My Fun Weekend...(pics)

[Zrikz]

So I went to TAG the annual fall gathering of cavers, one of a couple on the east coast, and it was a blast, over 1100 people camping out and partying and then going out and caving the next day. Got to do some vertical caving for once and enjoyed the hell out of it...

Here is a big fire lit during the main night, believe it was around 25-35 ft tall
http://test.fathomthat.org/cave/100_0537.JPG

a Little cave, only a 45ft drop down
looking up from the bottom
http://test.fathomthat.org/cave/100_0391.JPG

me inside the cave
http://test.fathomthat.org/cave/100_0417.JPG


Bigger cave, 167 ft down.
Picture from bottom
http://test.fathomthat.org/cave/100_0588.JPG

Me going down
http://test.fathomthat.org/cave/100_0573.JPG

Me going up
http://test.fathomthat.org/cave/100_0630.JPG
http://test.fathomthat.org/cave/100_0632.JPG



If ya wanna see more pics there is 240 here: http://picasaweb.google.com/mtweldon/TagFallCaveIn2008?authkey=o-CAMg-P3tc#

[iHap]

That looks fun.

[Troggles]

That fire is one of the best I've ever seen. Good job.

[Typical Michael]

Did you have to borrow anything from Lucius Fox?

[Spacetronaut]

Looks awesome. I'd try that stuff, but I fear the horrible half-human monsters that I'm certain dwell deep beneath the earth.

[Everyone vs Dinosaurs]

That is wicked sweet.


Is caving the same as spalunking?

[Zrikz]

That is wicked sweet.


Is caving the same as spalunking?

spelunking, and yup. Most just call it caving for some reason /shrug

[Everyone vs Dinosaurs]

Normally when I spell something wrong, I will look it up. I thought, eh, what the hell. No one will notice.


Damn you, you noticing bastard!!!


And spelunking sounds cooler, so when picking up the chicks, say you like long walks on the beach, and spelunking. Resist all temptation to say "bitch" after spelunking.

[Zrikz]

video of them starting up the fire.. this thing was hot for up to like 100 ft away =/ http://picasaweb.google.com/mtweldon/TagFallCaveIn2008?authkey=o-CAMg-P3tc#5256486565563874482

[Bad Buddha]

Pretty Sweet! Great photos!

I've always wanted to try that, but we really don't have the proper geology up here in the NW. I've been about 150 yds down a lava tube once; That was scary black when the lights went out!

[Young Al Capone]

I thought spelunking was exploring uncharted caves, where as caving was just going into a cave to have a good time?

Either way, looks pretty cool, I am interested in vertical caving.

[GunnyMo]

Make any new friends? :D

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y38/GunnyMo/thedescent2512051tf8.jpg

[Zrikz]

I thought spelunking was exploring uncharted caves, where as caving was just going into a cave to have a good time?

Either way, looks pretty cool, I am interested in vertical caving.

vertical is awesome stuff, I just got into it a couple weeks back... expensive as hell to start out and get the gear though. Cost me around $400 and I still don't have everything, and had someone make part of the stuff for me for free, so that saved me money as well.

[Mdot]

Wow, that's awesome. Some of those pics give great perspective to how deep down you really are. Nice, looks like a ball.

[Dukefrukem]

Make any new friends? :D

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y38/GunnyMo/thedescent2512051tf8.jpg

great movie...


looks like a pretty cool weekend.

[Zrikz]

saw some little frogs and salamanders =/ have one great picture of a salamander guarding like 20 eggs, its neat looking.

http://picasaweb.google.com/mtweldon/TagFallCaveIn2008?authkey=o-CAMg-P3tc#5256482470737746194

[Shadowstorm]

Looks very fun.

[pomeroy]

Freaking great pictures, man.

Thank god for the auto resize, though.

[IIntrude]

One of my scuba certifications is as a cave diver. Besides wrecks, caves are incredible to dive. However I think the entire experience would be totally different in open air, being able to hear the sounds of the cave, the animals within. Diving a cave is a very solitary experience, makes you feel very small. I would love to experience it as you do.

[Zrikz]

One of my scuba certifications is as a cave diver. Besides wrecks, caves are incredible to dive. However I think the entire experience would be totally different in open air, being able to hear the sounds of the cave, the animals within. Diving a cave is a very solitary experience, makes you feel very small. I would love to experience it as you do.

I just have to say, cave divers are crazy bastards. It does sound interesting, but I hear of at least 5-10 cave divers dieing a year. Sounds quite intense.

[IIntrude]

I just have to say, cave divers are crazy bastards. It does sound interesting, but I hear of at least 5-10 cave divers dieing a year. Sounds quite intense.

I've only had the displeasure of seeing one other diver freak out in a cave, it wasn't pretty. Had to yank him up to an air pocket, which is stale and deadly after too long, calm his ass down then get him up, thankfully we were not too far in 30-40ft.

My favorite dive was down in Florida, in an old abandoned mine shaft. 100ft down and at an 45 degree angle, after 20ft if you looked up nothing but rock, it made you be very careful. But man if the sights weren't worth it.

[AboveAvgCharles]

http://test.fathomthat.org/cave/100_0537.JPG

I can almost see Darth Vader on the top of that.

[Scull]

spelunking, and yup. Most just call it caving for some reason /shrug
Caving, from the Wiki:


Clay Perry (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clay_Perry) — an American caver of the 1940s — wrote about a group of men and boys who explored and studied caves throughout New England (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_England). This group referred to themselves as spelunkers. This is regarded as the first use of the word in the Americas (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Americas). Throughout the 1950s, spelunking was the general term used for exploring caves in US English. It was used freely, without any positive or negative connotations, although only rarely outside the US.
In the 1960s, the term "spelunking" began to convey the idea of inexperienced cavers, using unreliable light sources and cotton clothing. In 1985, Steve Knutson (editor of American Caving Accidents) made the following distinction:
...Note that I use the term 'spelunker' to denote someone untrained and unknowledgeable in current exploration techniques, and 'caver' for those who are.

This sentiment is exemplified by bumper stickers and t-shirts displayed by many cavers: "Cavers rescue spelunkers".

Which cave system were you in? It looks gorgeous. Does it bottom out at 167 or are there deeper ancilliary branches?

It's been too many years since I went spelunking, but now that I'm near some major cave systems again I have been itching to go again. My longest trip underground took three days and was one of the best times I've ever had doing anything ever!

[Scull]

One of my scuba certifications is as a cave diver. Besides wrecks, caves are incredible to dive. However I think the entire experience would be totally different in open air, being able to hear the sounds of the cave, the animals within. Diving a cave is a very solitary experience, makes you feel very small. I would love to experience it as you do.
That terrifies me. Caving in open air is a challenge enough, doing it while underwater is fucking intense. Add in that I am a shitty swimmer and it just compunds my terrors.

[Zrikz]

Caving, from the Wiki:



Which cave system were you in? It looks gorgeous. Does it bottom out at 167 or are there deeper ancilliary branches?

It's been too many years since I went spelunking, but now that I'm near some major cave systems again I have been itching to go again. My longest trip underground took three days and was one of the best times I've ever had doing anything ever!

The first set of pics is only 45 ft, and all of the formations you saw was from that cave, it was in GA.

The big 167ft drop was in TN, that was the bottom of the vertical part, but I could see down a small area of breakdown another good 50 ft slope that lead to cave that apparently goes back about 1900-2100 ft. We were just bouncing the pit, another 2 guys actually went and checked out the cave.