BLUE RIDGE GROTTO of the NSS
Monthly Meeting Minutes – Jersey Lily’s Salem, VA
November 18, 2022
Attendance:
Marian McConnell – Chair Dave Socky - Treasurer Mary Sue Socky – Secretary
Jeff Huffman Susan Burr Karen Kastning
Lynn Ott Trish Geiger Lauren Appel
Doug Feller Kelly Perkins Larry Manning
*Lisa Graves *Jon Eisenzimmer *Rick Eisenzimmer
Bob Alderson (* denotes guest)
Meeting called to order 6:48p by Chair Marian McConnell. Everyone was welcomed, Introductions were made.
Trip reports:
10/1 – 10/8: Fort Stanton Cave, NM. On 10/1 the participants included David Socky, Garrett Jorgensen, Karla Zajac, Minori Yoshida, Michael Moffit, and Ron Lipinski. We went to the Lincoln Caverns section of Fort Stanton Cave where Garrett handled a $40K GeoSlam lidar unit to obtain a detailed mapping of this section of the cave. I took lots of videos with the help of Karla. We also helped Michael Moffit and Ron Lipinski do photogrammetry – a method of obtaining 3-D imagery of the cave.
FSC 10/2: participants included David Socky, Ron Lipinski, Pete Lindsley, and Alex Fischer. The first part of the day was with Ron, Alex, and I where we did a precision vertical survey from the top of 12 Steps into Crystal Crawl. We used a long plastic tube to measure vertical difference between stations to the precision of millimeters. The second half of the day Alex, Pete, and I went to the ladders before the dig shaft to repair the lower ladder. Then, while Pete worked on rusty bolts in the dig shaft, Alex and I went down to Snowy River at Turtle Junction. We confirmed that the was water flowing in Snowy River. Alex and I also checked out the Don Sawyer Memorial Passage just before the Dig Shaft.
FSC 10/4 & 10/7: participants included David Socky, John Lyles, and Linda Star. On the surface was Blaze Cunningham, Seve Peerman, and Wayne Walker. John Lyles tested a high frequency radio system which sends text messages using cell phones. The first day we had to abort halfway through the test because of a thunderstorm. The radio system worked with an overburden of about 200 feet, but at spot where it was greater the 300 feet, the radio signal did not make it through.
FSC 10/8: participants included David Socky, Jennine Smith, Scott Christenson, and Jake Collison. We helped Scott Christenson and Jake Collison check batteries and data for evaporation stations at Inscription Hall and at Turtle Junction – the intersection to Snowy River. Jake was the main guy who devised and constructed the evaporation stations. Scott is the geologist who is helping with the studies.
10/6: Cactus Cave, NM. Participants included John Moses, Sam Bono, and Dave Socky. Went to Cactus Cave to retrieve tools at the dig. Only saw about 40 feet of cave, including the dig face. One of the other abandoned digs went a bit further, but apparently it was really gnarly.
10/7-8 - TAG. Larry Manning went to his first TAG. He was not disappointed! He shall return!
10/7 -
Cagle’s Chasm, TN – the “Jeepside Pit drop” is 110 feet!
10/8:
Stephen’s Gap Cave, AL – what a classic 150’ rappel!
10/8: Hamilton Valley CRF (Mammoth Cave, KY)
Bob related how CRF had sunk a 40’ shaft – Stan’s Well, KY into Mammoth
Cave to create a ‘short cut’ to distant cave areas. Kevin Downs, Laine Robertson, Bill Koerschner,
Bob Alderson had problems negotiating a 25’ drop in one of these areas.
10/19: McClungs Cave, WV. Participants included David Socky, Joe Zokaites, Bob Alderson, and Bill Koerschner. We did the bolt climb near the start of Musser’s Mess. It didn't go. Then Bob did the traverse using nails at the start of Bat Bone Crawl. It didn't go either. Bob slipped trying to change feet on a nail, but Joe as belayer, caught him. He was also attached to another nail plus his etrier caught another nail, so he only slipped a foot or so. But it was still an adrenaline rush for Bob. We surveyed 123 feet of new cave on the 7.5-hour trip.
10/22: Wishing Well Cave, VA. Participants included David Socky, Bill Koerschner, Shawn Hogbin, Neil DeJarnette, Mike Lacey, Eric Collins, and Tyler Wieckert. I led this trip into Wishing Well Cave for Fall VAR 2022. I had Bill and Shawn help because they wanted to go on this trip. Tyler was a young kid who had never been on a wild cave trip before. He did great and really enjoyed himself. Eric Collins was a British caver who had never caved in the US before. Neil hadn't caved for 15 years and admitted to not being in shape for the crawls. We made it back to Echo Junction and only made two wrong turns on the way out. There was a lot more crawling than I remembered. Even in Sugar Run - half of that was crawling. However, there were two really cool and really long lift tubes in Sugar run. We made it back to VAR in time for dinner after a fun 7-hour trip.
10/22: Lynn Ott,
Gene Harrison, and Barb & Gary Moss took a train excursion to see the fall
colors. Afterward, they stopped by Fall
VAR for a while.
10/26: McClungs Cave, WV. Participants included David Socky, Joe Zokaites, and Bill Koerschner. We cleaned up leads at the turn off from Megalithia for Outer Mongolia. Our original goal was Outer Mongolia, but never made it there because it took a lot longer to do mop up. We did get 35 stations, mostly short shots, resulting in only 336 feet of survey on an 11-hour trip.
10/29: McClungs Cave, WV. Participants included David Socky and Joe Zokaites with a second team of Nikki Fox, Carl Amundson, and Paul Walko. We went into Lightner entrance and surveyed in the Third Breakdown. Joe and I did mostly crawly side passages except for the connection back up to the WFD survey. Nikki and team did the main way on. There was lots of crawling. Third Breakdown is not huge height-wise. Some of the stuff Nikki did was really wide, but low. Overall, it was a good trip. We surveyed a total of 1090 feet on a long 13.5-hour trip.
10/29: Bob Alderson, Vonny Droms, Mark Minton, Gabby
Zywicki returned to Unnamed Cave, WV to continue their cave resurvey.
This cave is closed, open by special permission.
10/30: Lynn Ott, Joey Fagan and Larry Manning attended the Memorial Service for VPI Caver Eric Haun.
11/5: Island Ford Cave, VA. Marian McConnell, Mary Sue Socky, Sharon Bruce, Lisa & Charles Graves, Melissa and Frank Maddox, and Yosh (nln). Everyone went to the back of the cave by the spring. They did not see any salamanders, bats, or crayfish in the cave. The group split into two on the way out; Mary Sue, Sharon and Melissa took the easy tourist route back, while Marian led the rest down the sinuous stream canyon. Good fun, and we hope to see some participants at grotto meetings!
11/6: the John Fox Memorial Service in
Radford, VA was well attended. Many VAR
cavers were there.
11/9: Crozet Tunnel, VA. Participants included David Socky and Mary Sue Socky. We went caving, well kind of. We did a through trip in Crozet Blue Ridge Tunnel. The tunnel itself is 4273 feet long so we did a 1.6 mile double through trip! We did the "west" entrance. We saw several big brown bats and four waterfalls. Brick masonry at the west end of the tunnel contains symbols and is interesting. Flattest, longest cave I have ever walked through (other than Thurston Lava Tube, HI). It was a fun afternoon.
11/12: Dave
& Mary Sue Socky, Nick Socky, Lynn Ott, Gene Ferguson, Ed &Marianne
Saugstad, Alex Sproul, Karen Kastning, Joey Fagan (who have I left out?)
attended the West Virginia Cave Conservancy Banquet in Lewisburg, WV.
11/16: Lowmoor Cave, VA. Participants included David Socky, Joe Zokaites, Bob Alderson, Mark Minton, and Yvonne Droms. This trip was to do high leads in the mine. We drove around by the owner’s house because the gate was locked for hunting season. Bob checked with Mr. Sizemore, and he said fine. The water in the creek was up a lot too. We drove into the main truck entrance. Not as cold in the mine as I've seen it before. Mark and Vonnie climbed up one of our last high leads to use technical digging to get into a pit we had left when we were there last. They found just a dead bottom hole. Oh well. Bob did a bolt/nail climb that we had attempted years before near the truck entrance. Joe belayed while I found a known station and solo surveyed to a point where we could shoot into the upper lead. When Bob got up, he announced that there was going passage! Joe and I climbed up, surveying as we went. The lead went a whole 30 feet and came out at an overlook into the mine again, which was expected. We surveyed it then rappelled back down. Bob then did a bolt/nail climb to a high lead on the other side of the mine passage. It went too! We surveyed several hundred feet in cave passage which paralleled the mine. There were several overlooks, killing multiple high leads. The passage finally ended in a breakdown collapse. It was a good 9-hour trip that resulted in 600 feet of new cave.
11/17: Pete’s Cave, VA. Participants included David Socky, Bob Alderson, and Mary Lee Hendricks. This is a talus cave on the North Mountain Trail near Longdale Furnace. We saw maybe 125 feet or so of passage, and definitely got into the dark zone. We saw one bat and big ugly black spiders. We explored the whole thing. I got my puffy coat wet squeezing through a narrow spot.
9/17: Boar Hole Cave, WV grotto trip: Susan Burr, Doug Feller, Kelly Perkins, Jeff Huffman, Nick Schmalenberger, Mike Payette. Some trail maintenance, then in and out of the Culvert entrance. Nice 4-hour trip, saw almost everything.
10/22: Bone
Cave, WV grotto trip. Susan Burr,
Doug Feller, Lauren Appel, Nick Schmalenberger, Kelly Perkins, Jeff
Huffman. What started out as a trip to Norman
Cave turned into a trip to see the other entrance of the system, Bone
Cave. We finally found the entrance
high in an old quarry wall. Lots of
walking, crawling, lots of dust –this is an old, dry cave. Most went to look at the Devil’s Pinch; Susan
and Nick waited for them in the main passage.
Then everyone headed out. Thanks,
other caving group, for the directions!
UPCOMING TRIPS
Tomorrow Sat. 11/19/2022: BRG trip to Paxton Cave, VA. Sign up with Susan Burr. 8:30a HROM.
Next Month’s Trip – To be announced
BUSINESS MEETING
11/8/2022 BRG Treasury Report – Dave Socky, Treasurer
$ 40.96 Cave
Bucks
$ 1.00 Conservation
Fund
$ 104.12 Equipment
Fund
$ 3916.59 General
Fund
$ 4062.67
Total Funds
*Cave Bucks: All Cave Bucks donations are voluntary; funds go to cave conservation programs.
Committees:
Newsletter – Another successful DUMP. Please take some of the hardcopy NSS News and exchange newsletter we have collected – thanks!
Membership – BRG has 56 members and 6 subscribers. Updated Membership lists are available.
ROCKS – Nothing.
S&T - Dan’s shoulder replacement is doing well.
Membership Proposals: None.
New
Business:
·
Fall VAR report – 180 people attended 2022
Fall VAR @ the RASS Property.
o
Current slate of officers were
re-elected. (Chair –Meredith Weberg; Vice Chair- Janet Tinkham;
Secretary- Kim Fleischmann;
Treasurer– Carol Tiderman.
o
Successful Leesburg VA Sinkhole
cleanouts. In the rain.
o
Upcoming sinkhole cleanouts N of Covington,
VA.
o
VAR is looking for show caves to partner with
on conservation cleanups.
o
There is no host for the 2023 Spring VAR –
yet.
·
(Lynn Ott) Cricket Maze Cave, WV, will
have an Open House in April or May 2023.
TBA.
GROTTO NOMINATIONS
Nominations are now closed.
Chair: Lauren
Appel. NSS
# 69253 Nominated by Susan Burr
Vice Chair: Nick
Schmalenberger. NSS # 62709 Nominated by Susan Burr
Secretary: Marian
McConnell. NSS # 37358 Nominated
by Dave Socky
Treasurer: Mary Sue
Socky. NSS # 24206 Nominated by Dave Socky
Larry Manning motioned that the Regular BRG Membership accepts the
entire slate of new BRG officers.
Susan Burr seconded the motion.
The entire slate of 2023 BRG Officers has been voted in by
acclimation. (11 votes).
Announcements:
·
Dave Socky has copies of “
Breathing Cave, VA” VSS Monograph by Robert Zimmerman. $25.00 each.
·
Pandemic Caving – let’s be healthy going underground. Rules have been posted in the DUMP.
o West
Virginia – Closed Sept 1 – May 15 for bat
hibernation.
o Virginia -
Closed Oct. 15 – Apr. 15. For bat hibernation.
2022-23
CAVER CALENDAR:
·
Nov 25-27: Rock & Mineral Show, Salem
Civic Center, Salem, VA. $5 admission. NEW
·
Dec 10: WVACS XMAS Party, @ the
Fieldstation near Renick, WV.$15 per person.
NEW
·
NO BRG MEETING IN DECEMBER.
·
Dec 18: BRG Xmas Party @ Dave &
Mary Socky’s house. Noon-5p.Potluck,
BYOB. NEW
·
Jan 7, 2023: Virginia Cave Board, 11a,
site TBD. (Rescheduled)
·
Jan 20, 2023:
BRG meeting, JL’s, 6:30p.
·
Feb 17, 2023: BRG meeting, JL’s, 6:30p.
·
·
June 26-30, 2023
– – NSS Convention, Elkins, WV.
·
8:39p Cold Beer!
Program: Dave Socky’s slide
show of science and exploration in Fort Stanton Cave, NM.
Minutes
Submitted by
Mary Sue Socky, Outgoing Secretary