Beyond Mammoth Cave

by Beyond Mammoth Cave- A Tale of Obsession in the World's Longest Cave (epub)

  Dickenson, Lou

  Dickerson, John

  Dickerson, Kathleen (later Womack)

  Dickey, Fred

  Dillon, Bud

  DiTonto, Mike

  Divine, Ed

  Doerschuk, Dave

  Doolin, Dave

  Downes, Peter

  Downey, David

  Downey, Margaret

  Drake, Miles

  Duchon, Kip

  Duft, Andy

  Durica, Anne

  Dyas, Michael

  Dyson, J.

  Ecock, Kevin

  Eggers, Bob

  Eggers, Steve

  Eidson, Bill

  Eller, P. Gary

  Elliot, Mark

  Emery, Walt

  Engler, Sheri

  Estes, Beth

  Estes, Gerry

  Ewers, Ralph

  Farr, Bill

  Fausold, Marshall

  Fehrmann, Thom

  Finger, Ernie

  Finkel, Don

  Finkel, Liza

  Fletcher, Bill

  Flint, Sandy

  Foeller, Ward

  Forbes, Jeff

  Forster, Armand

  Forsythe, Preston

  Frank, Ed

  Freeman, Jack

  Frushour, Sam

  Gariepy, Ron

  Garrett, Mike

  George, Donald

  Gerace, Chris

  Glasser, Gwenne

  Goatley, Lajuana (later Wilcher)

  Goldstein, Harold

  Goodbar, James

  Goodlet, Collier W.

  Goodman, Mark

  Gracanin, Tom

  Grady, Fred

  Graham, Dick

  Greenlay, Terry

  Grissom, Tim

  Grover, Buzz

  Grover, Rick

  Groves, Darwin

  Hacker, Chris

  Hall, Brian

  Hall, James

  Hampel, Chris

  Hand, Richard

  Hansel, Daryle

  Hardison, Richard

  Hardy, Jim

  Harmon, Russ

  Harter, Diana (later Emerson)

  Haskin, Dirk

  Hatleberg, Eric

  Hawes, Bill

  Hawkinson, Edward

  Hayden, Brian

  Heazel, Sue

  Helfman, Jon

  Helfman, Sheldon

  Hensley, Kenneth L.

  Herbst, Charlotte

  Hess, Letitia

  Hiett, John

  Hildebolt, Charles (Scooter)

  Hildebolt, Louise

  Hill, Alan

  Hill, Carol

  Hobbs III, Horton

  Hoechstetter, Rick

  Hoey, Kathy

  Hogan, Arlie

  Holland, Bob

  Holland, John

  Houchen, Tom

  House, Scott

  Hughes, Lynne

  Hull, Curt

  Hummer, Bob

  Jackson, Randy

  Johnson, Alan

  Johnson, Bob

  Johnson, Tracy

  Kahre, Greg

  Kane, Thomas

  Kastning, Ernst

  Keeler, Ray

  Keller, Ben

  Kelly, Dave

  Kerr, Chris

  Keys, Peter

  Kiefer, Chuck

  Kihara, Deane

  Kissling, Randy

  Klein, Karen

  Knutson, Steve

  Koerschner, Bill

  Koerschner, Robyn

  Komisarcik, Kevin

  Korevaar, Nick

  Larason, Shari

  Lepro, Bill

  Levy, Ellen

  Lindberg, Ralph

  Lindsley, Karen

  Lindsley, Pete

  Link, Mike

  Lipton, Walter

  Lisowski, Ed

  Lloyd, Robert

  Lord, Brenda

  Lowery, Joe

  Luyster, Bill

  Magill, Mike

  Mann, Bill

  Mann, Charlotte

  Maphis, Scott

  Marks, Franklin

  Martin, Hugh

  Martin, Jim

  Martini, Jacque

  Matlin, Billy

  Mavity, John

  Mayne, Leland

  Mayne, Walter

  McAdams, Raymond

  McClure, Roger

  McCollum, Gerry

  McCuddy, Bill

  McDonald, Robert

  McGill, Sue

  McInski, Jeff

  McKee, Mike

  McMillan, Roger

  McNamara, Greg

  McThomas, Mike

  Melloan, Barry

  Mergens, Michael

  Merrick, Rob

  Metcalfe, Rod

  Metcalfe, Wanda

  Mezmar, Mike

  Michener, John

  Miessen, Mike

  Miessen, Robin

  Miller, Roger

  Miller, Tom

  Mills, Paul

  Mollett, Steve

  Molzon, Bob

  Moni, Gerald

  Moore, Kate

  Morgan, Eric

  Morgan, Joe

  Morgan, Keith

  Morley, Tom

  Morris, Jon

  Muir, Jean

  Mulkewich, Jane

  Mullett, Frank

  Mummery, John

  Murray, Lloyd

  Neff, Kevin

  Netherton, W.

  Newton, Geoffrey

  OíDell, Phil

  Oberlies, Jim

  Ogden, Albert

  Oliver, Joe

  Olson, Rick

  Ortiz, Keith

  Osinski, Bill

  Pace, Norman

  Palmer, Art

  Palmer, Margaret (Peg)

  Paquette, Don

  Parker, Judith

  Parseley, Andy

  Pavey, Andrew

  Peloquin, Martin

  Perez, Mike

  Perry, Luther

  Peterson, Butch

  Peterson, Charlie

  Peterson, Gil

  Petranoff, Ted

  Picard, Blu

  Pickle, John

  Pinnix, Cleve

  Pollock, Don

  Poulson, Tom

  Prentice, Dave

  Price, Greer

  Price, Kelley

  Pringle, Lisa

  Pugsley, Chris

  Radcliffe, Ben

  Radford, Mike

  Raffle, Mary Ann

  Randall, Bru

  Rasmus, Kevin

  Rausch, John

  Reid, Frank

  Reynolds, Sam

  Rigg, Rick

  Robinson, J.

  Robnett, Marie

  Rogers, J.

  Roppel, Jerry

  Rumer, Randy

  Russell, Ken

  Saunders, Joe

  Schaffner, Marty

  Schafstall, Tim

  Scheide, Alfred

  Schindel, Geary

  Schindel, Sue

  Schomer, Barb

  Schufeldt, Bob

  Scott, Herb

  Shifflett, Peter

  Shifflett, Tom

  Shuster, Evan

  Sides, Stan

  Simmons, Ron

  Simpson, Lou

  Sims, Jeff

  Skipworth, Joe

  Smiley, Larry

  Smith, Cindi

  Smith, J.

  Smith, Marion

  Smith, Trey

  Smithson, Steve

  Snell, David

  Snider, Robert

  Soukup, Cady

  Sperka, Roger

  Stecko, Joe

  Steele, Bill

  Stephens, Bill

  Stevens, Lee

  Stevens, Paul

  Stewart, Steve

  Stock, Charlotte

  Stock, Mark

  Stoessel, Debbie

  Storrick, Gary

  Sudhoff, Mike

  Sumner, Ken

  Swice
good, Roberta

  Szukalski, Bernie

  Taylor, Chris

  Taylor, Robert

  Thomas, Chuck

  Thomas, G.

  Thorpe, Dave

  Thorsell, Dave

  Tinker, Gary

  Tobias, Gary

  Townsend, Margaret

  Trexler, Carol

  Ulrich, Jeff

  Van der Werf, John

  Vansant, Jeff

  Veluzat, Phil

  Veni, George

  Vernot, David

  Wagner, Gail

  Walter, Bill

  Ward, Steve

  Warner, Gary

  Warner, Mike

  Warthman, Bruce

  Watson, Anna

  Watson, Patty Jo

  Watts, Scott

  Webb, Beth

  Weedman, Claire (later Wood)

  Weedman, Curtis

  Weimer, James

  Welbourn, Cal

  Welch, Norbert

  Weller, Chip

  Weller, David L.

  Weller, David W.

  Weller, Jean

  Weller, Lynn (later Brucker)

  Weller, Sheri

  Wells, James

  Wells, Steve

  Welsh, Chris

  West, William

  Wheeler, Richard

  White, John

  Wilcox, John

  Wilcox, Patricia

  Williamson, Suzanne

  Wilson, Bill

  Wilson, Kent

  Wilson, Ron

  Womack, Chris

  Womack, Ralph

  Wood, George

  Worthington, Steve

  Wright, Michele

  Wright, Winfield

  Yonge, Chas

  Zabrok, Peter

  Zidian, John

  Zopf, Richard

  GLOSSARY OF CAVING TERMINOLOGY

  acetylene, n. The flammable gas burned by carbide lamps, produced by the chemical reaction of water with calcium carbide.

  anticline, n. An upward arching of rock strata.

  arrow, n. A pointed line indicating the way out of a cave. Explorers sometimes mark arrows on walls or rocks with a rock, a finger, or soot from the flame of a carbide lamp.

  ascenders, n. Mechanical rope-gripping devices used to climb standing ropes.

  base level, n. The elevation of the bed of the largest surface stream in a region. The Green River is the base-level river in the Central Kentucky Karst.

  bearing, n. The angular direction measured from one survey station or point to another with reference to magnetic north. In cave surveying, the bearing is read from a compass and is written in a survey notebook.

  bedding plane, n. A narrow parting between two layers of rock—in caving, usually a horizontal slot too low for human travel.

  belay, v. To secure a climber on a rope for protection in case of a fall.

  belly crawl, n. A cave passage so low that one can travel through it only by squirming along in a prone position. Ceiling height is typically twelve to eighteen inches or less.

  blowhole, n. An opening in bedrock or between boulders on the surface from which air blows perceptibly from underground.

  bolt, n. An anchor, usually for a rope, fastened to a wall with a steel rod hammered into a drilled hole. A hanger is attached to the bolt and serves as means to attach the rope.

  borehole, n. See trunk passage.

  bowline, n. A slip-proof climber’s loop knot, usually used with a safety belay.

  brake bar, n. An aluminum rod that fastens onto a carabiner or rappel rack to provide friction. The standing rope is threaded past two or more brake bars to enable the climber to control the rate of descent.

  breakdown, n. A jumble or pile of rocks in a cave passage produced by ceiling and wall collapse. A breakdown block is an angular piece of rock with dimensions ranging from a few inches to tens of feet on a side. Terminal breakdown is a pile of breakdown blocks that closes off a cave passage.

  breathing cave, n. A cave passage in which air moves perceptibly in one direction and then in the other.

  cable ladder, n. Two metal cables—usually made of stainless steel—with rungs of lightweight metal tubing, such as aluminum, forming a ladder six or eight inches wide with rungs spaced about eighteen inches apart. It can be rolled into a compact, lightweight bundle.

  cairn, n. A pile of rocks constructed for use as a marker, ranging in height from a few inches to several feet.

  canyon, n. A cave passage in which height exceeds width, usually by two or more times.

  carabiner, n. Metal “snap-rings” used in climbing. Sometimes used with brake bars for short descents.

  carbide, n. The chemical compound calcium carbide, which produces acetylene gas when it reacts with water. To change carbide is to recharge a carbide lamp by removing the spent carbide and putting in fresh carbide; with the carbide lamps used in Mammoth Cave, this must be done every three or four hours.

  carbide lamp, n. A two-part container—usually made of brass—for generating acetylene gas. Water drips from the top part onto carbide in the bottom part to generate gas that escapes through a tiny hole in a tip or nozzle directed horizontally from the front of the container. The gas is ignited by sparks from a small steel wheel spun over flint, mounted on a reflector 2.5 inches in diameter. The lamp is mounted on the front of a hard hat, so that light shines in the direction the caver’s head is turned.

  cartography, n. With reference to caves, exploring and surveying with attention to passage detail, recording data, plotting, and drafting to produce a map showing the contours and features of the cave passages, names, topographic contours, and other details.

  cave, n., v. A natural cavity beneath the earth’s surface that is long enough and large enough to permit human entry, extending into total darkness. Caves in the Central Kentucky Karst are produced by solutional action of groundwater draining through natural openings and flowing to the base-level Green River. Also called caverns. To cave or to go caving is to explore a cave. Big cave usually means walking passages. To look for cave or to look for more cave is to look for new cave passages.

  cave conservation, n. A policy of managing or using caves to protect and preserve their natural appearance by minimizing the adverse environmental effects of human activities.

  cave meal, n. A small can of meat, a small can of fruit, and some candy bars.

  Cave Research Foundation, n. A nonprofit organization founded in 1957 for the purpose of supporting cave science, interpretation and education, and conservation. The CRF is not an open membership organization.

  cave river, n. Any stream of water in a cave is called a river. A cave river may be a few inches (Black River) or tens of feet (Logsdon River) wide and deep.

  caver, n. A cave explorer.

  Central Kentucky Karst, n. An area of karst terrain centered about one hundred miles south of Louisville. It is bounded on the north by the Hilly Country and on the west by Barren River and includes the Mammoth Cave Plateau and the Sinkhole Plain. It contains about two hundred square miles.

  Central Kentucky Karst Coalition, n. A nonprofit organization founded in 1976 to explore and describe the caves of the Mammoth Cave Plateau outside Mammoth Cave National Park. The CKKC is an open membership organization with annual dues.

  chain, n. A metal or fiberglass tape measure used in cave surveying, usually fifty or one hundred feet long. Also called a tape.

  chert, n. A very hard, flintlike rock that occurs in beds or nodules in limestone.

  chest compressor, n. A low, horizontal belly-crawl passage that one can get through only by squeezing—and often only by exhaling—to reduce the size of one’s chest.

  chimney, v. To climb the walls of a narrow passage or vertical cleft in a cave wall by bridging the opening with back and hands against one wall and feet against the other.

  chock, n. A natural or artificial obstruction in a crack used as a hold for climbing or for securing ropes in caves.

  collapse, n. A rockf
all that usually closes off a passage with breakdown.

  column, n. A pillar-like deposit extending from ceiling to floor of a cave passage, formed by the natural joining of a stalactite and a stalagmite.

  commercial cave, n. A cave containing trails and lights that is exhibited to the public for an entrance fee. Kentucky Caverns in the central Kentucky cave country is a classic commercial cave.

  compass, n. A pocket-sized surveying instrument or hand-held transit consisting of a magnetic needle or dial and one or more sights for reading bearings.

  connect, v. To find and survey through a natural cave passage that joins what were previously known as two independent caves.

  connection, n. In caves, the naturally formed passage between two or more caves previously known through separate entrances.

  crack, n. A narrow opening in the wall, floor, or ceiling of a cave passage.

  crawlway, n. A cave passage so low that one can get through it comfortably only on hands and knees. Ceiling height is typically two to three feet.

  crouchway, n. A cave passage so low that one can get through it only in a stooped or duck-walk position. Ceiling height is typically three to five feet.

  cutaround, n. A section of secondary cave passage that departs from a main passage and returns to it after a short distance.

  dome, n. A vertical, circular, or oval opening in the ceiling of a cave passage produced by the solutional activity of descending water or by collapse. Vertical shafts viewed from below are often called domes; viewed from the middle, they are called domepits.

  dripstone, n. A secondary mineral deposit within a cave. Common forms include stalagmites, stalactites, and rimstone.

  exfoliate, v. To come off in sheets, flakes, or layers parallel with the surface; for example, pieces from shaley rock walls and ceiling of a cave passage.

  fill, n. Any indigenous loose material in the cave, such as sand or mud. Or, as in the passage ends in fill: a passage that terminates in a floor to ceiling fill. Or, as in the passage filled: a passage that was found to end in fill.

  Flint Ridge, n. The northernmost karst ridge on the Mammoth Cave Plateau in Mammoth Cave National Park, containing Floyd Collins’ Crystal Cave, Unknown Cave, Great Onyx Cave, Salts Cave, and Colossal Cave. The four connected caves (all except Great Onyx Cave) were known as the Flint Ridge Cave System (FRCS) from 1961 to 1972. In 1972, the FRCS was connected to Mammoth Cave to form the Flint Mammoth Cave System.

  Flint Ridge con, n. A pattern of speech and body language calculated to win the confidence of the listener and to promote expectations of wonderful underground discoveries. As perfected by Jim Dyer, it fascinates and disarms the listener and creates eagerness to explore the place described, even if aware that he or she is being manipulated by an artist.

  flowstone, n. A secondary deposit in caves of calcium carbonate, usually in the form of the mineral calcite, precipitated from groundwater. It occurs in the form of sheets, drapery, dams, lily pads, and the like. (This is a local usage for what is more generally called travertine.)

  fluorescein dye, n. A concentrated, nontoxic chemical that colors water a vivid green. It is used to trace the course of underground streams. It can be detected in concentrations of a few parts per million when intercepted by an activated charcoal dye trap or “bug.”