters from passing See My Shovel Cave again for 9th place, 205 meters
from passing Cave Without a Name for 8th place, and 669 meters from
passing Longhorn Cavern for 7th place. Yeehaw!
~Saj Zappitello
--- End Message ---
