Fall VAR 2009

September 25-27, 2009
Battle of Cedar Creek Campground
Route 11, between Strasburg and Middletown, Virginia

Hosted by BATS [Battlefield Area Troglodyte Society] and DINGO [Deep IN Guano] Grotto

Pre-registration is now CLOSED. Please pay at the door. You can save us a little work by downloading and filling out the Registration Form and bringing it with you to VAR.

Of Particular Note:

No fires. No dogs. Camping might be tight, depending on how many show up. We might be sharing tent stakes-it will seem like VARs in the old days. Please do not bring your largest tent!

We will be recycling. Be sure to put your cans in the VAR Recycling bins. Please pay attention and don't throw trash in them.

Schedule

FRIDAY

Afternoon Delights: If you arrive at a decent hour, plan to paddle or swim on Cedar Creek. Hike in the woods. See old friends and make new ones. Tour the Route 11 Potato Chip Factory in nearby Mount Jackson (open until 5).

Dinner: We highly recommend eating dinner at the local Italian restaurant in Middletown, Italian Touch. We love the food—maybe we’ll see you there! While not part of the VAR, you will likely find cavers there.

S'mores for Kids of All Ages: on Friday night at 8:30 p.m. Bring a marshmallow stick!

Party: We're planning to have a "caver band" to play some rock-and-roll and bluegrass in the evening. We'll have beer and soft drinks to get the conversations going. Might have a slide show in the background. (If you want to play in the caver band, please contact Jaime Reep of DINGO.)

Sarah Richards of BATS will be leading a wine-tasting; bring a bottle of your favorite not-too-expensive wine as we will be passing around bottles (must be 21+)! Please bring your own cup. The theme for the VAR wine tour is WILD WINES!!! Bring one bottle of wine, costing $10 or less, that is named for an animal or has an animal on the label (and that's using a pretty loose definition of the term "animal"). This is a pretty broad category, so there’s no excuse for being unable to find something that is at least remotely linked to the theme. If you like, you can even come prepared to regale us all with a tale about how you selected your wine and how your choice is related to the theme! (extra points awarded for supreme story-telling prowess!!)

Charles Kahn will have his Guillotine Trough for our amusement, watching our fellow cavers squeeze through the triangle and bruise themselves all up.

Bat Flight Hike: We will be joining a scheduled "Bat Walk" at Sky Meadows State Park, which is a guided hike to some known roosting areas and to a barn with several thousand bats roosting in it. Sunset is at 7:04 there on that date, so plan to start at 6:45 p.m. and finish at 8:00 p.m. We will meet no later than 6:45 p.m. at the Turner Pond entrance to the Sky Meadows State Park on Highway 17, a quarter mile away from Route 50. This is not the main entrance to the park, and there will be a sign at the contact station at the main entrance to help you find us. We hope you will be able to join us for our walk which ends with the emergence of the bats at dusk as they begin hunting and feeding for the night. Dr. Warren Coker, Park Interpreter, will be our guide and will give a presentation on bats. The bats are NOT guaranteed to be on site or sighted--it depends on the weather in the area. A $3 fee for the trip will be collected at the site.

SATURDAY

Saturday Activities:

Conservation Trip: We will be working on the Skyline Caverns Karst Trail - it's always good to give back to caves! Janet Tinkham and Ellie Florance of BATS and Front Royal Grottos are heading up this project. Let them know that you want to help.

We'll be clearing, raking, and lining the trail with mulch. We'll be putting in place a kiosk, split rail fencing around certain karst features and numbered posts along the trail that will correspond with a self-guided brochure. This will involve digging holes, mixing cement... Lunch, snacks, beverages will be provided. Please bring whatever tools you can:

• Rakes, shovels (dirt & snow), hoes
• Chain saws, weedeaters, pruning shears
• Generator(s) and extension cords
• Posthole diggers, tamping bars
• Hammers, sledge hammers, rock drills
• Wheelbarrows, tubs to mix concrete in
• Short ladders to work on the kiosk roof
• Safety glasses and gloves

Bat Masks: On Saturday afternoon there will be an activity for kids to make their very own bat Masks. This is tentative right now--it will depend on how many kids show up.

Via Ferrata Trip: Mike Frazier (limit of 12)¹ Pre-registration for the Via Ferrata trip has closed

Panthers Cove Geology Hike: Bob Denton, Jr.² Sign up at Registration

Geocaching: Jerry Bowen³ Sign up at Registration

New Market Battlefield Susi Weston⁴ If you plan to go, Susi (SusiWeston@gmail.com) needs to know by Monday, Sept. 21st.!

Show Cave Tours: On your own or with a group

• Crystal Caverns at Hupp's Hill (see below)
  Offering half-price tour tickets ($5 rather than $10)!
• Endless Caverns
• Grand Caverns
  Offering tickets at $11 for adults and $9 for kids ages 6-12 (normally $18 and $11).
• Luray Caverns
  Offering deeply discounted tours at $6.50 (normally $21!)
• Skyline Caverns
  Offering tickets at $12 for adults and $6 for kids ages 7-13 (normally $16 and $8).
• Shenandoah Caverns
  Offering tickets at $14 for the combo ticket (down from $22!).

Crystal Caverns to dontate VAR income! -- Crystal Caverns will use all the money collected from Fall VAR attendees for the permanent signs for the Karst Trail. They've lowered their admission price by half - to a mere $5! You are welcome to donate more. Crystal Caverns is only two miles south of the VAR campground. You can't get much closer to do some good for caves!! Take a tour and donate to the Karst Trail!

As you know, Crystal Caverns is a small, nonprofit group that promotes cave and karst education. Its Karst Trail is the northernmost point in the in-progress Virginia Cave and Karst Trail; the Skyline Caverns Karst Trail being worked on during Fall VAR is the second point.

Civil War Battlefield Tours:

• Guided Tour of New Market Battlefield****
• Cedar Creek and New Market Battlefields tours on your own.

Wineries/Vineyards Tours: On your own or with a group

Saturday Dinner:

• Pulled Chicken Barbecue With Seeded Buns
• Vegetable Lasagna
• Scalloped Potatoes
• Tossed Green Salad With Assorted Dressings
• Rolls and Butter
• Iced Tea and Lemonade

NOTE: If you have any aversions or allergies to the foods listed above, bring your own! We tried our best to come up with a varied menu and believe we have succeeded.

If you have not pre-registered but know you are coming to VAR, please e-mail Meredith (Merecaver@yahoo.com) so we can make sure we have enough dinners!

After-Dinner Entertainment:

• A film or two from the International Congress of Speleology/NSS Convention, most likely L'Abisso (75 minutes, Italian with subtitles)
• Battle for the Bats, a film about White-nose Syndrome
• Door prizes
• More beer and soft drinks
• Music by DJ John Fox—dance the night away
• Charles Kahn's diabolical "Guillotine Trough"

SUNDAY

Pancake Breakfast: Thanks to Front Royal Grotto!

VAR Business Meeting

Pack up, clean up camp, and go home

¹ Via Ferrata Details: “I have made all the arrangements with Nelson Rocks Preserve so we can offer the Via Ferrata climb at Fall VAR.

Here's the scoop. I have reserved the 11:00 AM spot on Saturday, September 26. The trip will be limited to 12. All participants must be 18 or older unless one of the other paid participants is their parent or legal guardian. The cost is $50 per person, but if we have 10 or more and everyone has their own harness, the cost is $40 per person.

Helmets are recommended but not required. I have at least a dozen harnesses of various sizes that I will be happy to loan.

It is roughly a 2 1/2 hour drive each way, so we would need to leave the VAR site no later than 8 AM (a little earlier would be better) in order to make our appointment time, get our safety briefing, do the climb up and hike back down the mountain, and be back in time for dinner. I know it's a long drive, but it was about the same at Spring VAR and nobody seemed to mind. The experience is worth the drive.

Sorry, pre-registration for the Via Ferrata trip has closed!

Direct all interested parties or questions to me. I'll handle the sign-up for this one. I can be reached by e-mail at director37429@aol.com, or by cell, (434) 609-3423.”
-Mike Frazier
James River Grotto/Blue Ridge Grotto

² Panthers Cove Details: “Panthers Cove is on the property of the Cedar Creek Battlefield Foundation, about 1.5 miles upstream from the Route 11 Bridge over Cedar Creek. It's a pleasant walk from the New York monument on Route 11 on the Battlefield.

There is some spectacular karst (big sinkholes, etc.) along the trail to the streamside cave.

I supervised a major clean-up at the Cove by BSA Troop 2 a couple of years ago. The cave and its entrance had been badly vandalized with spray paint. We managed to get the worst cleaned up, and we also mounted a Virginia Cave Law sign just inside the entrance, but at a location that folks getting out of canoes and such can see it readily.

The cove is flooded with natural light all day, so it is not frequented by bats. There are some crawly side passages, but I've never seen bats in there either.

The site has a unique natural history; there is evidence of use by humans from the Early Archaic Period (7,000 to 8,000 years BP) to the Late Woodland Period.

I'd be more than happy to conduct a hike/field trip, if you'd like, regarding the Cove's history, geological setting, and the recent conservation efforts.”
—Bob Denton, Jr.

³ Geocaching Details: “A short lecture/informal class of perhaps 15-20 minutes. More if there are newcomers to the sport. Then there will probably be a few targets to find right on the campground. Something I set up for the event. Then with a little practice under their belts, we can cut them loose to drive off to find things on their own, or they can follow me around as we find them.

I don't remember anyone else geocaching at Spring VAR, except me. Jim had printed out geocache locations to hand out, but he told me no one took any. Perhaps, talked up a little, it will draw more interest. Most important for people to have is a hand-held GPS when they arrive. (Some driving GPS units may not do the job.)

When people hone their skills with a GPS finding geocaches, it makes it easier to find caves. That is a plus that comes with the sport....

If you are a veteran to geocaching, we may ask you to help lead some others in afternoon field trips. Once geocaches are found, logging your find on geocaching.com helps you to keep track of the ones you have found, and others waiting to be found. There are also games within the game, so bring your questions and have some fun!”
—Jerry Bowen
Tri-State Grotto

⁴ New Market Battlefield Details: The “Captain’s” tour includes a visit to the Hall of Valor Civil War Museum, viewing of the Emmy Award-winning film, “Field of Lost Shoes,” and a guided walk through the Battlefield. Cost is $7. Please let me know if you want to come. (SusiWeston@gmail.com)