texascavers Digest 20 Apr 2009 15:25:48 -0000 Issue 744
Topics (messages 10515 through 10529):
Cavers in Houston?
10515 by: Mike Flannigan
Re: first trip to El Sotano
10516 by: Minton, Mark
Cave You Tube video
10517 by: speleosteele.tx.rr.com
Re: ICS
10518 by: John P. Brooks
10519 by: George Veni
Grotto meeting for 4/29
10520 by: Don Cooper
10521 by: Don Cooper
10522 by: Stefan Creaser
Cave divers explore deepest parts of Weeki Wachee Springs, Florida :
10523 by: JerryAtkin.aol.com
Re: NSS WNS Urgent
10524 by: Mark.Alman.l-3com.com
TSA Convention
10525 by: Lyndon Tiu
10528 by: Denise P
10529 by: Mark.Alman.l-3com.com
Re: warning--way politically incorrect
10526 by: Mixon Bill
Re: A Couple of May and June Caving Events for YOU!
10527 by: Mark.Alman.l-3com.com
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 ---
Is there a caving get-together is Houston today?
Must be - 6" so far and it's still raining hard.
Mike
--- End Message ---
--- Begin Message ---
Bill,
>Does anybody know if a good trip report was ever published on the first
>descent (January 1972) of El Sótano del Barro, Quetétaro? All I can find is a
>couple of paragraphs by Pete Strickland in the 1972 Speleo Digest.
What about Terry Raines' report in AMCS Newsletter vol. 3, no. 5, p.
107-112?
Mark Minton
--- End Message ---
--- Begin Message ---
Last week Diana Tomchick, Emily Zuber (Anacortes, WA), Charles Fromen, and I
were caving together in the Southern Mexico state of Guerrero. We took a tour
of Grutas de Juxtlahuaca, a national park. I helped explore and map this cave
in 1971, before it was a national park, and when there was a dirt footpath to
it. This is a video of our cave guide, Andres Ortega, playing drapery
formations like bongo drums. The Ortega family has guided people in this cave
for more than 50 years.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r2ooZ6aDlXk
Bill
--- End Message ---
--- Begin Message ---
Why was the River Walk tour canceled? Is there a threat of spreading WNS to
the pigeons?
On 4/17/09 8:58 AM, "Jim Kennedy" <[email protected]> wrote:
> Yes, but be prepared to rigorously follow all decon procedures. No bat caves
> will be visited during that trip.
>
> -- Crash
>
>
> From: Preston Forsythe [mailto:[email protected]]
> Sent: Thu 4/16/2009 10:01 PM
> To: Cave Tex
> Subject: [Texascavers] ICS
>
> Is the Northern Mexico pre-convention trip still on?
>
> Preston in western KY
>
> ---------------------------------------------------------------------
> Visit our website: http://texascavers.com <http://texascavers.com/>
> To unsubscribe, e-mail: [email protected]
> For additional commands, e-mail: [email protected]
>
>
--- End Message ---
--- Begin Message ---
I've been warning for months that people need to register by April 16th for
a guaranteed place on one of the ICS trips requiring pre-registration. We
need to reserve buses, vans, etc., well in advance and can't afford to wait
until the last minute to cancel them if the number of registrations won't
cover the expenses. The River Walk trip didn't have enough registrations,
but we found a way to offer essentially the same trip to the few who did
register.
Because of WNS, we have delayed decisions on other trips and will announce
them on the 5th. This gives people time to register for trips if they
haven't already done us. There will be nothing happening on campus on
Wednesday during the ICS; the Wednesday trips are all that is offered. We
still have more than a dozen great trips scheduled and I encourage everyone
to register for a Wednesday trip soon. For details see:
http://www.ics2009.us/wed.html
George
From: John P. Brooks [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Sunday, April 19, 2009 10:31 AM
To: Jim Kennedy; Preston Forsythe; Cave Tex
Subject: Re: [Texascavers] ICS
Why was the River Walk tour canceled? Is there a threat of spreading WNS to
the pigeons?
On 4/17/09 8:58 AM, "Jim Kennedy" <[email protected]> wrote:
Yes, but be prepared to rigorously follow all decon procedures. No bat caves
will be visited during that trip.
-- Crash
_____
From: Preston Forsythe [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Thu 4/16/2009 10:01 PM
To: Cave Tex
Subject: [Texascavers] ICS
Is the Northern Mexico pre-convention trip still on?
Preston in western KY
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Visit our website: http://texascavers.com <http://texascavers.com/>
<http://texascavers.com/>
To unsubscribe, e-mail: [email protected]
For additional commands, e-mail: [email protected]
--- End Message ---
--- Begin Message ---
I have a somewhat off-topic speaker arranged for the next grotto meeting,
but I'm pretty sure that no one will object.
This should be quite interesting.
It's been sanctioned by Gary Franklin already and I'm quite stoked about it.
The speaker has asked me if he can use his own laptop.
I'm pretty sure he can, but I'm just checking.
Thanks
-WaV
--- End Message ---
--- Begin Message ---
Apologies for unspecific nature of post -
That would be the UT Underground Grotto for Everyone...
-WaV
On Sun, Apr 19, 2009 at 8:35 PM, R D Milhollin <[email protected]>wrote:
> Which grotto are you referring to?
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Don Cooper <[email protected]>
> Sent: Sunday, April 19, 2009 4:12 PM
> To: Cavers, Texas <[email protected]>
> Subject: [Texascavers] Grotto meeting for 4/29
>
> I have a somewhat off-topic speaker arranged for the next grotto meeting,
> but I'm pretty sure that no one will object.
> This should be quite interesting.
> It's been sanctioned by Gary Franklin already and I'm quite stoked about it
--- End Message ---
--- Begin Message ---
Before David gets there... aren't all Grotto's Underground?
Cheers,
Stefan
From: Don Cooper [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Monday, April 20, 2009 12:15 AM
To: Cavers, Texas
Subject: Re: [Texascavers] Grotto meeting for 4/29
Apologies for unspecific nature of post -
That would be the UT Underground Grotto for Everyone...
-WaV
On Sun, Apr 19, 2009 at 8:35 PM, R D Milhollin <[email protected]>
wrote:
Which grotto are you referring to?
-----Original Message-----
From: Don Cooper <[email protected]>
Sent: Sunday, April 19, 2009 4:12 PM
To: Cavers, Texas <[email protected]>
Subject: [Texascavers] Grotto meeting for 4/29
I have a somewhat off-topic speaker arranged for the next grotto
meeting, but I'm pretty sure that no one will object.
This should be quite interesting.
It's been sanctioned by Gary Franklin already and I'm quite stoked about
it
--
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The contents of this email and any attachments are
confidential and may also be privileged. If you are not the intended recipient,
please notify the sender immediately and do not disclose the contents to any
other person, use it for any purpose, or store or copy the information in any
medium. Thank you.
--- End Message ---
--- Begin Message ---
Cave divers explore deepest parts of Weeki Wachee Springs
By _Logan Neill_ (http://www.tampabay.com/writers/article380274.ece) and
_Joel Anderson_ (http://www.tampabay.com/writers/article383088.ece) , Times
Staff Writers
In Print: Monday, April 20, 2009
____________________________________
Brett Hemphill, a cave diver with Karst Underwater Research of Tampa,
begins his descent to explore the Weeki Wachee Springs cave system Saturday.
WEEKI WACHEE — Picking up where he left off two years ago, Brett Hemphill
pushed even deeper and deeper into the underwater abyss Saturday. Already,
no one has ever made it any farther into a spring than Hemphill and his
diving team.
Yet the work in — and underneath — Weeki Wachee Springs is only
beginning.
"Everything went pretty well out there," Hemphill said Sunday. "But we had
to tone things down a bit. We're going to try to get back into the deep
section."
Of course, deep is relative.
In August 2007, Hemphill and 19 other divers were able to confirm that
Weeki Wachee Springs, home of the world-famous mermaids, was indeed the
deepest in the United States. They made it 407 feet into the springs.
On Saturday, Hemphill and a team of divers from his Tampa nonprofit
company, Karst Underwater Research, returned to the spring to continue their
exploration of the underwater cave system. As with the previous dives, drought
conditions once again made it possible for divers to access the narrow
crevices leading to the deepest parts into the spring.
"It would be practically impossible to do any other time," said Hemphill,
42, who led the 2007 dive more than 4,600 feet into the cave system.
This time, the objective was to explore and map an area about a mile to
the southwest of the attraction, near a Southwest Florida Water Management
District water sampling well at U.S. 19 and Northcliffe Boulevard.
'Very dangerous place'
Early Saturday, a team of divers helped set up extra air tanks and
equipment in shallower areas of the spring for Hemphill to use to survey and
map
the cave system — all part of the extensive safety precautions to prepare
for a dive.
"It looks peaceful but it can be a very dangerous place," said Walter
Pickel, a dive safety specialist who helped prepare Hemphill.
Wearing a "dry" suit equipped with a heated vest to protect his torso from
the prolonged effects of the 72-degree water, Hemphill entered the spring
at 10:35 a.m. Saturday. Once inside, a torpedo-shaped water scooter allowed
him to glide through the water.
Hemphill said he went almost 5,000 feet into the cave system — nearly 400
feet longer than the last dive. Along the way, Hemphill was able to recover
samples of environmentally safe ruby red dye that park officials had
previously released into the springs.
"They told me to keep an eye out for it," Hemphill said. "And lo and
behold, I saw a milky layer of this beautiful ruby red color."
The dive ended about 8:40 p.m. Hemphill said he cut this dive a little
short because he went alone, owing to a regular diving partner who fell ill
before the exploration.
Researchers think the Weeki Wachee caves are connected to another system
known as Twin Dees Spring, about a half mile from the attraction. Divers
have previously tracked more than 2,000 feet of passages at about 300 feet
deep in some places.
As with the 2007 dive, Karst had to obtain a special permit from the
Southwest Florida Water Management District and get consent from the
attraction's management in order to enter the spring.
Hemphill said he will return to Weeki Wachee Springs on Saturday, hoping
to take advantage of the dry conditions before summer rains increase the
flow in the spring making it unsafe for further dives.
"It's a huge sacrifice of time and until we're finished, it is not fun,"
Hemphill said. "But once we're finished, we'll have that sense of
accomplishment. That's is what we're waiting for."
_http://www.tampabay.com/news/humaninterest/article993502.ece_
(http://www.tampabay.com/news/humaninterest/article993502.ece)
**************Access 350+ FREE radio stations anytime from anywhere on the
web. Get the Radio Toolbar!
(http://toolbar.aol.com/aolradio/download.html?ncid=emlcntusdown00000003)
--- End Message ---
--- Begin Message ---
All,
here is some info I received from the NSS on the WNS issue, as well as a sample
letter the NSS is asking cavers to use in writing their Congressman and US
Senator to help draw attention to this alarming phenomenon.
In addition to this, Butch Fralia has also added a WNS section on the TSA
webpage (www.cavetexas.org) with informational links, sanitation procedures,
and other valuable sources in regard to this dangerous situation.
Finally, Jim Kennedy of the BCI will be giving a talk at this weekend's TSA
Convention on the subject of White Nose Syndrome.
This is a very timely subject and I hope that all that read this can attend.
Thanks and see you this weekend in Kerrville!
Mark Alman
----- Forwarded Message ----
From: Keith D. Wheeland <[email protected]>
Sent: Friday, April 17, 2009 9:03:18 AM
Subject: NSS WNS Urgent
Hi All IOs,
Please share this with your IO.
Today I have two items concerning WNS, one from the NSS President and one from
the NSS Liaison for WNS. Peter Youngbaer has this to say.
Could you please forward this link to the NSS policy statement on WNS to the
IOs? It's the top link under Resources on the NSS WNS website:
http://www.caves.org/WNS/WNS%20Info.htm
In addition, here is one of the more moving pieces of video I've seen showing
the devastation of WNS - shot at Vermont's Mt. Aeolus Bat Cave. For those
outside the WNS region, this is what it's all about.
http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=4920589n%3fsource=search_video
Thank you,
Peter
--------------------------------------------------
And this from Gordon Birkhimer our President.
--------------------------------------------------
INTRODUCTION
Fellow Cavers and National Speleological Society Members,
Never in history of the NSS has any President been confronted with a
situation that threatens to change caving as drastically as we used to
know it. I'm certain you understand the devastation WNS has caused the
bat population in caves in the North Eastern United States. The NSS
Leadership has sent a letter requesting U.S. Senate Hearings in an
appeal to obtain adequate research funding.
I am now appealing to our NSS Internal Organizations and individual
members to get involved and join in the fight against White Nose
Syndrome (WNS). Please use my letter as a template and change the
addressee to your own Senator or Congressperson. The E-mail addresses
can be found at http://www.senate.gov/ or http://www.house.gov/ to
forward your own personalized letter to your Senator or Congressional
Representative.
Remember, the sooner we solve WNS, the sooner we can get caving back to
normal. The NSS Leadership has also recently released our Policy
Statement in an attempt to contain WNS and it can be found here:
http://www.caves.org/WNS/NSS%20WNS%20Policy%20Stmt%20090408.pdf
Thank you for your participation,
Gordon Birkhimer
President National Speleological Society
------------------------------------------
SAMPLE LETTER
April 16, 2009
Dear ,
The National Speleological Society requests a Senate hearing with the
Committee on Environment and Public Works, Subcommittee on Fish,
Wildlife and Water, and requests immediate emergency funding to address
the White Nose Syndrome affecting cave bats.
As the nation's largest organized caving and cave conservation
organization, with nearly 12,000 members, we are deeply concerned about
the loss of bats to our ecological system. Bats are our primary
nocturnal insectivores, eating up to their own body weight in insects
every night. The loss of bats to our ecosystem would mean a huge
increase in pests that destroy agricultural crops, gardens, and carry
potentially threatening diseases for humans, such as West Nile Virus.
White Nose Bat Syndrome (WNS) has already devastated the cave dwelling
bat populations of the northeastern United States, causing 95% to 100%
bat mortality at affected sites. This phenomenon has spread quickly
over the past two years. It is estimated that more than a million bats
are known to be dead. The states currently documented as being affected
are: New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, New York, Connecticut, New
Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia. The nation's major
hibernacula are west of West Virginia; if this
disease is not stopped we may experience extinction of several cave
dwelling bat species in a very short time period. This phenomenon was
initially documented in New York in 2006 and is thought to be an
introduced fungus of unknown origin. In addition, if WNS spreads to
threaten bats in the western U.S., additional impacts to farmers and
orchardists could face severe losses as several of these bat species are
major pollinators of fruits and vegetables.
The NSS itself has raised over $40,000 from our members in support of
five different research projects, but that is a fraction of the total
need. Some other private sources, such as Bat Conservation
International, have also stepped forward with funding in the short term,
and some USFWS funding has been able to be directed to WNS. However,
the WNS situation has escalated to a crisis point where significant
financial resources from Congress are urgently needed.
We can't underscore enough the critical need for research funding for
this summer season. With bats ending their hibernation, follow-up
activities as they emerge, as they give birth and nurse in their
maternity colonies, as they consume insects over the summer and begin to
put on weight for next fall's mating and hibernation season, and as they
fly many miles to summer roosts, it is absolutely vital that researchers
have the funds to conduct tests over the summer season. Without those
resources, another year will go by, and WNS will continue to spread
without information that could be obtained this year.
Following is a link to a story by Beth Daley from The Boston Globe,
where researchers describe the scope of the problem, and tell of the
funding issues:
_http://www.boston.com/business/articles/2009/04/06/sick_bats_pr_problem_could_prove_to_be_deadly/_
For the past year, the NSS has had a Liaison on White Nose Syndrome, who
is in daily communication with the federal and state wildlife officials
and scientists working on WNS. From our discussions with scientists and
wildlife officials, we believe that something in the range of $6 million
in priority research funding for WNS is needed. We ask that it be spread
roughly equally among several entities: the US Fish and Wildlife
Service, the US Geological Survey, and the National Science Foundation.
Those would be the three most important agencies for funding, but
others, such as the United States Forest Service, the National Park
Service, the Bureau of Land Management, and even the Department of
Defense, are all involved.
It is important to have funding in different areas in order to keep a
check and balance in the research system and to afford direct access to
the parties intimately involved in the research. For the National
Science Foundation, it is very important that they have a source of
funds for academic researchers to apply to competitively.
We also ask that specific language be included that directs a
significant portion of the money to get to the field this summer season.
Timing is of the essence, and the normal internal processes are not
sufficiently responsive to address the realities of the progress of this
devastating illness. For example, the NSF has a "RAPID" grant program,
but in actuality it takes more than nine months for funds to hit the
street. We urge you to expedite that process with emergency language.
Thank you very much for attention to this major environmental concern.
We are happy to offer our expertise to help in any way.
Sincerely,
END OF SAMPLE LETTER
----------------------------------------------------
-- Keith D. Wheeland, NSS 2878, Chair NSS IO Committee
2191 Mt. View Ave.
State College, PA 16801-7214
814-238-2057
[email protected] (Use this forwarding address in your address book)
IO Website - www.caves.org/committee/i-o/
Annual Report & Updates- www.nssio.org <http://www.nssio.org/>
--- End Message ---
--- Begin Message ---
Hey Mark,
Do you know what time (earliest) I can show up at the camp site?
What time are you planning on arriving?
--
Lyndon Tiu
--- End Message ---
--- Begin Message ---
Also, could you remind us what meals are available? I forget if TCMA is having
breakfast one day and if anything is available for Friday night (I think I am
confusing this convention with TCR).
Thanks,
Denise
> Date: Mon, 20 Apr 2009 07:09:16 -0700
> CC: [email protected]
> From: [email protected]
> To: [email protected]
> Subject: [Texascavers] TSA Convention
>
> Hey Mark,
>
> Do you know what time (earliest) I can show up at the camp site?
>
> What time are you planning on arriving?
>
> --
> Lyndon Tiu
>
> ---------------------------------------------------------------------
> Visit our website: http://texascavers.com
> To unsubscribe, e-mail: [email protected]
> For additional commands, e-mail: [email protected]
>
_________________________________________________________________
Rediscover Hotmail®: Now available on your iPhone or BlackBerry
http://windowslive.com/RediscoverHotmail?ocid=TXT_TAGLM_WL_HM_Rediscover_Mobile2_042009
--- End Message ---
--- Begin Message ---
The TCMA is doing their excellent benefit breakfast Sunday AM.
Cost is a measly $5 and is much appreciated, especially the refried beans, as I
usually end up slinging them!
The BBQ feed by Stefan Cresar and his Crew will be Saturday night and is
included with the Convention fee.
Friday night, you're on your own, but as Lyndon stated, you can run into town
or tag along with someone.
Thanks,
Mark
________________________________
From: Denise P [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Mon 4/20/2009 10:12 AM
To: Alman, Mark @ IRP
Cc: TexasCavers
Subject: RE: [Texascavers] TSA Convention
Also, could you remind us what meals are available? I forget if TCMA is having
breakfast one day and if anything is available for Friday night (I think I am
confusing this convention with TCR).
Thanks,
Denise
> Date: Mon, 20 Apr 2009 07:09:16 -0700
> CC: [email protected]
> From: [email protected]
> To: [email protected]
> Subject: [Texascavers] TSA Convention
>
> Hey Mark,
>
> Do you know what time (earliest) I can show up at the camp site?
>
> What time are you planning on arriving?
>
> --
> Lyndon Tiu
>
> ---------------------------------------------------------------------
> Visit our website: http://texascavers.com
> To unsubscribe, e-mail: [email protected]
> For additional commands, e-mail: [email protected]
>
________________________________
Rediscover Hotmail®: Now available on your iPhone or BlackBerry Check it out.
<http://windowslive.com/RediscoverHotmail?ocid=TXT_TAGLM_WL_HM_Rediscover_Mobile2_042009>
--- End Message ---
--- Begin Message ---
Bats (or more accurately people who are fond of bats) have been
causing problems for cavers for years. It is remarkable that so many
cavers are making such an effort to fight something that could
potentially solve the problems though no fault of their own.
-- Mixon
---------------------------------------------
He who renders warfare fatal to all engaged in it will be the greatest
benefactor the world has yet known. - Sir Richard Burton
----------------------------------------------
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 ---
All,
diggers and implements of digging are also needed for the Salado weekend.
Hope to see y'all then.
Thanks!
Mark
________________________________
Attention all Texas cavers!
There are a couple of caving events coming up that I wanted to make you aware
of:
Salado, TX Ranch Ridge Walkathon, Saturday, May 2nd, 2009 -
Paul Unger has been contacted and all Texas cavers have been invited to
explore, map, and survey some caves near Salado, TX. We also will be doing some
ridge walking, exploring other possible caves, enjoying a nice camping area
(!), utilizing their swim hole (!!), and enjoying some excellent camaraderie
and weather!
Contact Mark for info and details. Salado is halfway between Georgetown and
Temple, an easy drive from Austin and DFW.
Please bring your own water, food, camping gear and vertical and survey gear,
if you have it.
Longhorn Caverns State Park Dig, Saturday, June 6th -
This is a pre-ICS project! We will be meeting at the visitors center at
Longhorn Caverns State Park at 9 AM, Saturday, June 7th, and caravan from there
to the Crownover entrance. We will be prepping the area for a possible thru
trip during ICS, hanging out at the beautiful state park, and conducting a
possible thru trip. Please bring your own water, food, and camping gear as the
Visitors area at the park is available Friday and Saturday nights.
Contact Mark, if you plan on attending!
So, after you have enjoyed talking about caving at the TSA Convention, come on
out to these projects, as well as the always popular CBSP Project, and get down
and dirty in some real caves.
If you're in college, you can always cram for those exams Sunday night, after
you get back!
Hope to see you and give me a holler if you're coming!
Thanks and I'll see you at the Convention in only 8 days!
Mark
--- End Message ---
