Carroll Cave Conservancy  Trip Report

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Permit:             0509-3

Leader:             Bill Gee

date:               10 Sep 2005

manager:            Mike Hartley

Assessment:         Downstream Thunder

participant1:       Bill Gee

participant2:       Rick Hines

participant3:       Bill Copeland

participant4:       Eric Hertzler

participant5:       Charity Gramm

Time In:             11:30am

Time Out:            2:30pm

Damage:             No

Rescue Supplies Used: No

Date:               Monday September 12, 2005

Time:               07:27 PM

purpose:

Install aluminum ladder at Thunder Falls Remove rope ladder at Thunder Falls Repair lights in lower tank

details:

We started the weekend with five tasks to accomplish.  All of them were done.  Task one was to install an aluminum ladder at Thunder Falls, task two was to remove the existing rope ladder at Thunder Falls, task three was to place a stream level gauge and the fourth was to repair the lighting in the lower level tank.  The last task was to collect water samples for analysis by Bill Copeland.

I arrived at the schoolhouse Friday evening and spent the night.  Everyone else arrived Saturday morning.  I was first up the hill to rig a rope on the drop.  I also dug the ladder out of the weeds.  Bill Copeland arrived about 9:00am.  Rick, Eric and Charity were not far behind him.

Bill Copeland picked up four aluminum channels and some stainless steel bolts from Richard Thompson and brought it all with him.  Bill and I measured and cut the 18 foot ladder into three mostly equal sections, then marked and drilled the four pieces of aluminum channel so it could be reassembled underground.  We also cut off a section of a steel ladder from one of the manways.  This last piece was attached to the aluminum ladder to help serve as an anchor.  The steel section is not in line with the rest of the ladder.  It is pivoted so it lays flat on the mud at the top.

While Bill and I were working on the ladder, Eric and Rick pulled out the fluorescent light fixture from the lower tank.  It was corroded beyond use and no longer worked.  They also checked the wiring and switch.  Rick brought a couple of outdoor motion detector floodlight fixtures with him.  The intention was to attaché one of these to the side of the lower tank and use the other in the silo.  Due to a lack of taps, the fixture could not be mounted on the side of the tank. 

Rick and Eric improvised an excellent solution.  They gutted the fluorescent fixture leaving only a sheet metal shell.  The motion detector fixture was them bolted to the shell and wired in.

Both teams finished their work about the same time.  It was about 11:00am.  We decided to skip lunch and get the cave trip going.  After suiting up, Rick and I were the first two down the hole.  After we were down, the other three used our rappel rope to lower the ladder sections, aluminum channels, the stream level gauge and various tools.  They then came down.

We left the ladder just before noon for the short trip to Thunder Falls.  At the falls we took the upper passage out to the ladder site.  This passage is to the left of the old hole and up about 6 or 8 feet.  It is a mud-lined passage about 100 feet long that ends in an overlook about 16 feet high.  At the bottom of the overlook is a mud puddle that lets directly onto Thunder River.

Rick, Eric and I assembled the three aluminum ladder sections.  Charity and Bill Copeland documented the process with some pictures, then went and dug footsteps in a mud slope about 40 feet back in the passage.  When we got the ladder all put together, Eric and Rick lowered it over the edge.  I went down the rope ladder to the bottom to help, but was too late.  By the time I got there, it was down.

Rick and I set the bottom of the ladder in the mud.  It only sank 12 to 14 inches, less than we expected.  Rick and Eric attached the steel section to the top while I went and took care of a major duty ...

Cutting down the old rope ladder!  Woo Hoo!  That puppy is GONE!  The only thing left is the cable lock that attached the rope ladder to the rock.  I did not expect a metal cable and so did not have a hacksaw with me.  Everything else is gone.  The old rope ladder is now hanging on display at the schoolhouse next to the elevator.

Everyone got a chance to go up and down the ladder to check it out.  It is surprisingly sturdy and stable.  It's a vast improvement over the rope ladder.

Bill and Charity went back ahead of us to get his water samples.  Eric, Rick and I stopped at the first pool just above Thunder Falls to assemble and set the water gauge.  I doubt I'll ever have another cave trip where I carry PVC cement.  The gauge is placed where it can be seen easily.  On a future trip I will put a log book near it so observations can be recorded.

We all met back at the ladder to start the climb out.  I was the last one up.  Just before I climbed up, we hauled up the bucket of trash recovered on the bio trip the previous weekend.  Everyone was on the surface by 3:00pm.

Bill Copeland took off as soon as he got clean clothes on.  He needed to get water samples from the natural entrance and from Toronto Springs.  After changing clothes and cleaning up our tools, the rest of us went to Camdenton for an early dinner.

We did a Restoration Project trip in Carroll Cave this weekend.  The rope ladder at Thunder Falls is gone.  We replaced it with an aluminum ladder.  The remains of the rope ladder are now on display at the schoolhouse next to the old elevator.  The new ladder is much safer and easier to navigate than the old rope ladder.

Trip leaders, please note that the route past Thunder Falls is a little
different.  The trail goes up and to the left of where the hole to the rope ladder used to be.  There is an upper level passage about 100 feet long up there.  About halfway down the passage you go down a mud bank.  The ladder is at they end.  The bottom of the ladder is a sloppy mud pit that looks worse than it is.

We also placed a stream level gauge in the first pool just above Thunder Falls.  Whenever you go past the gauge, please note the time and the water level.  The next time I get a chance I will put a log book nearby for recording the observations.

Bill Gee