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NEST TRIP REPORT
Project X Trip Report 11 Mar 2000
The Northeast Sump Exploration Team, NEST, returned to continue
exploration efforts at Project X on 11 Mar 2000. NEST is a formally
recognized Project of the NSS and consists of a team of sump divers and
dedicated support personnel who are pursuing original exploration efforts at
several caves in the PA, Virginia and West Virginia areas. The team
surveys and further documents these sites through the use of still and video
techniques as well as engaging in biological surveys and water sampling at
these locations. NEST is also available to support the NCRC in situations
involving flooded passage and beyond sump rescues. Below is an account of
the Teams most recent explorations.
On the night of 10 March Dave Hollick did a reckon of the site and
discovered two very important things, one jet fin with spring strap high and
dry on the left side of the downstream passage and much lower water levels.
This was all the encouragement we needed and the next mourning Eric and I
were on our way North to Pa to meet the local support team. Unlike last
weekend it was a dreary and rainy day. I appreciated the waterproof
qualities of my CF 200 dry suit on the walk to the cave and once again was
highly impressed with the enthusiasm of the support team who despite the
grim weather were all highly motivated as they hauled a couple hundred
pounds of gear safely into the cave. My hat is always of to these folks
who make our exploration efforts possible.
The lower water levels allowed us to get out of the weather and do the
final assembly in the entrance room on a sand and cobble beach, the same one
I had floated above the weekend before. With Jack providing light I began
the meticulous process of assembling my gear. With this task successfully
completed I entered the water first while Eric stood by in support. In
addition to my regular sidemount rig of dual OMS 45s I also carried an Alum
30 stage bottle to extend my range. The lower water levels had also brought
with them greatly improved visibility. As I finned through the first sump I
could see at least five feet. The first two sumps passed quickly and I soon
found my self at the drop off into the third. I followed the line downward
along the steep slope pasted the two Disler Spikes protruding from the
bottom like lone sentinels to a depth of 21 feet and than began the assent
up the reverse slope.
Just before the beginning of the tight tube I clipped off my stage on
the line and did a final test of both my Mk 20 - G 250s. I enter the tube
by rotating on my side so that one tank was up and the other down, this is
the only way to pass this section and after 10 feet I was able to assume a
regular profile. Below me I could actually see the bottom of the canyon, it
no longer appeared bottom less. After reaching the tie off at the end of
this section, a large projection hanging off the right wall, I followed the
line back down at a 45 degree angle to a depth of 18 feet and along a wide
passage to its end where I had tied it off on a large limestone arch that
connected the right wall and the floor. I connected into the loop I had
left on my last dive and with a full AUL reel set out to explore.
My previous push from this location had led me along a 8 foot by 8
foot passage that curved to the right and ended in a small air filled room.
This had unfortunately dead ended so I knew that I had missed something on
that dive, all this water had to be coming from some where. As I set out
this time I headed to the left but ran into a solid wall, I had been fairly
sure that the missing passage lay in this direction. Disappointed I decide
to follow this wall and soon recognized that I was once again in the passage
that had led me to the air filled room, with no other apparent options I
continued in this direction until I noticed a small opening on the left
near the bottom. I drift down to this and illuminated it with my AUL HID.
It was down right tiny and reminded me of the opening on a medium size dog
house. I was just about to head further in when I notice that the water was
definitely flowing out of this opening. As I floated in front of it I
reached in with my primary and stirred up some more sediment which was
quickly blown out. No doubt about it, I had found the missing source of at
least some of the water. As I looked this tiny opening over my initial
thought was that this was the end of the cave, there was no way that any
sane person would fit through this. A check of my gas supplies showed that
I had plenty of time so I decided to take a closer look.
It was possible to get my head in and with my arm extended I could see
that not only was it tight but that it also trended upward. As I looked
forward I could also see that it appeared to open up a bit. To get a better
look I rotated to my side facing the left wall and inched further into the
opening, it was a little bigger than it looked . With my head and
shoulders in I got a better view and damn if it did not get bigger on the
other side. Both my tanks were now in contact with the cave, my right on
the floor and my left on the ceiling with back and stomach also in contact
with the cave. It felt uncomfortable and in a flurry of silt and a bit of
wiggling I backed out and let the current clear the water.
As the visibility returned the opening beckoned me for another look.
This time I was able to wiggle another six inched further before I decided
to make sure that I could back out. It took a bit more effort but was not
too grim. A check of my time and gas showed I still had ample safety
margins and I spent the next two minutes looking over the lead and
considering my options. It still looked small but not quite as bad as my
first impression of it had been. I decided to make one more effort and as I
reached my previous point of maximum penetration and pushed past I could see
that it definitely got much bigger on the other side. This encouraged me
and I inched slowly forward. I now had to wiggle from side to side to make
any progress and after several tense moments I was past the worst of it and
suddenly popped out like a cork from a bottle into a wide room. I panned my
light back and forth lighting up the virgin sediment and could see the
passage continued out of sight. We were back in business again with going
cave.
The urge to continue with my explorations was however tempered by the
pressing need to know if I could fit back the way I had come. I removed a
Disler Spike from my right tank to reduce my profile and with no good
natural tie offs in sight tried to use this to belay the line. Faced with
bed rock and a very thin layer of sediment this proved unsuccessful so I
locked off the reel and placed it against the left wall and discarded the
spike. As I turned and lit up the restriction with my light all I could
see was a cloud of silt. Laying on the bottom motion less I concentrated on
controlling my breathing and waited two minutes for the current to flush
this cloud away. The restriction did not look any bigger from the other
side but I had been through it once so I new I would fit. The only question
was could I do it head first or would I have to backout through it.
Although backing out is a skill I have had to master it is not a whole lot
of fun if you have to go any significant distance. I opted for head first
and as both tanks came in contact with the cave I had to grab the wall with
my right hand and pull as I rotated the tanks back and forth, it was snug
but I was able to move forward. It was a little like threading the eye of a
needle with a piece of thread that barely fit, it took some work. After
what felt like several minutes I popped out into the large trunk on the
other side accompanied by a small cloud of silt. I stopped for a moment and
got my breathing rate back down and began my exit up and through the now
seemingly spacious tight tube, recovered my stage and letting the current
do most of the work passed the next two sumps and rejoined the team who was
anxiously waiting my arrival.
I exited and after pumping my suit up with argon to dispel the chill
conferred with Eric who then proceeded with a dive that would take him on an
orientation push to the end of the tight tube with a secondary objective to
get some macro photos of one of our many friendly fish that inhabited the
sumps. He exited just on time with several shots in the bag.
With a fresh set of tanks and Eric in support we reentered the sump and
I dropped Eric off in the small air filled room before sump three to stand
by as my backup diver while I continued on. The Second restriction proved
much more comfortable now that I knew I could pass it from the other
direction and although it still required a bit of a struggle passing it the
second time went much more smoothly. I soon found myself floating above
my reel peering forward. With going passage it was time to find a tie of
before I went any further, A check of the passage on the right disclosed
what looked like a suitable rock which unfortunately turned out to be
unacceptable when I tried it so I had to reeled back to my original spot.
At this point I pulled out a coated lead weight I had brought with me for
this propose and used it to belay the line. Finning forward I found the
passage was over six feet wide and three to four feet high. Thirty feet in a
natural tie off came into view that I happily took advantage of. As I moved
forward the depth decreased and when I reached five feet I was faced with
what appeared to be a pile of breakdown to my front. I could see several
holes that might let me pass but it was time to turn and head for home. A
natural tie off presented itself so after looping the line around it I cut
the line and tied a figure eight in the end for future use. The Eye of the
Needle the second time was quite comfortable. As I gently finned through
the tight tube I looked over the delicate ledges that covered the area. We
would have to be very careful to preserve this pristine site.
After meeting Eric in the room before the third sump we continued on to
the surface to the smiling faces of the support team. The water was rising
slowly and they were glad to see us. As we broke the gear down I reflected
on the fact that this was not a bad way to spend ones Birthday. We had
pushed the cave yet further and it still seemed to have quite a bit of
potential. Not bad as Dave Hollick later put it for a site that had been
written off by the caving community for many years. JD you have your work
cut out for you, definitely time to redo the map.
We would like to recognize our sponsors and all of the supporting cavers
who helped make our efforts possible. A special thanks to Arnold Jackson Of
American Underwater Lighting who supplied our exceptional primary lights,
Meteor 4�s and HIDs , as well as other critical gear and Jon Breazile of the
Fifth Dimension Dive Center who has provided us with other vital support.
We would also like to thank Terry Brady, of the Brass Anchor who has
provided us with generous audio visual support. Additional sponsors include
Lamar Hires of Dive Rite, Gene Weisheit of East Coast Divers, Alex Sproul
of Inner Mountain Outfitters, Adrew Kipe of Maryland Reproductions, and
Robert Carmichael of Brownies Third Lung and HALCYON, The Doing It Right
Equipment Company, and our most recent sponsor, DUI for our outstanding CF
200 series Dry Suits, Tim Walker, Hank and Jane Anderson, and the Sovik
and Mothes families without whose support none of our efforts would have
been possible.
Diver Explorers
Joseph Kaffl
Eric Tesnau
Support Team Members
Dave Hollick Pa Area Coordinator
Jack Rice
Tim Fronk
Jody McNerney
Jennifer Albin
David Wonderlick
Rob Peterson
..
JOSEPH
KAFFL
SUMPDIVER@MS*.CO*
NEST
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