Carroll Cave Trip Report

Trip date:  January 7, 2006

Participants:

Rick Hines (1) Trip Leader

Kay Hines (11)

Craig Hines (147)

Chad Hines (119)

Jay Kennedy (269)

Randy Bruegger (118)

 The trip was planned to replace the rope lights and improve a path from Thunder Fall to the ladder. 

 The Hines’s drove down Saturday morning and found Jay camped at the schoolhouse.  Randy arrived soon to complete the crew. 

 New Rope Lights:  Chad was the first down the ladder at 10:00 AM, cutting the ties from the old rope light on the way down.  We pulled the old lights out and lowered 150 feet of new lights.  The new lights are the same length as the old lights but I left about 5 feet of lights above the culvert to provide more light in the basement if the main basement lights are out.  The new rope lights are one continuous 150-foot rope with no connections unlike the prior lights that had a connector ever 25 feet.   The light is tied off at the top.  Terry’s crew will install ties to the ladder on the next work trip.  

 Jay and Randy rappelled in and the rest of us used the cable ascenders.  We also took the new winch hook down with Kay so it would be available if needed to aid her on the way out.  The ascenders work fine once you are passed the first few rungs of the ladder.  The winch worked great, giving Kay a gentle assist as she climbed out.  

 Path Improvement:  We took a sightseeing trip to the water-barrier before returning to work on the path to the ladder below Thunder Falls.  We dug a flat-bottomed channel along the 45-degree mud bank between Thunder Falls and the ladder that extends down to Thunder River.  I'll guess the path is about 100 feet or so.  The path gradually descends to a landing area at the top of the ladder.  We left two shovels on the path and two at the base of the 120-foot ladder.  The next work crew can continue to improve the path.

 We were all out in the daylight by 3:30 PM.   

 I left a new stack of Sign-In Sign-Out sheet in the box in the Silo.

 Note:  On the climb out I noted that the small gravel (remnants from blasting) that remaining in small holes and on shelves in the shaft are cemented in place!   Our shaft is getting more stable!

 Rick Hines