next--Dirty Old Men pg176
articles index
|Names.
|Photos index
|Cave index
|Places and Grottos.
VAR home page
|
previous--The fallen Rock Project pg174
next--Dirty Old Men pg176
articles index
|Names.
|Photos index
|Cave index
|Places and Grottos.
VAR home page
|
|
|
Tazewell County Cave Survey ,Feildhouse, used by VPI Grotto. By J. C. Quueisser |
Yes, some local engineer had solved his water shortage problems by installing a healthy ram pump in the cave. The rusting remains of said pump lay just a concrete dam over which many gallons of water now roar. Just beyond the pump, the stream plunged out of sight into a narrow crevasse. The wreckage of an old windmill was lying about the top. An opening to the surface, known as Gillespie's Water Cave #2, was directly above us, but it was dark outside and we did not notice it. A handline would have been necessary for us to have used it anyhow. All these facts became obvious to us when we mapped the cave two years later.
"We pitched camp for the night in a local schoolyard, and attempted to dry our clothes by running them up the flagpole. The janitor arrived the next morning just as Carole Noble, wearing only an army poncho, was hauling in her bra and panties. He stared disapprovingly, but did not ask us to leave. Before we finally departed, however, Jack O'Meara observed that the ball on the top of the flagpole was actually a metal water closet float!
"We explored the Lost Mill Cavesby boat and found nothing significant. After stowing the boat, we split up into small groups and went surfacing. Another thousand-footer, which we dubbed Gully Cave, was discovered that afternoon.
"After returning to the car for lunch, someone noticed that all the lids on the quart beer bottles had been loosened. Annie explained that she had heroically loosened all the lids so the bottles wouldn't go 'whoosh' when we opened them. She was right; the annoying 'whoosh' was gone, so was the obnoxious fizz and the troublesome taste.
"Our next undertaking was to map the Cassell Farm Cavesin another part of the county. This little project kept us distracted for quite a few trips, as what was supposed to be a 1500-foot maze cave zig-zagged for over 5000 feet. But I digress. Spring floods kept us out of the county, and good intentions of mapping the 2000 known feet in Fallen Rock the following fall suffered for lack of personnel.
"Interest in the area gained a shot in the arm that winter (1968), however. It began with an exciting trip to Higginbotham's Cave #1, which was immediately followed by an even more exciting wreck on the way home from the cave.
"Attention thus renewed, Glen wood Church Cavewas mapped that winter, and the following spring sawCauliflower, Gully and Gillespie's Water Caves mapped. A mapping project was also initiated in Higginbotham's #2. The mapping of Gillespie's Water Caves gave us a taste of what we had been dreading in Fallen Rock -- plenty of water. We decided to wait until the next fall to attempt it."----REW, 1974.
The first mapping trip into the cave under Whitt'sdirection was in September 1968. On this trip Whitt was accompanied by Paul Broughton, Tom Speers, Russ Peterson, and Anne Whittemore. It was our intention to finish mapping the cave on Saturday, and then to continue down to Bristol, VA to meet Jim Grosecloseand Clyde Moorewho had a big, new cave they wanted to show us. We conformed to the latter part of our plan, but were way off-base on the former!
Whitt had decided that since the upstream section was so short, we would map it first and then work our way downstream. At the upstream siphon, Russ Peterson who was the lead-tape man, displaying his usual characteristic thoroughness, dropped to look under a rock. He found a damp cobble floor with about two feet of airspace after squirming under the concealing rock. After pulling out the tape to 100 feet twice, he asked Whitt if he should keep on going as the passage appeared to open up. We were in virgin passage, the largest in our lives to date, which continued for more than 12,000 feet. --Anne Whittemore
Principal mappers during the next two-year period included Anneand R.E. Whittemore, Cletus Lee, Tom Speers, Paul Broughton, Russ Petersonand Below is a portion of a trip report by Sarah [Critzer] Leedated October 5-6, 1968:
My job was to observe the steel tape as it stretched between the stations and make sure that it wasn't kinked. After some time, feeling that this job required a more qualified and concentrate-on- what-you're-doing type of person, I retired to the front with Russ and we explored virgin passage. While up front, another caver joined our party. He was a mysterious fellow and he must have kept wandering off at every station because Cletus and Tom were constantly hollering for him. I never got to meet that guy, but I know his name was Mark.
"...Having set 68 stations and mapped over 12,000 feet, Whitt decided it was time to lash out. The visions of drinking water and food that waited for us on the outside helped us mush toward the entrance. Cletus and I picked up our swill and bacon that we left at the entrance and after we had shivered into our dry clothes, we drove to the school house to spend the night. We had to throw away the bacon because a rat had chewed a hole in the corner of the package. Nothing tastes better than hot coffee and steaming swill."---S. Lee, THE TECH TROGLODYTE, Fall 1968.
|
previous--The fallen Rock Project pg174
next--Dirty Old Men pg176
articles index
|Names.
|Photos index
|Cave index
|Places and Grottos.
VAR home page
|