After I left the cafe in the town of Bristol, I explored the area around the town. This too was by accident, as I couldn't make up my mind which road would be more scenic going north.
About 2 miles out of town, I found one of the best swimming holes I ever layed eyes on. Lots of young kids were jumping off of a large boulder about 8 feet above the rapids. It looked deep enough to jump. So it thought I would warm up there before heading to the area where the more experience jumpers were taking a leap. Unfortunately, I failed to stretch first before jumping, and ended up pulling my calf muscle to the point I could no longer enjoy the walking around on the rocky areas. I spent most of the rest of the afternoon there "thinking" about the meaning of life and enjoying this wonderful place. There is a large waterfall that a guy was floating off of in an inner tube. That looked dangerous, but lots of fun. Behind the waterfall was a large rock shelter. It was hot and the sun was shining, and the water was only a few degrees colder than the Guadalupe, so it felt refreshing to swim here. There is one jumping point called Eagle's Nest. It is about 50 feet high and you have to clear about 15 feet of exposed boulders if not more. And the water at the landing is only about 5 to 6 foot deep. Nobody was jumping there, but I was told people get seriously hurt at this place often, and they have a death every couple of years. After leaving there, I seriously considered heading south back towards Texas and skipping the convention. Eventually I came to my senses, I headed north, and drove thru the rain for nearly an hour to arrive at the Howdy Party. Since I wasn't registered and registration was closed, this created a headache for at least 3 of the convention staff, but they jumped thru hurdles to accomodate me. I do sincerely apologize to them for creating this hassle, when they obviously already had a full plate of things to deal with. We had a nice dinner. I thought the strawberries were good, and the ice cream was excellent. The music band was entertaining, although I know very little about blue-grass music. It appeared they had a decent turn out for the Howdy Party. I could only guess about 550 people +/- 50. About 15 or more cavers from Texas lined up for a group photo. There were more that wouldn't get in the photo or had already left. For me, that is most likely the highlight of the convention. I have to face reality and start heading south back to Texas. I hate to miss the fun stuff going on like the Terminal Siphons concert, especially since Albert Ogden will be performing. The only other things I got to see was a brief look at some of the cartographic entries, and the antique print exhibit of some photos from the 1930's. I would like to thank all the cavers who know me for such a warm welcome. That made the long drive worth it. Now I have to put my "thinking cap" back on, and figure out how I am going to get home. I have no idea whether I will go thru central Vermont, or across Lake Champlain into New York. Vermont is the most likely choice, as I will most likely never have a chance to come back to the beautiful Green Mountain State. I hope to stop off at a commercial cave in Virginia on the way home. One thing I learned is that the aroma in the air of cow dung is known as "Vermont perfume." To be continued... David Locklear --------------------------------------------------------------------- Visit our website: http://texascavers.com To unsubscribe, e-mail: [email protected] For additional commands, e-mail: [email protected]
