Carroll Cave Conservancy Trip Report
Project Manager: Michael Hartley
Date of trip: Oct 18, 2003
Trip Leader: Michael Hartley
Surface Contact Person and Phone number: Carolyn Hartley
Participants:
(1) Mike Hartley
(2) Regan Youngman
(3) Jeff Andrews
(4) Berry Godsey
(5) Mike McKinney
(6) Terry DeFraties
Purpose of trip: To asses and establish evacuation sites for the purpose of retrieving injured personal by the CCC rescue committee.
Time Entered Cave: 11:30 am.
Time Exited Cave: 4:11 pm.
Areas of the cave visited: Lower Thunder River passage, Upper Thunder River passage to Convention Hall.
Trip Report:
The day started with a short meeting of the Rescue committee to plan strategies on how to proceed. It was decided that we would first go down river because this area of the cave is the most difficult traverse, do to the fact that it consist of nothing but mud and water with the exception of a few areas. Our first stop was at the top of Thunder Falls.
An assessment was made at this location to determine the best possible way to retrieve an injured person up and over the falls. We then proceeded down that (rope thing) that some people call a ladder. The next R/C project weekend, I think our first priority will be to replace this peace of Carroll history with a new, more stable permanent Ladder.
Moving on, we entered the main trunk section of the Lower Thunder River passage.
This section of the cave is very large, the ceilings being 30 to 40 ft high, and the width being 15 to 20 ft across. There is no established trail in the lower river section do to the fact that it is nothing but mud and water, wall to wall. It would be impossible to mark a trail threw this section of the cave. With every step I took, I would sink anywhere from 12 inches up to my knees. On our way out, at one spot I got stuck up to my waste and Berry had to come back and pull me out. To anyone entering the lower river passage for whatever reason, be advised, this part of the cave is extremely physically demanding and depletes you of energy very quickly. I did make one observation that might make traveling this section of the cave less difficult in the future. The river is wide enough and deep enough that it could be possible to use kayaks or inflatable rafts to move up and down river with the exception of a few areas that would have to be portaged. After talking with some people who have made the trip all the way to the Lake room, they confirmed that it is possible to do this all most all the way down river. This I believe would decrease travel time and create little or no impact to the environment at all. We will have to conduct a test run to verify this.
As we continued down river, about three quarters of a mile down the passage, we came to an area called Black Rock Riffels. At this spot the mud disappears and you find yourself walking on solid bedrock. I thought to myself, I hope this lasts for a while, but unfortunately it ended after about 100ft and we were back into the mud and water again. The passage narrows and becomes smaller, but you still have the mud and water to contend with, only now you have less space to maneuver. This area of the cave is called the Forevers, and with good reason. It seems like you go on for ever and ever. The passage is about 8 to 12 ft high, and 10 to 15 ft wide. There were a few small formations we passed from time to time, but nothing really spectacular.
We continued down this passage for about an hour and a half, stopping from time to time to rest and record information. By now we were all getting very tired and were needing to start back up river do to our time schedule for exiting the cave. We still needed to go up river and pick some areas to use as command sites for rescue operations. After a strenuous exit back to the entrance we took a thirty minute break and ate some hot lunch. It was interesting to see Terry and Mike had brought their backpack stoves and within minutes they were eating hot meals. I have done this myself in the past, but only on very long extended cave trips. A hot meal really helps recover your energy losses after a prolonged period in a cave.
After lunch we headed up Thunder River to begin selecting areas as Rescue command sites. This was like a walk in the park compared to the lower river section. Very little mud, solid ground under our feet. We were able to move at a relatively good pace and reached the Convention Hall area in about forty minutes. After recording some information, and taking some pictures, we headed back to the entrance. After exiting the cave we headed back to the schoolhouse area where we relaxed and enjoyed an evening discussing the days events. At about 9:30 pm, Eddie, Carl, Jamie, and John arrived to participate in the second half of the R/C project weekend on Sunday.
Trip Leader: Michael Hartley
Date: 10-26-03
Time: 12:01pm.