Chuck Sutherland
A Tennessee naturalist's photography, maps, and projects.
2016/11/20
Why We Don't Share Cave Locations
People often ask myself and other cavers to give them cave locations and cave
information. I always reply, "I don't give out cave locations". Not knowing the
history of reasons why I do this, I am often asked why. This is my response.
We love to hang out with, and take new people caving. Some see us as stingy
stodgy keepers of secrets (and some cavers are), but I see myself as a gate
keeper. I am not all powerful, and I am fallible, but my knowledge extends far
beyond what an inexperienced caver (or spelunker as they often call themselves)
does.
That is important because the conservation ethic we practice on the surface
doesn't always work underground. Also the way we understand our environment to
keep ourselves safe doesn't work the same way underground. These two key issues
are the main reason why I won't give out cave locations.
First, let's address the conservation issue. If you consider the combined
historical, archaeological, paleontological, biological, and mineralogical
resources of a cave to be finite (which they are), then they can be used up.
We consume cave resources by destroying them. And history has shown us over and
over again that is what happens when the general public is aware of a cave.
Pictured below is a civil war ladder that was burned in a campfire inside a
cave no doubt by fools burning their own cultural history. That ladder had been
there from at least Civil War era, perhaps longer.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/chucksutherland/6138611367
Geologic resources are vandalized. Folks spray paint on walls and formations.
They break formations accidentally and on purpose and remove them from the
cave. These resources do not renew on a timescale that humans can appreciate.
In other words, they will not return in our lifetime.
Bats and other critters in caves can be adversely affected by human presence. A
recent cave I visited had an estimated 500 dead endangered gray bats laying on
the ground because someone went through the cave during the wrong time of year.
I think that if the person had been properly educated those bats lives would
have been saved, and bats lives are worth saving.
I have seen caves that have been dug up where people were pot hunting (looking
for Native American artifacts). I have seen prehistoric Native American art
covered with modern day spray paint. And in case you're wondering why the
Native American's art is more important than modern spray paint (yes, this is a
stupid question that I am frequently asked) then please bear with me while I
use the rules of capitalism to assess the values of each.
Spraypaint - common, easy to find and reproduce. The value of knowing who
Johnny was with at this undisclosed period of time is virtually worthless
because it is in such prolific quantity. It's less than worthless, because it's
potentially obstructing other information of more value. See below.
Native American art - rare, difficult to find, impossible to reproduce. The
limited nature of this particular resource makes Native American art very
valuable by supply and demand. No one is selling this stuff, but for the people
who study it, it is highly valuable.
Below is a photo of modern vandalism adjacent to bear claw marks. Bears haven't
lived in caves in Tennessee for some time. I can't speculate as to the age of
these claw marks, but they may be Pleistocene. I wonder if the vandal would
have felt it so important to leave their mark in the mud if they knew what it
was next to?
https://www.flickr.com/photos/chucksutherland/30937515890
None of this even touches on the safety issues of caving. Briefly, we cave with
helmets, three sources of light, changes of batteries, gloves, boots, elbow
pads and knee pads, and a backpack with food, water, and a simple first aid
kit. That's the basic stuff. Developing an understanding of what clothing to
wear (hint: avoid cotton), and fine tuning your gear can be a long and
expensive process unless you have a more experienced group of people who are
willing to share their knowledge.
We like to teach people the conservation ethic that we learned. And we like
folks to be safe underground. This is no different than teaching your kid how
to drive a car before giving them keys. You want your kid to be safe, and you
don't want your kid to drive into someone's home and destroy it.
If you're interested in getting involved in caving, don't ask where caves are,
ask where cavers are. Many of us attend monthly meetings at local cave clubs
called grottos. I am a member of the Upper Cumberland and Spencer Mountain
Grottoes. This is where you want to cut your teeth in caving. You want to meet
people, network, and go on caving trips. We hope one day you'll be the one
finding new caves and leading caving trips.
Here's where you can find you local grotto, and learn more about caving,
http://caves.org.
http://chuck-sutherland.blogspot.com/2016/11/why-we-dont-share-cave-locations.html
***********************************************8
Jerry Atkinson
[email protected]
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